Half the work of deshedding is not the brushing, it is the clearing: stopping every few strokes to pick a mat of fur out of the pins. A retractable head removes that step. One press of a button and the bristles withdraw, the collected undercoat lifts off in a sheet, and you carry on. On a moulting cat or a double-coated dog that saves considerably more time than the brushing itself does.

The pins are fine and angled, which is what allows a slicker to reach through a topcoat to the loose undercoat underneath instead of just smoothing the surface over. That undercoat is the fur that ends up on the sofa, so removing it at source is what actually reduces the shedding around the house. It works on tangles as well, though a badly matted coat needs patience and short sessions rather than force.

• Self-cleaning slicker with a retractable head
• One button releases the collected fur
• Reaches through the topcoat to the loose undercoat
• Helps smooth and lift matted fur
• Suits both cats and dogs
• Works on short and long coats

Our listings disagree on this one. We have not been able to reconcile the two, so we are describing the brush and nothing more.

Who it's for: Owners of moulting cats or double-coated dogs who groom often and want the fur off the brush without picking at it.