Shaving dogs

crazedACD

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#41
It boggles my mind to see shepherds and labs and stuff shaved. I do clip Fez down quite a bit...but he is a royal mess anyway. I definitely clip underneath him as he gets fine hair that knots between the legs.. especially with little twigs and stuff in there. I have to sanitary clip him too or he will get dingleberries on his bum.
 

*blackrose

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#42
It boggles my mind to see shepherds and labs and stuff shaved. I do clip Fez down quite a bit...but he is a royal mess anyway. I definitely clip underneath him as he gets fine hair that knots between the legs.. especially with little twigs and stuff in there. I have to sanitary clip him too or he will get dingleberries on his bum.
We have some clients that bring their Labradors in to be shaved - I just shake my head. I don't get it. It surely can't help with the shedding, as they'll just be shedding prickly nasty hairs everywhere instead of long hairs.

I did finally shave Chloe down, with a #4. Not to help keep her cool or anything (she was keeping herself cool just fine with a properly groomed coat), but because I like short haired dogs and since I do zero coat maintenance with her, I didn't want to worry about matting. I had put off doing it for so long because I didn't want to worry about it messing up her coat, but then I realized I never intend to let her grow completely back out, so messing up her coat isn't really an issue.

So she's gone from this:


To this:


I'm pleased, anyway.
 

javadoo

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#44
I would NEVER shave my labs.
I have seen people with shaved labs...it ruins their undercoats and they look absolutely ridiculous.

Their coats/undercoats serve a purpose.
 

*blackrose

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#45
I would NEVER shave my labs.
I have seen people with shaved labs...it ruins their undercoats and they look absolutely ridiculous.

Their coats/undercoats serve a purpose.
Now, a good friend of mine did shave their Lab down - they have two Labs and live out in the country, so the dogs run wild all day. It was summer and, being Labs, they were swimming in the creek, pool, and horse trough on and off all day, every day. Winnie's undercoat started to get moldy. :eek: So they shaved her down. It grew back just fine and I don't think they've had an issue with it again, but there for awhile it was just nasty.

But yes, typically I think people who shave short haired dogs are idiots. We had someone bring their broken coat JRT and a Min Pin in for grooms...they wanted the JRT and the Min Pin shaved. Yes. The Min Pin shaved. They hardly have hair to begin with, I don't know why in the heck they wanted to shave it.
 
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#46
I find that when most people want their dogs shaved (that come in the grooming shop) and tell me their dog is just sooo hot. And when I feeltheir coats, they are packed with undercoat. Most people do not know how to properly groom their own dogs. I had a dog whose coat was so packed, I had to blow out the coat and brush brush brush before the pre shave, And even then I still couldnt get my blade under properly (it could go through, But some spots were very hard. So I gave up) had to just bathe the dog and then brush and blow out again. Poor dog no wonder why it was so hot. Again this is the reason and results I see with most hairy dogs.

If a dog who is built for water is getting moldy, well those owners need to look after that dog much better IMO. Mold doesnt just happen from a day of swimming.
 

DogMinded

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#47
Shaving dogs does not ruin the coat. It can change the coat texture. A Shih-Tzu shaved over and over will have a soft coat that is easy to scissor. A Shih-Tzu that is long will have a coarser coat, laying flat on the body. Scissoring looks choppy due to coarseness. However let the shaved one grow back out and will get coarse over time. The only time I have seen a double coated dog grow back with patches, thinness or undercoat only is when they have a medical issue..ie thyroid..late onset alopecia...

When a client asks me to shave their dog I ask them why.
Answer 1. Because they are shedding..My reply. They are still going to shed just shorter hairs. Also some dogs actually grow back thicker hair. I recommend buying a coat kind to comb out the undercoat. I have even asked if their dog is ok with vacuums. I had a dog who would lay on the floor when your were vacuuming waiting her turn.
Answer 2. They are hot. My reply. Their coat not only insulates them from cold it also insulates them from heat. Also if the dog has never been shaved they can get sun burned. I explain that a dogs cooling system is panting and cooling their abdomen. I ask if they have ever seen a dog look like a frog laying on tile floors? Or if they have seen a dog dig a hole and lay with their tummy on the cool dirt? They laugh and say yes. I tell them if they want to help them out have them shaved on their under neath from the front legs to their privates. On long coated dogs you can not even see they have been shaved.

Now I have shaved many matted dogs for their benefit. Dogs who owners only bring in once a year. I shaved a very matted dog one time and found a dead roach under the matt. It had been there so long it left an imprint like a fossil in the dogs skin. I shaved another one and found fish hooks in the matts..Poor little guy.
 

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