Pet Grooming Tip-3 Ways to Get Mats Out of Your Dog's Coat.

It depends on the severity of matting when deciding what to do with a matted dog.

0:00 Intro

0:17 - 1. Cut it out. If it’s just one or a few mats, you can cut them out. Pull the mat away from the skin, so you can see all the way down to the skin and slowly cut the ball of hair away.
0:47 -2. Use leave-in conditioner to brush mats out. If there are several mats, you may need to spray in a leave-in conditioner. Fill a spray bottle with 1/2 conditioner—preferably dog conditioner, but even human conditioner will work in a pinch and 1/2 water, so that it’s diluted. The conditioner softens the hair and makes it slippery, so that ideally the matted hair will more easily untangle.
1:08 - 3. Shave him. I know, I know. You don’t want your dog to be naked and cold. But if the mats are all over the body and thick as tennis balls and close the the skin, there is no other alternative. This would be extremely painful for the dog if attempted to be brushed out.

Mats are uncomfortable for dogs. They can create sores on the skin and because they are so closely tangled in, the sores are not getting any air in order to heal properly. They trap dirt and debris in the hair, further irritating the skin.
However, with just a little bit of work brushing every few days, you can keep your pet’s coat very manageable!