Question for groomers, advice welcome!

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#1
Ok so I seem to be the resident dog groomer in my family lol. Up until recently it was just bathing and nails, but now 2 different family members have gotten long haired dogs, it now includes shaving. Being something I've never done (but I've been winging it for the past few months lol) I have a couple questions, and am open to any advice those who have more experience than I!

One is a maltese/yorkie, the other is a shitz/pom. I've noticed the shitzu/poms hair is waaaay easier to cut (there is no undercoat like a pom) than the maltese/yorkie. I'm guessing this is due to texture (one is wirey, one is super fine). Any ways to make clipping go better with the maltese/yorkie?

Where do you go to get your blades sharpened? Is this even a thing in the dog world? (I would assume so, in the horse world we just take them to the feed store and they do them lol)

We just have a cheap oster clipper set from walmart. I plan on getting a better set once I have the $$. Any reasonably priced sets you can recommend?

There will be a larger addition that will probably need shaving the end of next year, tips to get them used to the process? Do I need a different set for him since he will be WAY bigger (70ish pounds as compared to 7-10 pounds)

Thats all I can think of off the top of my head, I know I had more questions earlier :p
 
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#2
Getting better clippers will make a world of difference for the Yorkie/Maltese cross, like night and day. I have some conair pro k9 fx clippers, they are not the best, they were available in town lol, but they fit the same size blades as oster etc. so I'll use them until I kill them lol. I have a few blades that I use for Bristol, 10, 7, 4, but Diesel gets done with a 30 blade with stainless clipper guards because I like him left longer then blades leave him. I also use the 30 to do the pads of their feet as well. Yes you can get blades sharpened as well. I would suggest getting a forced air hair dryer as well, makes grooming time go so much quicker, and a grooming arm and noose make it much easier then trying to hold them while clipping and drying. If you get a better clipper and a few blades you will be fine to do a bigger dog later on as well.
 
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#4
The higher the number the closer the shave, 30 is a super close shave, and I only use it with the chrome (I think I said stainless steel, but they are chrome lol) guards, the plastic ones are crap and I'll never use them again. The longest blade I have is a 3 3/4 and I'll use it on Diesel in the summer when it's hot it leaves enough coat on him to cover his skin so he doesn't sunburn. I also don't have any skip tooth blades because I'm afraid I'll cut my dogs. Also keep an eye on craigslist/kijiji for clippers, that's nowhere I got mine, and my grooming table too ($25 for my table with an arm!) the only thing I bought retail were my blades, heck is even got my little forced air dryer from a Facebook page lol. Also never ever clip a dirty dog, the dirt will dull the blades faster. I always brush my dogs out, bath, blow dry, and then clip them.

This is the dryer I have it works well for small dogs, but if you plan on a bigger dog I wouldn't recommend it (or at least the lady I got it from wouldn't lol)


Here are the blades I have.

And to show the difference between the lengths:
30 blade next to a 3 3/4:


You'll notice in my picture I have a 7, 5, 4 blade, they came in a grouping on amazon and one was basically free other wise I wouldn't have them all, probably just the 7 and 5, the 10 is what comes on pretty much all clippers.

Just a disclaimer I am not a groomer, I just groom my own two little dogs, everything I have picked up is on advice from a grooming forum that had members gracious enough to help me groom my dogs :).

And just for kicks here's my grooming area, with Bristol in the tub getting ready for a bath.
 

Doberluv

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#7
I have two Poodles. I keep their faces and feet shaved and their bums. I like a close shave on the face so I use a #30 blade that came with my Mini Arco by Wahl. It is cord-cordless and is wonderful for trimming smaller areas.



Then for their bodies I just purchased a Wahl Chromado, with a 5 in 1 blade adjustment, also cord/cordless and lithium battery. (it comes with another kind of battery too so if you want lithium be sure to pick the right one which I didn't and had to exchange. lol) It's like going through butter, doesn't over heat, just wonderful... but you've got to use stainless steel comb attachments, not plastic, which drags through and catches the hair.





I love my X Power dryer. It was pricey though. I have one show dog (retired for the time being) but it has been necessary for Poodles. I have my hands free to keep brushing all the while it's drying them. It makes for some nice fluffy dogs.



I went through Pet Edge for all but the dryer.

I have a grooming table with an arm. I don't use the arm much. They stand pretty much like statues for me. However, I often just use the kitchen table with a vinyl cloth over it. I have better light (day light) and it's just more comfortable for me.

Good luck! :)
 

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