The Furminator de-shedding tool promises to remove loose hair from your pet and reduce shedding by up to 90 per cent, but does it really work?
The tool retails from $38.99 for the toy dog size to $73.99 for the giant dog size. The advertisements claim no other brush, rake or comb on the market will remove hair as quickly and thoroughly.
Consumer reporter Lynda Steele purchased the large sized Furminator and put the device to the test at the Vancouver SPCA, where staffers brought their adopted dogs in to work and the four-legged test subjects were brushed with the Furminator.
Senior dog Bob sheds a lot and it took Steele very little effort to scrape up a comb full of his grey fuzz.
Snoop, a 12-year-old Husky-Collie cross, was also a good candidate for the Furminator: The device brushed up the Husky undercoat and Snoop didn’t seem to mind.
Odie had recently been bathed and the giant Labrador retriever didn't yield much hair, but Border Collie Brie yielded a good pile of hair.
Bob's owner Lori Chortyk is sold. She's such a big fan of the little brush she calls herself the "Furminator Evangelist.”
"I've tried lots of different brushes but this is just amazing and honestly this hair would be all over my house if I didn't do this every second day,” said Chortyk.
Although it’s tough to prove the claim that the tool removes 90 per cent of the shedding problem, it does appear to work well. Steele gives the Furminator 5 out of 5 stars.
Have you seen a product on TV you'd like us to test? Send your ideas to steeleonyourside@bellmedia.ca
