Shaving dogs

In the summer is it okay to shave your long haired dog? Obviously not down to the skin but a short clip. I've heard people say this doesn't cool the dog off but I am going to admit I shaved my sheltie every summer and she liked it. She'd always get all hyper and run around once her coat was gone. Seeing as she was just a pet I saw no harm in doing it.

I own two long haired dogs now and I was just curious if what I was doing was consitered bad.

Opinions?

It's more of a personal preference, at least to some degree. I won't do it because it messes up the way the hair grows back in and many times the undercoat doesn't lay correctly afterwards. Also, some dogs (especially lighter colored ones) can sunburn with shaved coats, and some dogs are actually hotter when shaved since the original coats provided an insulating effect to keep the full effect of the sun's rays off of them.

i have heard that shaving sheltie only does harm. that they need that undercoat and all of that fur to actually keep COOL!

Double coated breeds are not necessarily double coated to keep them warm. You shouldn't shave a dog down to keep them cool...it subjects them to sunburn, and their skin is now more open to general harm.

All you really need to do it groom the dog. Give it a good brushing to remove dirt and dead hair, and the dog will be fine. Give it water when it's outside, nice shade, there should be no problems.
I would stop shaving them, even if you do believe it is helping them, you could be doing more harm than you think. You can have their hair cut down to a certain point, but hitting the undercoat is usually asking for trouble.

I wouldn't shave your Border Collies, Paige. Not because getting rid of that coat doesn't help them feel less "smothered" during the summer months, but because once you shave them, you ALWAYS have to shave them. Their coat grows back totally useless for insulation purposes, it's just dead weight.

Groom them with scissors, not clippers. When it gets hot, I trim the hair on Dakota's undercarriage very short, I thin some of his belly feathers and I shave the hair out of the pads of his feet so a nice soak in cool water will cool him down more quickly. I also strip out most of his undercoat with a "furminator" brush (or something similar). Having a lighter coat really does help him, but length doesn't seem to make a difference.

I have to shave Benji in the summer because otherwise he just lays there and pants. And this is inside the air conditioned house! The poor boy just gets too hot it if the temp is over 70 degrees! Of course, he's a small breed with a different coat than BCs or Shelties.

I shave down sierra, even keep her short in the winter... BUT.. She has thyroid issues and is sheltieXHusky so she's got LONG and THICK fur. She is much happier, But it does take more work (Suntan lotion in sun, Shirts in cold)

If you do do it, Be prepared for much more work and a coat that is never the same...

The last time the sheltie was shaved was four years ago and she has passed on since then so no worries about her coat. Never had a problem with her coat growing back in though. I don't plan on shaving either of my dogs I have now. Just a thought I had in the back of my mind for awhile. I've heard a lot of mixed opinions on it. Thanks guys! Now I know why it shouldn't be done.

Its bad for you to shave a double coated breed or a "natural" coated breed!!

They use their coats as a way to regulate their body temperature.

They shed/blow their coats for a reason!!

i'm sorry, but because my job is grooming dogs as well as owning 3 natural coated breeds.. I just HATE HATE HATE seeing a natural coated breed shaved.


I personally believe its bad for them,.

what about shaving dogs such as shih-tzus? my uncle shaves his simply because he does not want to hassle with grooming that long coat and keeping it clean, is it OK to shave like that if the dog will always be shaved (not to the skin of course)

I agree riot... A normal dog should not be shaved....

Cujo on the other hand is not normal... *Goes to see if she got lost in a corner again*

)

I wouldn't say I "shave" Wrigley but I do use clippers and cut his hair down to about an inch long. He seemed to really like it in the summer and would get very excited about it. He is a mutt of unknown breeds though--and his coat prior to clipping and after seems the same (crazy looking and random). I have not clipped him since August and will probably not do so until June.

The only reason I would shave a dog, is if, they were matted, or had a terrible looking coat, Sugar's coat was so matted that, oh my, it was just terrible!! I had to shave it short, but, she still looked like a Golden Retriever! But, that is the only reason to really shave a dog.

A Shih Tzu is NOT a double coated breed, and yes they are clippable.

Same as a poodle, Maltese, Yorki(although look better unclipped)... etc etc

These breeds you can clip and its very acceptable to do so.

I find it horrible when a Sheltie, or a Golden, or an Aussie is clipped.. really ticks me off.

if youd ont want a long haired dog and deal with the grooming that comes with them - DONT GET THEM!!

Ok I have a question and I hope someone has the answer. Truly.

This is a pet peeve of mine. Women say that their hair never grows back right after they start shaving but HOW is that possible. I mean, even your follicles are genetically designed to grow a certain way so only damage can cause hair not to grow back right? How does clipping damage a follicle? Or shaving for that matter. I can understand how waxing would do damage but not simply cutting the hair. What does shaving do that scissors don't? I have shaved mav but won't anymore mostly. I did it because he was hot and had bad mats in certain places. I've found a better way to get them out and now think that his hair actually helps him in the summer. Yes it took some time for his fur to grow back to 'normal.' About two years. I think that's because all the hair has to grow out then fall out and grow out again before it's 'normal'

Any thoughts?

Sage,

I'm gunna use Jack Russels as an example..

Shaving a Jacks coat causes the ends of the coat to be damaged and not fall correctly. It also leaves them as thick as always.

Stripping a Jacks coat is only stripping away the longer hairs causing the coat to get thinned out and sit properly on their backs.

Shaving a double coated breeds coat ruins it because you ruin the texture of the coat, the condition of the coat and the ends of the coat as well. keep in mind that if you trim an end of the dogs hair, it will have a blunt cut to it, not like the usual ends of it.

OK but WHY does that happen? It doesn't make any sense to me.

I know in Rough Collies (double coated breed) you are never supposed to shave them unless your must shave a nasty mat. The double coat is there for a purpose. It not only insulates them from the cold is also keeps them cooler during hot weather. Collie's can take the cold temps but do not tolerate very hot temps well for long periods and can be burned and/or dehydrate quicker.

so, what about if it's not shaved, but chopped down to about an inch? we had to do this with sylvie because she came to us covered in mats.

If you have to shave a dog to get rid of mats, that's just what you have to do. However, shaving a dog because it's summer is not the same thing. If you had to shave mats off a dog which is not supposed to be shaved, just let the hair grow out again but keep up maintenance.

Double-coated breeds MUST be brushed out frequently to keep their coat in good condition. Baths and blow drying will also help get rid of dead hair. I mean at least once per week, good brushout all over.

A coat is like clothing: a well brushed dog is like wearing a t-shirt, nice and light. The more dead coat gets trapped on the dog, and it becomes like a sweatshirt, then a sweater... Very hot. Shaving a dog is like taking all of that off, leaving everything exposed to the sun and air.