An Introduction

[Windsong]

Hello, I joined the forum with my friend Cesarmonkey who got her introduction in first!

I have three Chinese Cresteds - Holly who is my oldest and is a little over 12 1/2 years old, Hawk who is 4 and Krissy who just turned 10. I am a very strong supporter of rescue since that is how my little Krissy came to me over seven years ago.
Holly is a Powder Puff - the fully coated version of the breed. Krissy is what is known as a Hairy Hairless who has full furnishings and body hair which must be shaved and Hawk is a True Hairless and has sparser furnishings and no real body hair. It is interesting to have the full spectrum of the breed. If you ask about grooming, the True Hairless is the easiest as you might imagine!

I love Cresteds but haven't always been a small dog person. I spent most of my life with Great Pyrenees, a truly magnificent breed in every way. My three Pyr boys are now waiting at the Bridge for me but always held close in my heart.

 

[AllieMackie]

Welcome! Make yourself comfortable and be sure to share pics. We have a few crested owners on the forum and lots of us enjoy the breed!

 

[corgipower]

Why does the hairy hairless need to be shaved?

 

[Renee750il]

Glad you finally got to log in

We needed more Cresties They're about at the opposite end of the spectrum from Pyrs, though!

 

[Barb04]

Welcome! What a nice family you have.

 

[Brattina88]

Welcome to Chaz I always love to see more cresties on the board

 

[Baxter'smybaby]

welcome!

 

[Windsong]

Thank you all for the welcomes! We're glad to be here!

My Holly grew up with two of my Pyrs - what a combination. She was a 2 lb. 6 oz baby and my boys were so careful with her during supervised interaction. She would curl up to sleep in their fur and they would play bow to her and pretend to play with her outside but never touch her. I love the gentleness of Pyrs with smaller creatures.
What can I say! I saw a Crestie at a show and fell in love - knew I would absolutely have to have one in the family and since the Pyrs just loved Holly.....

Corgipower - a hairy hairless has varying degrees of body hair outside of the furnishings. Usually the lusher the furnishings (socks, mane, tail, crest and ear fringe), the more body hair in places that are shown to be hairless. These areas must be shaved on a regular basis to keep the hairless body look. My boy, who is a True Hairless, does not require this body shaving. Cesarmonkey who also just joined has her Tre' who is another True Hairless.

The Hairy Hairless is part of the breed. However, a breeder can breed for more or less body hair and people tend to reproduce what wins the most in the show ring and there is no doubt that a dog with long and flowing furnishings is very flashy. The body hair is shaved before showing so there is no stubble that can be felt and the skin is soft and smooth as called for in the Breed Standard. Hair remover is used by some to remove the stubble as well.

This is an ongoing debate within the breed with people on both sides of the "how much hair" issue.

My own preference is for Powderpuff and True Hairless as this is my interpretation of the Breed Standard. I am not a breeder though so I have no direct influence on the type of dog produced. I also don't get involved in debates on the merits of True Hairless vs Hairy Hairless as everyone is entitled to their own opinion. But it is surprising to people outside the breed to see just how much body hair a dog can have that has not been shaved for some time. They can look like a fully coated dog although the hair is long, not double coated and the skin can be seen underneath when the hair is parted.
When I got my Krissy, she had not been shaved/groomed at all and from a distance looked like a Powderpuff. I had quite a job with my first grooming!

 

[corgipower]

These areas must be shaved on a regular basis to keep the hairless body look.

So it's just shaved for looks? Not shaving it wouldn't cause any problems?

 

[eddieq]

Welcome aboard, Windsong!

 

[DogKisses]

Welcome, I love CCs they are such beautiful dogs! I may get one in the future.

CP have you seen an ungroomed HH? Here you go:

I like the groomed look way better, they look kinda scraggly lol. Almost every HH CC owner clips their dog. It is just a breed that needs extra grooming to look nice.

 

[corgipower]

CP have you seen an ungroomed HH? Here you go:

I like the groomed look way better, they look kinda scraggly lol. Almost every HH CC owner clips their dog. It is just a breed that needs extra grooming to look nice.

I can definitely see how that one would look better shaved.

I did some googling and the pics I saw really looked kinda cool unshaved. But my understanding of the hairless is that their skin needs certain care done for it that breeds with fur don't need? So I didn't know if maybe the hairy hairless has skin issues that are better cared for with shaving.

Don't get me wrong...Shaving for looks is totally fine. I'm just trying to learn if that's all there is to the reason for it.

 

[DogKisses]

I am not totally sure if the shaving helps/worsens the skin issues but I do see one big thing: You can't put sunscreen on a dog like the one in the pic lol, since his fur is sparse I think he would still get sunburn.

Hope you don't think I was being a "know it all." I was floored when I found out that "hairless" dogs were shaved, who knew?

 

[Cesarmonkey]

Hi Windsong!! Good to see you!

I'll just chime in real quick here on the issue of hairlessness/shaving for purposes other than looks. As Windsong mentioned, my Tre' is a hairless and you can see he does have a crest, socks and tail hair, and under his jammies, he is truly a nakie. If I do not shave his upper legs (which appear like a hairy hairless), he will tend to develop more blackheads. Now, blackheads in and of themselves are not necessarily a bad thing, however, they can sometimes lead into issues such as a blocked pore, sebum buildup, etc., which can increase the potential for infection, including staph infection, especially if the dog irritates things with licking, chewing or scratching.

 

[Windsong]

Shaving does not need to be done and some people have Hairy Hairless and don't shave at all, ever! The hair grows very long and silky and aside from being thinner than a normal coat it just looks "hairy"! The only way I knew my Krissy was a HL (hairless) when I first got her was because despite her very long coat, she had a complete bare patch on her chest where no hair grew at all. Her foster mom did not shave her very long coat.
But most people groom their Cresteds and remove any excess body hair. Krissy is also my avatar so you can get an idea of how much hair she can grow out by her "mane"! The slate colored spotted dog in my siggy line is Hawk, my True Hairless. The only thing I shave on him is his face. All Cresteds whether TH or HHL grow facial hair.

Not all Cresteds have skin problems and it can be in varying degrees. Some have to do with genetics - only breeding dogs with good skin is desirable. Some problems just comes with being hairless. Allergies can also cause skin eruptions.

DogKisses, having a Crested in your home is like living with a very intelligent and manipulative little alien being who trains you to take care of their every need and want! And you end up thanking them for allowing you to do it

 

[corgipower]

Hope you don't think I was being a "know it all."

Not at all.

Cesarmonkey and Windsong, thanks for the info!

 

[crazy_paws]

Welcome Windsong!

 

[Windsong]

Thank you again everyone for the welcome!