FURminator Slicker Brush for Dogs & Cats Review (2026)
The everyday brush in the FURminator lineup — and the finishing pass your deshedding sessions are missing.
MyPawAdvisor Verdict
FURminator Slicker
★★★★★4.31,000+ Amazon reviews
$10–$18
on Amazon
A well-made slicker that does the everyday work the deshedding tools can't: surface hair, tangle prevention, and the finishing pass that makes a groomed coat look the part. It won't fix shedding alone — but as the daily companion to a FURminator deshedding routine, it closes the loop.
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Quick Specs
Our Review
Not every grooming session is an undercoat excavation. Most days, a coat just needs surface maintenance — loose topcoat hair off, small tangles out, everything smoothed and shined. That's slicker brush territory, and FURminator's version has quietly become the brush we reach for most days in between deshedding sessions.
We used the FURminator Slicker Brush for two months as the daily-driver brush for a Golden Retriever and the finishing tool after every deshedding session on a German Shepherd. It also got weekly duty on a long-haired cat. It's a well-built, comfortable slicker that does exactly what slickers do — no more, and importantly, no less.
The lineup is simple: Small and Large sizes, plus a soft-bristle version for fine coats and sensitive skin. At $10–$18 it's priced against a crowded field of slickers, so the question is whether the FURminator badge means anything here. Mostly, yes — with one caveat about what a slicker is for.
What a Slicker Brush Is Actually For
A slicker's fine bent-wire pins grab loose hair sitting in the topcoat, separate hairs that are starting to tangle, and smooth the coat's surface — jobs a deshedding edge is completely wrong for. What a slicker does not do is remove undercoat in any quantity; the pins are too fine and too shallow. This is the most common slicker misunderstanding: owners of double-coated breeds buy one, brush diligently, and wonder why the house is still full of fur. If shedding is your problem, you need a deshedding tool; the slicker is the maintenance and finishing layer on top of it. FURminator's own lineup is structured exactly this way.
The Finishing Pass: Where It Earns Its Keep
Our main use, and the one we'd buy it for again: the five-minute finishing pass after every FURminator deShedding Tool session. The deshedding edge pulls undercoat but leaves a layer of dislodged hair sitting loose on the topcoat. The slicker sweeps that layer off and leaves the coat smooth and visibly shinier — the difference between a dog that looks brushed and a dog that looks groomed. On our German Shepherd this finishing pass also caught the loose guard hairs the deshedding tool deliberately leaves alone. If you already own a FURminator tool, this is the missing last step of the routine.
Daily Driver on a Golden Retriever
As the everyday brush for our Golden's silky coat, the slicker ran five minutes most evenings: feathering on the legs, behind the ears, the tail. Over two months it kept tangles from ever reaching mat stage — the deMatter tool stayed in the drawer the entire period, which is the quiet victory of consistent slicker use. Comfort details matter at daily frequency: the handle is comfortable, the head size (Large) covers a retriever efficiently, and the pin tips are smooth enough that the dog leans into sessions rather than tolerating them. The soft variant is worth choosing for thin-coated or brush-shy pets — standard slicker pins can feel scratchy on fine coats.
FURminator Slicker vs. Hertzko Self-Cleaning Slicker
The Hertzko is the internet's default slicker, and its self-cleaning retracting-pin button is genuinely convenient — press it and the collected hair lifts off in one mat. The FURminator slicker skips the mechanism, which means picking hair out of the pins by hand, but also means fewer moving parts and a more rigid, precise brush head. Brushing performance is comparable; pick by preference: convenience and easy cleanup, take the Hertzko; simpler construction with the same coat results, take the FURminator — especially if you're already standardized on the brand's other tools.
Small vs. Large, Standard vs. Soft: Choosing Right
Size by pet, not by enthusiasm: Small for cats and dogs under roughly 25 pounds, where a smaller head maneuvers around legs and faces; Large for everything bigger, where coverage per stroke matters. Then coat: the standard pins suit most coats, while the soft version is the right call for fine, silky, or thin coats (Yorkies, Papillons, most cats) and for any pet that's flinched at a slicker before. If you're between options, soft is the safer error — a too-soft brush just works slower, while a too-firm one teaches a pet to hate brushing.
Pros & Cons
✅ What We Love
- ✓Ideal finishing brush after deshedding sessions — visibly smoother, shinier coat
- ✓Consistent daily use genuinely prevents mats from forming
- ✓Comfortable for both the groomer and the pet at daily frequency
- ✓Soft variant available for fine coats and sensitive skin
- ✓Simple, rigid construction with nothing to break
- ✓Works across dogs and cats
⚠️ Watch Out For
- ✕Does not remove undercoat — wrong tool if shedding is the problem
- ✕No self-cleaning mechanism; pins need hand-cleaning
- ✕Crowded category — the advantage over good budget slickers is modest
Who Should Buy This?
👍 Perfect For
Owners who already deshed with a FURminator and want the proper finishing brush, plus anyone with silky or tangle-prone coats needing low-stress daily maintenance.
👎 Not Ideal If
Owners buying a single tool to fix double-coat shedding — that's the deshedding tool's job, not a slicker's.
Alternatives to Consider
FURminator deShedding Tool
The undercoat tool — the slicker finishes what this one starts
Hertzko Self-Cleaning Slicker Brush
The convenience pick — retracting pins make cleanup one-button
FURminator Sensitive Areas Tool
For the face and paws, where even a soft slicker is too much
Best Finishing Brush
FURminator Slicker Brush for Dogs & Cats
★★★★★4.3A well-made slicker that does the everyday work the deshedding tools can't: surface hair, tangle prevention, and the finishing pass that makes a groomed coat look the part. It won't fix shedding alone — but as the daily companion to a FURminator deshedding routine, it closes the loop.
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MyPawAdvisor Editorial Team
Our reviews are based on hands-on testing, ingredient and material analysis, veterinary input, and aggregated owner review data from 10,000+ verified purchasers. We only recommend products we would use ourselves.