[gemy]

Lots of good advice here. If you aren't going to show your boy invest in a nice shorter haircut. I say this because keeping a long coat is a whole lot of work. Dang there is a link somewhere here that shows some really cute cuts.

Combs can have pretty sharp ends. Try getting a natural boar bristle brush .. I believe Madan makes some. Or you could go with Chris Christensen wooden pin brush .. one of my favourites. The cost of a good brush is well costly .. but it will last a whole long time and pay you back over and over.

Definitely a clean coat that is brushed daily will in the long run save you lots of time, keep your boy happy, and enjoying his grooming sessions with you.

One mistake I made when I first got a show dog was not letting the detangler rest in the hair before I tried to demat. So that's one piece of advice.

Actually my breeder recommends dematting by hand and then by turning comb on it's side and literally picking apart slowly the mat.

Now with my Yorkie I get to distinct types of problems with his hair. One is a tangle where two or more separate strands of hair have intertwined to create a knot. The other is more like a web or spider like mass.

pick apart the tangle as I described.

For the mass like try using either cornstarch or some conditioner and put onto mass ... Then slowly try to separate out mass.

When you brush or comb his coat. Start from the ends of the hair brush those out then move up the strand of hair to 1/2 brush out 3/4 brush out .. etc until you reach the roots. Separate the hair into a couple inch sections to brush out body of coat.
On the legs: gently cradle your pups paw in your hand -- turn brush / comb on side and gently brush hair. Go up leg to shoulder.

I hope this can help you. I know how frustrating mats can be !!