my poor pomeranians matts!!

Hmmmm, I'm no groomer but there are several on this board that will be around soon I'm sure. It sounds to me like maybe you might need to shave him. From what I understand, matts hurt.

oooooooooooooh no we're NOT about to shave him. this is a POMERANIAN he's not even a year old. we've waited 4EVR for his hair to become like this, and its not even poofy yet. if we SHAVE him, it will take forever, and that'll take the beuty out of him....sry fellas.

Ahh matts do hurt espicially when they are down to the skin. I used to keep Eve in a long coat and brushed her everyday sometimes twice a day, she still would get them. I now have all of them in a puppy cut or a teddy bear cut.
 
I'm now doing all of my own grooming and I know from past and present experience that tugging at them does cause pain. There are plenty of dematting tools out there you can find some really cost effective ones at PetEdge.com I've never used them but for the really bad matts I have taken my blunt tipped scissors and "cut into the matt" to break it up then you can take a metal comb and comb it out. Also you can put a little conditioner on the mat while working w/it, it does help some. If this doesn't work I would suggest a groomer who is used to doing this everyday and possibly a shave.[] I know it's not the look you want but trust me the hair does grow back.[]
 
Big hugs to your baby!

we've taken SHARP scissors and tried to cut the mats. it wouldn't cut. we've used damatting tools too, they cause bigger matts, and they were said to be used my groomers........................


WUT SHOULD I DO THIS IS SOO HOPLESS I JUST WANT MY BABY TO BE OK!..with out getting shaved.

Why are you against him getting shaved? It's really not so bad, hair grows. He probably will be more comfortable anyway during the summer

Honestly he needs to go to the groomers. Hopefully you won't have to shave him down too far and they may be able to do somethingelse for you besides the shave. You don't want the matts to cause pain or get infected though. His health and comfort is worth alot more than the coat he's grown out, trust me it'll grow back.[]

Obviously the matts are out of hand...get your pup to the groomers.  Dogs with coats like that need daily grooming...I know I own a Shih Tzu who is growing out his coat.  Would you rather your"baby" be in pain because of the matts?

Mats ARE painful.  Pinch your own skin.  It feels like that[8D].

PLEASE do not try to cut out mats yourself with scissors, especially if the mats are down to the skin.  This can be very dangerous.  Mats usually form in high-friction areas (groin, arm-pits, behind ears) where the skin is very loose and tender.

If you can't break-up the mats, why are you fretting about shaving him?  It sounds like you have no other option.  I am not trying to preach to you, but you can take this as a lesson well learned.    At least your bald puppy won't be in pain anymore.  Don't grouse at your groomer if your dog comes out looking skinned.  It was your choice not to maintain him properly.   I am sure you will now brush and comb him regularly, and never let this happen again.  Most of the Poms I groom grow their coats-out pretty quick.[]

Here is a picture of the arsenal that I have bought in the last 9 and 1/2 months for Mollys hair.
 
Here is what I use out of all that stuff.
 
 
Here is all the sprays that I have got which Cowboy Magic and The Stuff are the best but they don`t make the mats disappear. They help you get them out. I have learned the hard way. In your case I`d take the pup to the groomer they may be able to help you without a shave job. They know what they are doing and if they say shave I`d do it and then brush, brush, brush everyday. Molly never got real bad. Just behind her ears because of her collar (no longer on when she is in the house), a couple on her legs, and one on her tail and one under her chin. What a long day that was. Never never again. I have heard if you cut some of the mats out that those places will mat faster and easier then if the hair was still long in those places. If find the comb works the best of anything that I have for mats. The brush works good if the dog has no mats. I was just using the brush and thats when the mats came as it didn`t get down to the skin to get out the undercoat. I didn`t realize this till the damage was already done. Anyway good luck. Hope my pictures show up.
 
 
 

If he's so bad that you can't just take a scissor and snip right behind the mat to get it off then he needs to see a professional.  They will suggest the best thing for him.  And, then you need to be extremely diligent in keeping him up or you'll be back in the same boat again really soon.

Take this as a lesson learned that Poms with a long coat need DAILY brushing.Get him shaved so he doesnt suffer for your mistake.He will grow back pretty fast and you can start a daily brushing routine without him being traumatized from you trying to tear out mats for hours.

Most pet owners don't brush correctly. They usually just brush over the top coat so even if they brush everyday the dog still gets matted. With a dog like a Pomeranian you need to part the fur and brush down to the skin in sections DAILY. Using a conditioning spray also helps. So this dog either hasn't been brushed properly or often enough.

At this point (unless you want him to go through a very painful dematting session) your dog needs to be shaved down.

I see this on an almost daily basis. The pet owner has either not been maintaining their dogs coat OR they have not been shown how to properly groom their pet at home to keep mats from forming. There are some do and don't when it comes to coat maintainance.
 
As a groomer, I think it's rather selfish for a pet owner to not allow a matted dog to be shaved. We used to offer dematting service, but have since stopped since it's just so painful for the dog and hazardous for the groomer (little dogs BITE, lol). Our hourly charge for dematting was $45/hour. There were many, many owner who were vain about their dogs appearance and absolutely didn't want their dogs clipped short, no way, no how!!!! We would let them know we had a dematting service (their eyes glowed) and then informed them of the price (eyes now popping out of their head, lol). Apparently, the coat was not worth the money. What it's not worth, is the discomfort it causes the pet and the wear and tear it causes on the groomers hands.
 
Alot of times, I feel that the owners don't want others to think they don't take care of their pet and HAD to have it "shaved" Keeping up appearances is motivation for a lot of unreasonable request's.
 
Get this little guy to the groomer! Don't attempt to cut mats out yourself and if you can't easily brush them out, you can cause major skin damage by repeated brushing. Swallow your pride and let this little one start over with a brand new coat.

Well said kennel_keeper.
But realistically ALL dogs can and do bite regardless of size lol!
 
Pomeranian luvr- Don't be vain or selfish about your dog's appearance, or even worried what others may say...it is more important that your dog feel comfortable and matt free.