# Can you brush a GSD too much?



## HeyJude (Feb 2, 2011)

Harley has been non-stop shedding. My question is... I brush him daily, he loves it and I use it for bonding time for me and him. He expects it and if I don't brush him he will bother me till I do. Can I brush him too much? Will his coat grow correctly for winter? I get brush-fulls of hair each time. Can I be pulling out the hair? I use a pin brush (not slicker). Should I stop?
Thanks.
JudeAnn


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

i brush/comb my dog 3 to 4 times a week. i use an under coat
and a pin brush. when i use the under coat comb i comb him in
all directions. then i comb him down with the under coat comb.
i use the pin brush on his head, legs and underneath him.


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## m1953 (May 7, 2012)

HeyJude said:


> Harley has been non-stop shedding. My question is... I brush him daily, he loves it and I use it for bonding time for me and him. He expects it and if I don't brush him he will bother me till I do. Can I brush him too much? Will his coat grow correctly for winter? I get brus-fulls of hair each time. Can I be pulling out the hair? I use a pin brush (not slicker). Should I stop?
> Thanks.
> JudeAnn


I brush Nala daily also, she loves it too. I never heard anyone ever say you can brush too much.. She actually requires less bathing with daily bruising.


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## Elaine (Sep 10, 2006)

You won't hurt the fur by brushing a lot, but the skin can become sore. So long as you do your best to not press hard and irritate the skin, you should be ok.


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## vomlittlehaus (Aug 24, 2010)

My three are shedding like crazy as well. I am trying to brush them every day. Trying to keep the hair in the house to a minimum, but that is not working. Once they are done with the seasonal shed, I only brush a few times a month. The hair needs to come out, if you dont brush, they will scratch it out. And the scratching could lead to other problem. I buy my grooming brushes in the horse section at country max. I bought a rubber one (the kind escapes me right now). But it fits over your hand and was only $.99. I had a human comb that had very tight teeth and worked great at getting the undercoat out, but it was plastic and the teeth started breaking. I picked up an aluminum comb/hoof pick combo for $1.39, and that works just as well if not better. Baths will be next week.


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## Stosh (Jun 26, 2010)

I also brush Stosh every day and like you, we enjoy the quiet bonding time. Being long coated there's always some seeds and stickers to brush out. It gives me a chance to run my hands over his body and check him out for anything unusual


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## cta (May 24, 2011)

i also use a curry comb like dawn suggested. people use them on horses, but that seems to be the best for the dog so far. i brushed him again today and barely any hair came out! maybe he's done shedding for now. i'm sure all of the birds around here have nice fluffy nests from all of his hair they picked up off the lawn


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## HeyJude (Feb 2, 2011)

I have a curry comb somewhere around here from when I had a horse for the kids. I will try that.


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## Mooch (May 23, 2012)

Curry comb will work great on short to medium coats but I've never found it all that useful on my long coat


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## vomlittlehaus (Aug 24, 2010)

Curry comb for the short coats, slicker probably better for a long coat.


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## Abbey'sMom (Jul 25, 2012)

*Do Supplements Work?*

I know they are heavy shedders, but can the food they eat have any affect on the shedding?...as far as reducing it? Or are there any supplements that can help...wondering for the future, been awhile and Abbey is still young, really hasnt started to "Shed" yet...

and i do own a Dyson...LOL

she also apparently strongly objects to being attached by the silver tooth monster.
(hates to be brushed...)

Lorraine


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## Freestep (May 1, 2011)

There is no such thing as too much brushing, IMO, especially if you are using a pin brush--a pin brush will not damage the coat and doesn't take off very much hair, as compared to a slicker, shedding blade, rake, or what have you. Personally, I prefer using a soft slicker as I think it works better for shedding coats, but a pin brush certainly won't hurt, and if you both enjoy brushing, do it as often as you like!


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

Yes, you can overbrush. I've seen it done twice. The dog's coats looked horrid and it took a LONG time to grow back (like a year). Both times some sort of blade brush (like a Furminator) was involved. I don't think you can really overbrush with just a slicker, pin brush, or rake but eventually it will hurt the dog and they get "brush burn".


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## Moxy (Aug 3, 2012)

I probably should brush Moxy more. She gets brushed during the shedding season. Not daily, though. She was getting brushed more when she had all the dandruff from her skin infection. Had to get the scales off. Now that she's healthy, I've noticed she doesn't shed as much. We have her on a grain free diet with raw treats. She also gets yogurt and coconut oil. I vacuum twice a day for my don's eczema. Noticed a huge difference in the past 2 weeks in the amount of hair coming up. It's mainly cat hair now and pet dander.


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