# What is a burr?



## JayBen (Aug 30, 2012)

I've heard the word used before but I have no idea what a burr is or what it looks like. What causes a burr? How do you get a burr out?


----------



## Vhuynh2 (Feb 13, 2012)

A burr is a spiky ball thing that comes off plants and can stick to the feathering. A comb easily removes them. 

The ones I have encountered are teeny tiny. I'm not sure if they are actually burrs, but they're similar. 

Sent from Petguide.com App


----------



## Tayla's Mom (Apr 20, 2012)

A but is about the size of a pea. Looks like a porcupine. Tayla gets them between her toes and pads. The stick in and hurt.


----------



## JayBen (Aug 30, 2012)

Really? lol I thought it was just some sort of imperfection in the coat...I didn't realize it was something off a plant _that gets stuck in the coat_. Thats funny. I guess we've never encountered one yet.


----------



## Caralu (Oct 28, 2013)

I'm from burr country, and I have learned that the non traumatic way of getting them out is to take a tiny pair of scissors (think Swiss Army knife) and cut the burr perpendicular to the skin (skin to surface) to divide it up without cutting much, if any, hair. This works with mats too. Then work from the outside in delicately with a comb or, for burrs, fingernails. If it's the burr associated with burdock, simply pulling it out uncut will be traumatizing. Leaving it there, even a little piece, will irritate any dog or human's skin, esp. Delicate golden skin.


Sent from Petguide.com Free App


----------



## Caralu (Oct 28, 2013)

The teeny-tiny ones are related, but not the same. Those usually can be removed with fingernails. Dogs think they are yummy, hence their spread where dogs are walked. Leaving them in causes irritation, but not quite as big a deal. Either way, divide and conquer


Sent from Petguide.com Free App


----------



## Vhuynh2 (Feb 13, 2012)

After reading these responses, I realize what I have been dealing with are not burrs. They don't hurt even when I squeeze them with my own fingers and definitely is not traumatic when I comb them out of Molly's feathers. They sure are annoying though, because she can get tons of them stuck on her tail. They don't bother her, but it means work for me. They're the size of the ball on top of a pin. 


Sent from Petguide.com App


----------



## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

All of these horrible things are different burrs I've picked out of my guys coats... the giant burdocks are about the size of a cherry, and usually you can have baseball sized clumps of them in your dog's coat. 
































And this isn't a burr, but I hate as much - sticky grass. 











**** Funny story to share.... when I was a little girl, we lived near horse farms, lakes, corn fields.... so not the city, but definitely I'd never encountered burrs before. Was 8 when we moved to our new house about an hour south of our old house. Ran through the fields and orchards behind our new house and was very happy. Until I discovered a prickling all over - and discovered I was COVERED head to foot with burrs. Only, I didn't know they were burrs. I was convinced they were bugs. I was hysterical. As were my sisters who were just as covered.  

You use a wire slicker, a little vinegar/conditioner mixed into a spray, and patience to pick apart and brush out burrs. Don't cut the fur.


----------



## MrsKuhn (Aug 22, 2013)

Megora said:


> All of these horrible things are different burrs I've picked out of my guys coats... the giant burdocks are about the size of a cherry, and usually you can have baseball sized clumps of them in your dog's coat.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Oh we have had our share of the first picture. Those are nasty little ******** lol


Sent from Petguide.com Free App


----------



## Caralu (Oct 28, 2013)

Cut the burr--not the hair


Sent from Petguide.com Free App


----------



## KathyL (Jul 6, 2011)

Megora has a good picture. A burr is from the burdock plant which looks like a rhubarb plant. 

The bad thing is that if your dog gets a burr stuck in their fur and they bite at it to get it out, if they ingest one of those little spikey things they can cause serious damage to the intestinal system. There is another weed or grass that looks like wheat at the top -- I can't think of the name -- that one also can do damage if ingested.


----------



## Gwen_Dandridge (Jul 14, 2012)

The ones we get around here, Burr Clover (Medicago polymorpha), isn't too harmful but Maddie gets covered in them. On our reservoir walks she rolls on the ground and races through the bushes (chasing, but not catching, the elusive bunnies). 

Here's a picture of them. We do have to check her legs and between her toes for them, as they can hurt. Usually she has a large collection of them riding in her tail.


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

doing field work we get more than our share of burrs, sometimes well over 100 in his coat when we are done. The worst are the ones that float on the ponds and when the dog swims through them he gets just coated.
Easiest way to remove them is to get some "Cowboy Magic Detangler". It's awesome stuff. Can be found at stores like Tractor Supply, Farm and Fleet, Fleet Farm, and probably a bunch of others. It's like a gel. Work some into the coat around the burr, wait a few seconds, and the burr combs right out. It doesn't leave a greasy residue, and smells really nice.
If I know we're going to be in heavy burr area I work some into his feathering before we head out, and then the burrs come out even easier.


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

KathyL---cheat grass. Deadly to dogs.


----------



## CAROLINA MOM (May 12, 2009)

Burrs are awful-hate them. Fortunately we don't have them where I live now. I've dealt with them in States I've lived before and they are awful to deal with. 

We do have Sand spurs in my area, this is a picture of them. 











My guys sometimes get them stuck in their paws, I always carry a pair of tweezers with me to remove them. If you get one of the thorns stuck in your finger, it will fester up real bad if you don't get it all removed. 

Very painful!


----------



## JayBen (Aug 30, 2012)

Thanks for all the info, especially the pictures. I feel like such a city boy never encountering burrs before; even though I'm not from the city. I will have to keep an eye out for them and see if they're around where I live.


----------



## Dexter12 (Feb 10, 2012)

Burr bushes are evil, Dex pulled me; himself and Archer into one a couple weeks ago. I couldn't get them off of me fast enough, they really creep me out.


----------



## goldentemperment (May 16, 2012)

I got a sand burr stuck in my finger(s) once while cleaning my car (Ella and I went to the beach the day before). I stopped in a parking lot to just do a spot clean.

I needed to cut it out (couldn't get it out with just pulling), but I was about 15 minutes away from work, so I had to drive with it stuck in my finger.

That's the day I learned what a sand burr was.


----------



## boomers_dawn (Sep 20, 2009)

Great photos and info, thanks all. We have a large variety in the Northeast, the easy ones like the stickems I get out with careful grooming and the huge burdocks I sometimes cut out by trying to cut the burr itself or cutting the hair wrapped around them because the dogs do try to pull them out themselves and/or eat them - preventive measures.


----------



## Lilliam (Apr 28, 2010)

There are also foxtails, which are deadly.

They have a hard waxy end that embeds into skin and can be breathed up or go into the ear canal. They continue to embed themselves and can literally kill a dog.

I know two border collies who died as a result of foxtails going up their nose.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foxtail_(diaspore)

http://leerburg.com/foxtail.htm

http://www.dogheirs.com/dogheirs/posts/1327-foxtail-grasses-can-be-lethal-to-dogs


----------

