Twice a year a double-coated dog drops most of its undercoat, and a brush that only touches the top layer will barely slow it down. The loose fluff sits underneath, held in place by the guard hairs, and it comes out on your floors instead. A rake with pins long enough to pass through the topcoat pulls that layer out in handfuls, and the difference in what lands on the sofa afterwards is obvious within a couple of sessions.

The pins are set in two rows rather than one, which is the point of this design over a single-row rake: the leading row loosens and the second catches what the first has lifted, so one pass does the work of two. Each pin is rounded at the tip and made of stainless steel, so it slides along the skin rather than scoring it, and the spacing lets a tangle be teased apart rather than dragged out whole. The handle is contoured and non-slip, and at 126g the tool is light enough for a long session.

• Twin rows of rounded stainless steel pins
• Reaches through the topcoat to lift dead undercoat
• Rounded tips designed not to scratch the skin
• Contoured non-slip handle
• Product weight 126g
• For short, medium and long coats, dogs and cats

On technique. A rake works with short strokes in the direction the coat lies, not long ones against it, and it should never be forced through a solid mat: cut those out or take the dog to a groomer, because dragging a rake through felted hair pulls on the skin underneath. Go gently on cats, whose skin is thinner and tears more easily than a dog's.

Who it's for: Owners of a heavy-moulting or double-coated dog or cat who want the shedding season handled at home rather than on the carpet.