The FURminator – Over-Priced but Believe the Hype

March 5, 2008

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There’s a relatively new product on the market for dealing with one the commonplaces of dog ownership – shedding hair. Of course, most people don’t brush their dogs as often as they should which would help tremendously with the problem.

The FURminator is really not a “new” concept to anyone who’s familiar with the traditional curved shedding blade. But it is an effective and ergonomic variation on the previous styles of blades and coat combs. Of course, it is hideously over-priced at $60 for the large FURminator.

However, it does work very well and if you’re only going to brush your dog once a month or so, this is the tool to use. It doesn’t cut your dog’s hair but works by pulling out the undercoat. I have to admit that it does this better than any of the shedding blades I’ve used in the past.

They claim it will reduce shedding by up to 90% (I’ll report later on my own long term experience with it). That’s like the dishwasher soap that leaves your dishes ‘virtually spotless.’ Another way of expressing the same thought is, this soap leaves some spots on your dishes.

The FURminator folks also sell shampoos and lotions that they claim work with their tool to even further reduce the amount of shedding your dogs does. I’m very skeptical of this claim. If you believe that any lotion or potion or soap or shampoo by itself will reduce shedding in a breed prone to it, you probably click on those emails for breast and penis enlargement, too.

Bottom line: it works. I got an incredible amount of hair off my two Labradors, similar to the examples shown on their website, www.furminator.com. But I think the price should be one-half of what it’s currently selling for.

You can, I believe, achieve the same results by using a $10 shedding blade once a week, as you can by using the FURminator once a month. I gotta admit they came up with a great name and a handle that looks very high-tech and is comfortable to use, too. But $60? C’mon, guys give us a break.

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