To Shave or not to Shave?
Sir Curly Lambeau will soon be 8 months old and as we move into summer here in northern Wisconsin the ticks have already come out in force. Lambeau is Front Line protected, but living near the woods he picks up a few ticks daily. Right now his coat is fine and fluffy, still very much the puppy coat, very hard to find ticks, the benefit is because of the search for ticks he gets a good brushing almost every day. (Lots of Work!) But he looks great and is a big fluff ball. However because of the ticks and the fact that as it gets warmer we will be spending more time at the lake we have scheduled an appointment for him to be shaved. The appointment is for June 9th, and we are now torn. We are worried that if we shave him we will never have that soft fluffy fir again. From the sounds of it the coat change can really take over at about 10 months. Which means the hair that grows back over the summer could be a completely different texture. Our son, who is 9 doesn’t want him shaved, because he likes the fluff ball, but he also doesn’t do the grooming and bathing. So I guess we have a list of the following questions: If we shave him at 8 months, will the coat that grows back be soft? He is going to be in and out of the water A LOT, will that become a problem with a long coat? Would there be any benefit to keeping 1 to 2 inches of hair, or is that asking for a matting nightmare? I love the pictures of the dog that was shaved, but the head was left shaggy, if we do this any tips on maintaining a clean soft beard would be greatly appreciated. Any tips on grooming the head to keep it somewhat shaggy but have the eyes visible, would also be very much appreciated. We had a Berniese Mountain Dog for 12 years and he was great, I would say Lambeau has all the best qualities of our Berner, with the added benefit of a strong play drive which the kids absolutely love. Just looking for some tips on shaving versus non shaving. Thank you all very much for your time. Mike & Angie |
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| His coat will change anyway, whether you shave him now or not. He's entering that age where the coat goes through its first change from puppy to junior. So if you cut him, although it will seem like the shave changed the coat, it'll happen no matter what!
If he's a swimmer, clipping him down may not be a bad idea. Long hair and water can be ough because if he does have mats, the water will tighten them so you'll have to be very careful about making sure he's mat free all the time. Plus, like I mentioned before, he's at that age wheere the coat change is going to start and that's when the worst matting happens, too. One to 2 inches is easy to maintain and you shouldn't get too many tangles. By the way, I love the name! |
| I agree with Butters, leave an inch or two. Don't tell the groomer to "shave" him - we don't Sir Curly to wind up with a sunburn!
We live in AZ and keep our dog closely cropped during the warm months. But if you have the time and patience for grooming, there's nothing as cute as a furball! |
Quote: I love the pictures of the dog that was shaved, but the head was left shaggy, if we do this any tips on maintaining a clean soft beard would be greatly appreciated.
this is what I think looks best too! 
Long or short, after my dog eats and drinks water, I have a towel nearby to dry her beard. Also using filtered water and a stainless steel bowl helps. |
I as well was afraid to get Laika clipped but I am so glad I did it just for her she can enjoy her summer! me too because I don't have to brush as much. In this picture she is about 1 inch and longer on the face and tail which I think is very cute. We also tapered her feet I didn't want to lose the big ol' paw look.
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| Welcome to the forum!
When the hair grows back in as an adult, with an inch or two they'll be in the "fluffernutter" stage... soft and fluffy! Don't worry, and Please join us as a member of the forum! |
| spacegirl, that's EXACTLY how I got Yuki clipped yesterday (1" all around but head). I love it! |
| Spacegirl, she looks so cute! What size clipper was used? I am going to save that pic for the next time I take Allie in, which will be soon! |
I think her groomer used 3 inches first then went down to 1 1/2 inches to finish. I think  |
| We live in Northern Illinois, on a golf course, and the ticks are out in full force here as well. I am taking at least three a day off Oscar, so I know what a pain it is. As you can see from my avatar, Oscar is shaved, and very happy that way, and as an added bonus, it's much easier to spot the ticks.
Jill is right about water and matting. Big YUK! If Sir Curly is going to be swimming, I would seriously consider shaving him, having the groomer use the longest guard on the clippers, as a way to avoid sunburn and keep him slightly fluffy. Plus, all that fur does hold water, and could weigh him down while swimming. When she was a child, a friend of mine, with a sheepie in full coat, almost lost her dog to drowning in their new swimming pool. Her father, who was a doctor, saw the dog at the bottom of the pool and rescued him, giving him CPR, and saving his life. They shaved the dog down, and never had another incident like it. I'm sure many dogs in full coat have no trouble swimming, but just something to think about. Welcome to the forum. Laurie and Oscar |
| We have ticks here near the river (Rio Grande). By all means keep the coat short. The sheepies are short, Glacier is long and it takes me far longer to go thru her coat that it does the other three.
You can let the coat grow all winter, but for now.......and since you have a youngster entering the dreaded coat change, trim it down. |
| Thank you all for the great responses.
We have decided to cut Lambeau down to around 1 to 2 inches based on all the discussion. Our son is even on board after we read all the responses with him last night, and looked through many off your fine pictures. His favorite was the picture of Maizie posted on the “OMG -- I did an awful job clipping my dog!” thread. He was so tiered as we looked at some of those pics last night that he almost started crying he felt so bad for some of the “OVER Clipped” We had to reread the “It will grow back stuff” and he felt much better. So “Old English” if you are out there any specific instructions we can give our groomer so she can give Lambeau the “Maizie Look” would be great. Again thank you all, I will try and get registered on the site and post some pictures of Lambeau. Mike&Angie |
| Mike and Angie, we too live in WI and had the same problem you had. Weather to shave the dog or not. Take a look at my pictures. I had a long talk with the groomer BEFORE she took Simon. I did not want the dog shaved. I wanted a puppy cut that was easy to take care of and kept the dog free of tangles and matts. Its was my best decision by far as I got what I asked for and Simon is happier as he is cooler and I don't spend lots of time grooming him. Good luck to you and love the name!!! |
Mike&Angie wrote: So “Old English” if you are out there any specific instructions we can give our groomer so she can give Lambeau the “Maizie Look” would be great.
Mike&Angie She is out of town right now... Should be back on the forum in the next day or so.  |
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