Best Brush for Alaskan Malamutes | Thick Double Coat Guide

The best brush for an Alaskan Malamute is a large slicker with long, fine, flexible pins, used in layers and backed by an undercoat rake for the twice yearly blow. The coat is thick rather than long, which changes everything: the problem is not tangles on the surface, it is dead undercoat packed against the skin where a short-pinned brush never reaches.

Malamutes are often described as low maintenance because they do not mat like a doodle. That is half true. Day to day the coat looks after itself, and then twice a year it releases in quantity that surprises even experienced owners.

Getting the tool right matters more on this breed than on almost any other, because the coat is dense enough to defeat the wrong brush completely while looking perfectly groomed on top.

This guide covers how the double coat is built, which brush features actually matter, and the routine that gets the undercoat out rather than pushing it deeper. Our double coated breed brush collection is built for coats like this.

Why an Alaskan Malamute Coat Defeats the Wrong Brush

A Malamute carries a working Arctic coat: a coarse, oily, weather-shedding guard layer over a wool-like undercoat that can be several centimetres thick over the neck, shoulders and hindquarters.

The two layers behave completely differently, and a brush that suits one is often useless on the other.

• The guard coat is stiff and self-cleaning. Mud dries and falls out of it. It rarely tangles, which is why the coat looks fine from above.
• The undercoat is soft and dense. When it sheds, it has to travel outward through the guard layer, and much of it does not make it.
• Depth beats length as the problem. A Malamute is not a long-haired breed, but the coat over the ruff can be deeper than a Yorkie's is long.
• Trapped undercoat becomes a felted layer. Not a rope-like mat, a flat compressed sheet lying against the skin.
• That layer blocks airflow. A Malamute with packed undercoat is hotter in summer, not cooler, which is the opposite of what the coat is designed to do.

This is why the shaving question comes up every summer and why the answer is almost always no. The coat insulates against heat as well as cold, and removing it does not help a dog that is overheating because its undercoat is packed. Should You Shave a Double-Coated Dog? covers what actually happens to the coat afterwards.

How Malamute Shedding Works Across the Year

Malamutes shed lightly all year and then blow coat twice, usually in spring and again in autumn, though indoor dogs on artificial light often run to their own schedule.

A blow is not ordinary shedding. The undercoat releases in clumps over roughly two to six weeks, and during that window the coat can go from clear to packed in a matter of days if you stop brushing.

• Ordinary weeks. Light shedding. One or two brushing sessions a week is plenty.
• The first week of a blow. Tufts start lifting at the hips and behind the ears. This is the signal to move to daily.
• Peak. Undercoat comes away in handfuls. Twenty to thirty minutes daily is realistic for an adult in full coat.
• Tail end. Output drops off and you can taper back to two or three sessions a week.

The mistake that costs the most is treating a blow like normal shedding and brushing weekly through it. What comes loose and is not removed simply stays in the coat, and by the end of the blow you have a felted layer rather than a clear one. What Is Coat Blow in Dogs and How Long Does It Last? goes into the cycle in more detail.

Where a Malamute packs first

Trapped undercoat is predictable on this breed. Check these in order:

• The ruff and neck. The deepest coat on the dog and the hardest to get to the bottom of.
• Behind the ears. Softer, finer hair here, and the one place a Malamute genuinely does form rope-like mats.
• The britches and hindquarters. Thick coat over a lot of movement.
• The base of the tail. Often missed entirely because the tail itself looks fine.
• Under a collar or harness. Constant compression flattens the undercoat into a pad.

When shedding is a vet question

A coat blow is symmetrical, seasonal and leaves healthy skin behind. Book a vet appointment instead if you see bald patches, thinning on both flanks, broken or brittle guard hair, red or flaky skin, a smell coming from the skin, or heavy shedding well outside the normal pattern. Coat change is one of the first places health problems show, and no brush addresses those.

What Actually Matters in a Malamute Brush

Three features decide whether a brush works on this coat, and none of them are the ones most brushes advertise.

Pin length

Pins must be longer than the coat is deep in the area you are working, or they cannot reach the skin. Over a Malamute ruff that means 25 mm as a working minimum. Standard cushion brushes and short-pinned slickers sold for general use groom the outer third and leave the packed layer untouched, which is precisely why an owner can brush conscientiously for months and still have a groomer find felted undercoat.

Pin flex

Long pins are usually stiff, and stiff pins in a dense coat mean pressure gets transferred straight to the skin. Fine bent stainless pins deflect when they meet resistance, so they travel along the hair shaft and lift undercoat rather than scraping. Brush burn on a double coated dog is common and almost always comes from a rigid brush used with force.

Head size and pad

A Malamute is a big dog with a lot of surface area, so a large flat head does most of the work and keeps sessions to a sensible length. A curved smaller head earns its place behind the ears, at the tail base and in the hollow in front of the shoulder, where a flat head only contacts along one edge.

A pad that flexes and springs back matters too. It lets the pins ride over the contour of a moving dog rather than digging in at the high points.

Recommended Tools for a Thick Arctic Double Coat

The kit is small: a slicker that reaches, an undercoat rake for the blow, and a comb to confirm you got to the bottom.

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Flying Pawfect Slicker Brush

On a Malamute the slicker is the tool that does the daily work, and the specification that matters is the combination of long pins and soft pins, which most brushes treat as mutually exclusive.

The pins stand 25 mm proud of the pad. Over the ruff of an adult Malamute that is roughly the difference between reaching the skin and grooming the top of the coat. Short pins produce a lot of visible fur in the brush and still leave the packed layer exactly where it was.

Because the pins are fine bent stainless steel, they deflect on contact rather than digging in. On a dog with this much coat you inevitably brush by feel rather than by sight, and forgiving pins mean a misjudged stroke does not land on skin. The bend also catches loose undercoat and lifts it clear instead of pressing it downward.

The large flat head is the right default here. A Malamute has a great deal of surface area, and coverage speed is what makes a daily routine sustainable during a blow. The curved medium or small head handles behind the ears, the tail base and the shoulder hollow, which are the spots a flat head cannot sit into properly.

Technique matters as much as the tool. Work in layers: push the coat forward with your free hand so the skin is visible, brush the exposed band, then move the parting. Brushing over the top of a Malamute coat is close to pointless, and it is what most owners are unknowingly doing.

Clear the pad often. On a shedding Malamute the pins fill within a few strokes, and a full brush collects nothing while feeling exactly the same in the hand.

• Best for: Lifting loose undercoat out of a deep Arctic double coat, all year round.
• Why it works: 25 mm fine bent stainless pins reach the skin through the ruff and deflect instead of scraping.
• Context: Large flat head for the body, curved medium or small for ears, tail base and shoulder hollow.

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Flying Pawfect Curved Slicker Brush

The flat head covers a Malamute's body. The curved head exists for the places that flat heads reach badly, and on this breed those places are exactly where the coat packs hardest.

Behind the ears the hair is finer and softer than the rest of the coat, and it sits in a hollow. A flat head touches that hollow along one edge only, so most of the pin field is doing nothing and the natural response is to press harder. The curve puts the whole pin field into contact at once, which means less pressure for more effect.

The same is true at the base of the tail and in the pocket in front of the shoulder. Both are curved surfaces on a moving dog, and both are commonly skipped because they feel awkward with a big flat brush.

Size is straightforward on a breed this large. Large suits the body and britches. Medium is the general purpose choice for the ruff and hindquarters. Small is for behind the ears and around the face, where accuracy matters more than coverage.

The pins are the same fine bent stainless steel as the flat brush. The shape changes where the brush can go, not how gentle it is on skin.

• Best for: Behind the ears, the tail base and the shoulder hollow, where Malamute coat packs first.
• Why it works: The curved head sits into hollows a flat head only touches along one edge.
• Context: Medium for the ruff and hindquarters, small behind the ears, large for the body.

Two supporting tools finish the kit. An undercoat rake, used sparingly and only during a blow, pulls out volume that a slicker takes far longer to shift. A plain steel comb is your audit: if it travels from skin to tip with no resistance, that section is genuinely clear. Skip the comb and you are guessing.

For a wider comparison of what works on coats built like this, Best Brushes for Double Coated Dogs (Complete Guide 2026) covers the tool types side by side. The same kit applied to the Malamute's closest relative, including how to time the rake against a blow, is set out in Best Grooming Tools for Huskies | Complete Guide to Shedding Control.

Step by Step: Working Through a Malamute in Layers

Do this outdoors or somewhere you do not mind fur, with the dog standing or lying comfortably. A Malamute that is held still learns to dislike grooming quickly.

• 1. Feel the coat first. Run your fingers to the skin at the ruff, hips and behind the ears. You are checking depth and looking for compressed areas.
• 2. Start at the hindquarters. Most dogs tolerate the back end best, and it is where the heaviest shedding usually is.
• 3. Part and brush the exposed band. Push the coat forward with your free hand until you can see skin, then brush the band below the parting in short strokes.
• 4. Move the parting a couple of centimetres. Work upward and forward in strips. This is the whole technique and there is no shortcut past it.
• 5. Switch heads for the corners. Curved head behind the ears, at the tail base and in the shoulder hollow.
• 6. Use the rake only during a blow. Light passes over the deepest areas. Raking a coat that is not blowing pulls out live undercoat you want to keep.
• 7. Comb check before you finish. Skin to tip, no resistance. Anywhere the comb stops, go back with the slicker.

If you find something genuinely felted behind the ears that a comb cannot get under, leave it. Never cut a mat out with scissors, because skin lifts into the mat and is very easy to catch, and never force a comb through one. A groomer can clear it in minutes with the right tools.

Prevention Tips for Packed Malamute Undercoat

• Brush to the skin, not across the top. One layered session beats five surface ones.
• Go daily as soon as a blow starts. Tufts lifting at the hips is the signal. Waiting a week costs you a fortnight of extra work.
• Never put a Malamute away damp. A coat this dense holds water at the skin for hours, and damp undercoat compacts fast.
• Take the harness off indoors. Constant compression flattens undercoat into a pad that is hard to lift again.
• Do not shave for summer. A cleared, airy undercoat cools far better than a clipped coat, and regrowth on this breed is often patchy.
• Comb check weekly. It takes two minutes and it is the only honest measure of whether the brushing is working.

Common Mistakes Malamute Owners Make

• Using a short-pinned brush. It produces satisfying amounts of fur and never reaches the packed layer.
• Brushing over the top. The most common error on every dense coated breed, and the hardest to notice.
• Raking all year. Undercoat rakes are for a blow. Used routinely they strip coat the dog needs.
• Pressing harder when nothing comes out. If the brush stops collecting, the pad is full or you are on the surface. Pressure fixes neither.
• Bathing before brushing. Water compacts loose undercoat. Brush the coat clear first, then wash.
• Assuming a tidy looking coat is a clear one. On this breed the outside tells you almost nothing about the inside.

FAQs

What is the best brush for an Alaskan Malamute?

A large slicker with fine, flexible pins around 25 mm long, used in layers, plus a steel comb to check your work. Add an undercoat rake for the twice yearly coat blow. Pin length is the feature that matters most, because a short-pinned brush cannot reach the skin through a Malamute ruff.

How often should I brush my Alaskan Malamute?

Once or twice a week through most of the year, moving to daily as soon as a coat blow starts. A blow lasts roughly two to six weeks, and brushing weekly through it is how packed undercoat forms.

Do Alaskan Malamutes get mats?

Not usually in the way long-coated breeds do. The typical Malamute problem is a flat compressed layer of dead undercoat against the skin rather than rope-like tangles. The exception is behind the ears, where the finer hair does mat properly.

Should I shave my Malamute in summer?

No. The double coat insulates against heat as well as cold and shields the skin from sun, and regrowth after shaving is often patchy and different in texture. A dog that is overheating usually has packed undercoat, and clearing that cools it far more effectively.

What is the difference between a slicker brush and an undercoat rake?

A slicker separates and lifts loose hair across the whole coat and is safe to use all year. A rake has longer, widely spaced teeth that pull out volume quickly and is a coat blow tool. Using a rake routinely removes undercoat the dog needs.

Why is my Malamute still shedding everywhere after I brush?

Almost always because the brush is working on the surface. If the pins are not reaching the skin, the loose undercoat stays in place and keeps working its way out over the following days. Part the coat and brush in layers, then check with a comb.

How long does a Malamute coat blow last?

Usually two to six weeks, twice a year, though indoor dogs often shed on a less predictable schedule. Volume peaks in the middle and tapers off, and daily brushing through the peak makes the biggest difference.

My Malamute is shedding heavily out of season. Should I worry?

Possibly. Bald patches, symmetrical thinning, brittle hair, red or flaky skin, or a smell from the skin are medical signs rather than seasonal ones. Book a vet appointment rather than changing your grooming routine.

Final Thoughts

Malamute grooming is not complicated, but it is unforgiving of the wrong tool. A brush that cannot reach the skin will keep you busy and leave the actual problem exactly where it started.

Long fine pins, layered brushing, a rake reserved for the blow, and a comb to tell you the truth. Do that once or twice a week and daily through a blow, and a Malamute coat stays airy, comfortable and doing the job it was built for.