Dog Grooming Dryers-Do you need a special dryer?
Or should I just save big baths for the groomers and just do spot baths? Nic |
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I actually like bathing my own dogs, so I only rarely have them at the groomers. In nice weather, we dry outside in the sun - works great. Now that it's cold, I use a dryer. We use a human blow dryer, but it is very slow. I would love a more deluxe dryer, but they get expensive. They do last a long, long time though, so I'm thinking seriously about taking the plunge  . I definitely love my grooming table, and if I had to choose between the 2 - I'd get a table. |
| Depends on how much of the bathing and grooming you do yourself.
You can always leave the all over bath and dry to your groomer and just do spot washing, like feet and face. Better to dry them as it stops the dampness from matting/clumping the undercoat. A human hair dryer is fine, then just dry them on a grooming table if you have one, if not put a towel on an outside sturdy table or a sturdy kitchen table and teach them to lie on their sides then blow dry the face/head and feet, then flip over and do the other side. Never leave the dog unattended while on a table  This way the dog is not going anywhere and it saves your back from aching 
On the human dryer, dry on a warm setting, not the hottest as you can scald the dog. I used a human dryer for years, burnt out a few too in that time, then as the pack grew I finally invested in a dog dryer on a stand as had 3 to wash and dry. They are very expensive, but if you have more then one sheepie well worth the investment. I have had this one for 8 years and love it, hands free and I can just sit back, relax and watch them on the table while they are drying.
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| You don't need a special dryer, though a good one cuts the time it takes to dry. I just use a human hair dryer for now, but I really want a K9III dryer. LOL
It's definitely a good idea to dry them thoroughly, as Lisa said, it helps reduce matting. A rescue dog I know of was actually moldy at the skin when they shaved it down because it had matted at the skin (looked fine on top) and was not dried. |
| It would depend on if your dogs are full coat or trimmed, and also if the under coat is stripped out.....and the size of the dog
I have a table and use a human hair dryer for my two. I have one OES with a shorter coat and one with a long coat, that has been stripped. The shorter coat is faster, but then it is on a smaller dog. But even Bosley, who we are growing out, takes maybe an hour to blow-dry because his has been stripped. |
lisaoes wrote: Depends on how much of the bathing and grooming you do yourself.
You can always leave the all over bath and dry to your groomer and just do spot washing, like feet and face. Better to dry them as it stops the dampness from matting/clumping the undercoat. A human hair dryer is fine, then just dry them on a grooming table if you have one, if not put a towel on an outside sturdy table or a sturdy kitchen table and teach them to lie on their sides then blow dry the face/head and feet, then flip over and do the other side. Never leave the dog unattended while on a table This way the dog is not going anywhere and it saves your back from aching On the human dryer, dry on a warm setting, not the hottest as you can scald the dog. I used a human dryer for years, burnt out a few too in that time, then as the pack grew I finally invested in a dog dryer on a stand as had 3 to wash and dry. They are very expensive, but if you have more then one sheepie well worth the investment. I have had this one for 8 years and love it, hands free and I can just sit back, relax and watch them on the table while they are drying. DITTO 
My drayer is named Tornado and I have had it for nearly 40 years and it is still like new and I LOVE IT! |
Good advice!!!! Thanks! (I couldn't sign in last time hence, guest.  )
40 YEARS??!!! That's awesome!! Maybe I'll get a great dryer in the future, but for now, I think I'll use a hand dryer and strip the undercoat when Batman gets that much fur. Thanks for the advice!!! Nic |
| Nic,
If you choose to bathe your Bobtail at home don't leave your dog to air dry, their coat is too thick to air dry effectively. If they are left damp they will not be good company to say nothing about the associated risks of numerous medical problems for the coat and skin. I will also stand in direct opposition to those who say a regualr "human hair dryer" is good enough. Simply put while they will technically dry a dog they really aren't appropriate to effectively dry a dog in any respect whatsoever. You should have a dedicated dog dryer. I do understand that they are an expensive investment and it may take a while to be able to afford one but it is something you should try to get as soon as possible. I have written on this subject extensively many times regarding dryer characteristics, stress to both dog and groomer, life cycle costs, safety and how to take best advantage of a dog dryer so please check: http://forum.oes.org/viewtopic.php?t=69 ... c&start=15 http://forum.oes.org/viewtopic.php?p=94493#94493 http://forum.oes.org/viewtopic.php?p=26270#26270 http://forum.oes.org/viewtopic.php?p=14670#14670 http://forum.oes.org/viewtopic.php?p=14692#14692 I have also posted extensively on bathing, whitening of the beards and general grooming help. Just seach for my posts by clicking on my user name if you want to review them as well. Thanks and Cheers Carl |
| I've been contemplating a dryer, but a friend who owns a grooming shop in another town (drat!) suggested trying a shop vac with the hose put on the out port. Use the crevice tool (if it comes with one) to further concentrate the air or better ye, make a cone and duct tape it on.
Force dryers are used initially to blow off excess water. Maybe that's all you need. |
| I don't think I could live without the giant dryer now that I have one. It cuts grooming and drying time down to a tenth of what it was and it makes them very fluffy! As a novice, I am keeping 2 dogs in coat and working through the baby coat change and have run into so many less problems than I could have.
Get the dryer. Even the cheaper ones that use a clip arm are better than the human ones. |
| Nic,
My dog does fine in a bath tub with one of those pet hoses. Most, not all, human ones don't extend as far down to making giving a bath easier. They're easy to take off too, so you can use your normal one when it's time for your own bath. Then I both air dry and use a human hair dryer. The ones they are talking about are crazy expensive, and esp. not needed if you're just going to keep Batman in a puppycut. Like you mentioned, I leave the BIG jobs to the groomers!
BTW, in case I ever forget to mention this... please please PLEASE don't ever go to our Petco to get Batman groomed. We have seen firsthand a groomer pull and yank the dogs in a harmful way. This is after Yuki had a tramatic experience there. She came back to us completely freaked out by a brush, and attempting to bite me when I combed her. I HATE them. She's never had a problem anywhere else. Dogwash does a great job at grooming, and they are highly recommended around town. It's also where we leave our dog when we go out of town. But of course, you can leave your dog with me. Pa-lease................... |
Joahaeyo wrote: Then I both air dry and use a human hair dryer. The ones they are talking about are crazy expensive, and esp. not needed if you're just going to keep Batman in a puppycut.
To clarify, I do air dry first which consists of letting them run full speed through the house for about 20 minutes or until they wear themselves out. Also helps to make them tired for laying on the table while drying. For puppy cuts, a human dryer would probably work. Anything under 2 inches and no undercoat is probably going to be light enough to let you use the human dryer. The undercoat is what really needs the dryer to fluff the coat and allow you to get all the way down to the skin. If you've ever dried your hair and left the house only to find your neck is cold and damp, that is what it is like all over the dog's body when you don't get everything dry. That moldy dog stuff is more true than we like to think and is really gross. |
| I had no idea about Petco!!!! I guess I won't be going there!
I had heard about the moldy dog thing and that's why I was asking.. last thing I want for him is to be all moldy 
I think for now we are going to go with puppy coat and a hand dryer with spot washing and a groomer for the big jobs!!!
You guys are great!! Nic |
| Bump |
| Does a shop vac work? Is there anyone who has tried this? |
Norma Jean wrote: Does a shop vac work? Is there anyone who has tried this?
I strongly recommend AGAINST using a shop vacuum as a dog blower for two reasons. First, unless the shop vac is brand new and has never had any debris in the tub you will end up blowing fine particles of whatever dirt has been in the vac into your dog's coat and onto their skin. And do you want to take the chance of something going into their eyes or breathing tract or ears? This holds true no matter what you do, even extensive cleaning and new filters won't catch all the dust and associated smells - to my knowledge there are no HEPA filters for shop vacs so your dog will end up pretty much as dirty as when you started. A different dirty but just as dirty. More importantly is the noise of a shop vac. Shop vacs, and more appropriately dog blowers, make a lot of noise and given the amount of water our dog's coats hold even the most powerful of the vacs/blowers need time to do their jobs. This noise is simply the nature of the beast unless a company spends tons of money on product development and even then the fundamentals of high velocity large flow rates limit just how quiet a shop vac/ dog blower can be. Given the market size and that it is already fairly saturated by a number of well established manufacturers there is little enough profit margin as is, let alone enough to justify a lot of product development. All this noise over an extended period - even an hour if you can get drying your dog down to that short of a duration - is very stressful both for yourself and more importantly your Bobtail. There are also a number of issues with potential "windburn" and drying both the coat and dog's skin when using blowers (be it a shop vac or "proper" dog blower) as an overall drying tool. Many people think that they can be useful/convenient for "spot drying" such as feet after a spot wash to keep them gleaming during a multi-day show show or to dry them off after a walk on damp ground or maybe a butt after a quick cleaning. But for anything beyond those very limited purposes and short duration spot drying sessions though I really don't think they are a good drying tool and even for those uses I wouldn't and don't use them. If you really want a blower I'd say look towards the purpose built blowers and be willing to accept their fairly high noise levels, less than a shop vac but still many many dB more than a quality dryer. Better yet, at least in my opinion and experience, when you can afford it go with a good quality dog dryer. Both you and your "victim" will both feel and be all the better for it. Thanks and Cheers Carl |
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