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Undercoat rake, not a brush. That’s my answer, and my pick is the Maxpower Planet undercoat rake, because it pulls Aussie undercoat without scratching and leaves me a pile to trash instead of wool on the couch. After the rake, the Chris Christensen Big G slicker gets the leftover fluff out without shredding his coat.
If you came here looking for the best brush for Australian Shepherd shedding, that’s it. Kai is a red merle, born July 2024, and when his undercoat really moved it wasn’t a brush that did the heavy work. It was the rake. Everything below is what I actually reach for in our house in Westchester County, and I’ve written down what bugs me about each one. The whole point is getting the wool off the dog before it lands on the couch.
Why the best deshedding tool for an Australian Shepherd is a rake, not a brush
Aussies have a double coat. The part you pet is the top coat. Under it is the wool, and the wool is what ends up on your couch. A brush mostly skates over it. A slicker tidies the top coat, and the rake is what actually moves a double coat. That’s why, when someone asks me for the best deshedding tool for an Australian Shepherd, I don’t hand them a brush at all.
The Maxpower Planet is a double-sided undercoat rake. It pulls Aussie undercoat without scratching, and the hair comes off the dog in a pile you can pick up and trash. On blow weeks you’ll fill a towel with wool. It doesn’t stop shedding. Nothing does. A non-shedding Aussie doesn’t exist. What you get is smaller tumbleweeds.
The Big G comes in behind the rake for the leftover fluff, and it doesn’t shred his coat doing it. The Pettom comb goes last. If the comb catches on something, that’s a mat I missed. The Shernbao dryer and the Arm & Hammer spray aren’t brushes, but I use them in the same shedding routine, so they’re here too.
Deshedding rake or Maxpower deshedder? Same tool
On Kai that’s one tool, the Maxpower Planet Original Pet Grooming Rake. It’s his undercoat tool, and it gets the wool out of his coat before it ends up on the couch.
The pile in the rake photo below is one session’s undercoat. It won’t make a double-coated herding dog stop shedding, but it gets the wool out before you’d be vacuuming it up later.
Australian Shepherd undercoat rake vs slicker vs comb
What each one does on a double coat, and when I pick it up.
| Tool | What it does on an Aussie double coat | When to use it | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maxpower Planet undercoat rake | Pulls the dead undercoat out, no scratching, and leaves it in a pile you can trash. | When he’s blowing coat. Dry coat only. | See pick ↓ |
| Chris Christensen Big G slicker | Tidies the top coat and gets the leftover fluff out without shredding it. | After the rake. | See pick ↓ |
| Pettom finishing comb | Finds what the rake and slicker missed. If it snags, you missed a mat. | Last pass. Pants, armpits, behind the ears. | See pick ↓ |
| Shernbao Super Cyclone force dryer | Blows water out of a double coat and moves loose undercoat into a drift. | Bath night, bathroom door closed. Rake once he’s dry. | See pick ↓ |
| Arm & Hammer waterless bath spray | Freshens the coat between baths. Not a bath, and it doesn’t deshed. | After a dusty walk or a roll in something. | See pick ↓ |
| See everything Kai uses | |||
Kai’s picks, with the flaw on each
Amazing product. It pulls Aussie undercoat without scratching and leaves me a pile to trash instead of wool on the couch.
Honest flaw: It doesn’t stop shedding, and the hair goes somewhere. Use it outside or over something shakeable.
Pick this if your Aussie is blowing coat.
This is the brush I’d hand someone who asked me for a brush, with the rake in my other hand. After the rake it gets the leftover fluff out and doesn’t shred his coat doing it.
Honest flaw: It’s a top-coat brush. It doesn’t move the undercoat, so on its own it won’t get you through a coat blow.
Pick this if you want a brush for the leftover fluff after the rake.
Last pass, after the rake and the slicker. I run it through his pants, his armpits and behind his ears, which is where the other two miss things.
Honest flaw: If it snags, you missed a mat. The comb finds it. It doesn’t fix it.
Pick this if you want a last pass through the pants, armpits and behind the ears.
Blows his double coat actually dry and pushes the loose undercoat into a drift, so the towel isn’t the whole job. Then I rake.
Honest flaw: Loud on purpose. Bathroom only, and it doesn’t travel. It won’t stop him shedding, and it doesn’t replace the rake.
Pick this if you want his double coat actually dry on bath night, before you rake.
For freshening Kai up after a dusty walk or a roll in something. Mist it on, work it in by hand, towel off the extra. Shampoo is for actual dirt, not a weekly perfume bath, and this is what I use between baths.
Honest flaw: It’s not a bath and it won’t deshed him. The label says White Jasmine, and if you hate floral scents, pick something else.
Pick this if you want to freshen him up after a dusty walk, between baths.
Shedding season routine for a coat blow
This is the order I work in when Kai’s undercoat is really moving. Bath nights get the dryer added in, and the spray is for the days in between.
- Make sure it’s a real blow. Fur on the floor on a random Tuesday doesn’t count. I wait until the undercoat is coming out in clumps.
- Close the bathroom door and put a towel down. Aussie hair migrates, and a shut door keeps it in one room.
- Rake, dry coat only. I start at the back and sides, slow strokes through the thick places, clearing the teeth as I go. Light hand on the thin spots and his ears. Press hard and it can scratch. If the skin goes pink or he shifts away, I stop.
- Then the Big G for the leftover fluff. This is the fluff pass, not the deshed.
- Comb last. Pants, armpits, behind the ears. Anywhere it catches, there’s a mat I didn’t get.
- Bag the fur before the door opens, then run the robot. Rake for the dog, robot for the floor.
- After a real deshed, re-check the harness fit.
Bath nights. Real baths are TropiClean (more in my best shampoo for Australian Shepherds guide), then the Shernbao. Bathroom, door closed. I towel the drip off first, then start the dryer farther away on lower force, with treats, and keep the nozzle moving. Don’t cook his skin. If he leans away, I stop. Once he’s actually dry and the loose undercoat is sitting in a drift, I rake. Not before. Wet dragging a deshedder is how you scratch. The dryer just gets you to the rake sooner. More in the high-velocity dryer guide.
Between baths. Shampoo is for actual dirt, not a weekly perfume bath. But Kai rolls in things. Mist a little Arm & Hammer on the ruff and back, work it in by hand, and towel off any extra. Keep it out of his eyes and off pink skin, and let the coat dry before you rake. If he still smells like whatever he rolled in, bath night comes early. The rest is in the waterless bath spray guide.
If the house is hairy, rake first. A bath won’t fix your floors. That was true when he was a puppy and it’s still true.
The hair that still hits the floor is the Dreame’s job. Shampoo notes are on the dog shampoo guide, and the spray has its own Arm & Hammer waterless page.
Mini Aussie and Miniature American Shepherd Undercoat Removal
Kai’s a standard-size Aussie, not a mini, so I haven’t used the rake on a Mini Aussie or a Miniature American Shepherd. Nothing here is Kai-tested on a mini.
The coat’s the same idea though. The AKC says the Miniature American Shepherd has a double coat, with a longer outer coat and a wooly undercoat, and that the breed was originally called the Miniature Australian Shepherd. On Kai, the rake is what actually moves a double coat.
Here’s how I use it on him. Dry coat only, back and sides first, light hand on the thin spots and his ears, and I stop if the skin goes pink or he shifts away.
Source: AKC Miniature American Shepherd breed page (akc.org/dog-breeds/miniature-american-shepherd).
What not to do
- Don’t shave a double coat. An Aussie’s coat is his shade. You want smaller tumbleweeds, not a bald dog.
- Don’t lean on the deshedder, and don’t drag it through a wet coat. Both scratch. And rake when he’s blowing coat, not every time you spot fur on the rug.
- Skip the ten-piece kit full of tools you won’t touch, and skip the cheap slickers that scratch more than they groom. Same with any promise that one miracle tool ends Aussie hair. An Aussie puppy doesn’t need a salon suitcase, and an adult doesn’t either.
- Don’t rake a puppy on day one. Puppy coat is softer and the adult undercoat comes later. Teach handling with a soft brush first, so the rake isn’t a foreign object in year one, and add it once you see undercoat coming out in clumps.
What each of the five won’t do, so you don’t buy one expecting the wrong job out of it.
- Maxpower rake: the shedding keeps going. The hair just ends up in a pile instead of on the couch.
- The Big G won’t get you through a coat blow by itself.
- Pettom comb: it finds mats. It doesn’t fix them.
- The Shernbao doesn’t travel and it doesn’t replace the rake. It’s loud on purpose.
- Arm & Hammer spray: not a bath, won’t deshed him, and the scent is floral. If that’s a dealbreaker for you, pick something else.
Questions I get about Aussie brushes and shedding
What is the best brush for Australian Shepherd shedding?
For Kai it’s not a brush. It’s the Maxpower Planet undercoat rake, with the Chris Christensen Big G slicker after it. The rake gets the dead undercoat out before it lands on the couch. The slicker tidies the top coat and gets the leftover fluff without shredding it.
What is the best deshedding tool for an Australian Shepherd, a rake or a slicker?
A rake. A slicker tidies the top coat. The rake is what actually moves a double coat. I use both on Kai, but the rake is the one doing the real work.
When should I use an Australian Shepherd undercoat rake?
Rake when an Aussie is blowing coat. Fur on the floor on a random Tuesday doesn’t count. Start at the back and sides, keep a light hand on thin spots and ears, and stop if the skin goes pink or he shifts away.
Can I use the rake on a wet coat after a bath?
No. Dry coat only. Wet dragging a deshedder is how you scratch. On bath nights I dry Kai with the Shernbao first, then rake once he’s dry.
Should I shave my Australian Shepherd to stop the shedding?
No. An Aussie’s coat is his shade. A non-shedding Aussie doesn’t exist. What the rake gets you is smaller tumbleweeds.
Does this routine work for Mini Aussie undercoat removal?
I haven’t groomed a mini, so I can’t call it tested. Kai’s a standard-size Aussie. The AKC says the Miniature American Shepherd has a double coat with a wooly undercoat, and on Kai the rake is what moves a double coat. Dry coat only, back and sides first, and stop if the skin goes pink.
Is the Maxpower Planet a deshedding rake or an undercoat rake?
Both names get used for the same tool. The Maxpower Planet Original Pet Grooming Rake is a double-sided undercoat rake, and it’s the deshedder I use on Kai when he’s blowing coat. Dry coat only, with a light hand on the thin spots and his ears.
Is the Maxpower deshedder worth it for an Australian Shepherd?
For Kai, yes. Amazing product. It won’t stop him shedding. The wool ends up in a pile I can throw out instead of on the couch.
See everything Kai uses on the kit page, and the rest of his gear on the gear page.