Year Round Shaving?
Opinions please? Thanks! Lally |
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We're in Michigan, too-- what part are you from? [Scratch that, I jut found that answer on another post! We're only about 40 minutes away.  )
There's no reason to clip your dog unless he's really showing signs of being uncomfortable in the heat. Some dogs are more sensitive to the heat than others, just like people. As long as you're responsible and attentive to how he's feeling, you should have no problem determining if he needs less hair to be comfortable. I have my OES in full coat (with undercoat stripped in the summer) and my Komondor in full cords year 'round. On the hot days, we walk at night after the sun goes down. If they want to play outside when it's hot, they always have access to come in and out of the air conditioning as they please and I keep water inside and out. If it's too hot, I make them come in for breaks because I don't always trust their judgment, lol. |
| I live in northeast Ohio & any of my dogs not being shown in conformation are shaved year 'round. Some are shaved more often than others depending on how fast they grow their coat back. I shave them down with a 3-3/4" blade (must be mat-free to do so) & within 2 months or less they have the cutest "puppy cut". I let it grow until I find I am having to brush them more frequently & am having to worry about matting, generally around the 3-4 month mark. They seem to have no problem being outside in the cold in the dead of winter. |
My guys are kept in puppy cuts year-round. It's much easier for us to manage this way. Foz loves to lay in the cold snow no matter what his length  Annie hasn't ever shown signs of caring either way. |
| Like Stacy We keep Tasker clipped all year. My last "shave down" for the Fall is usually late September. That gives him a coat of 2-3 inches by Dec or Jan when the cold weather comes. He never has any difficulty with the cold, but then he is only out for walks and then right back in to the warm house. Usually by the end of March we again start clipping. |
| I shaved my guys last october and believe me it gets below zero in NY as well. they were fine. |
| Thanks so much for your replies. I have no plans on showing him so I think I'll keep him clipped. He's so cute this way!
Lally |
| I'm sorry, I read that completely the opposite of what you asked. I thought you wanted to know if you had to keep him short to be comfortable. I ignored the word winter since we're approaching summer (well that and I'm jet-lagged and probably shouldn't be thinking so much, lol). |
| Same here. We keep Edgar in a puppy cut year round. Mostly because it's easier to take care of.
-crustybirds |
| Same here too. Drez is always in a shorter cut, sometimes shorter than others. She definitely minds the heat - starts panting when the temps hit about 60 deg! Plus it's easier to care for and I just love the fluffy puppy look. |
| I've got 4 sheepie-girls and live in Northern lower Michigan.
Clipping them makes them easier to maintain for me. By late May or June they're ready for 1/4" summer cuts... http://oesusa.com/Sheepie-Play1.jpg I sometimes clip them again in August- http://oesusa.com/DarbyPearTree.jpg And to about 1/2" in November when we start to get busy again and I don't have time for all the brushing- http://oesusa.com/4Sheepies112207.jpg I let their hair grow longer in the fall/winter- http://oesusa.com/index.92.jpg Then clip to about 1/2" in late winter. I'll probably be clipping them again between the end of May and the first couple weeks in June- http://oesusa.com/Tetherball.jpg http://oesusa.com/EmmaDarby42608.jpg Definitely not done professionally but they don't seem to mind 
http://oesusa.com/EmmaPlaying41608.jpg |
| Max is currently about as long as your winter clips right now. Should I go for close to shaving for summer?
lally BTW- your dogs are adorable! |
| It's really personal preference and whether you have the time or want to
keep brushing to prevent matting. I like the shorter coats because it allows me to keep my girls cleaner with faster washing/drying times and there's much less brushing. Once it starts getting into the 80's mine will get their short hairdos (but I'll keep admiring all those sheepies kept in full coat ). When dogs have
longer hair, just be more careful they don't overheat... activity level can play a big factor in this. I've got one sheepie that wants to run all the time... even when she's shaved to 1/4" we have to be careful she doesn't overheat. She just doesn't know when to quit. 
So is Max settling in ok? |
| I have my Halo clipped for summer here in SC, but honestly, I like the longer coats. I can't wait until she grows out a couple of inches. Then I'd like to maintain that look, but maybe with a little longer hair on the head and face!
6girls: your babies are beauties!!!!! |
6Girls wrote: So is Max settling in ok? Today is his first day alone... we'll see when I get there! I am taking him to the groomer's today and we'll see what happens. LOL Lally |
| While I love Max in full coat, he really is heat sensitve. Not to mention the fact that he is still a bit incontinet and pees on his front legs
For those reasons, he stays in a puppy flip most of the time. He is adorable either way--- as are ALL sheepies. |
Quote: Today is his first day alone... we'll see when I get there! I am taking him to the groomer's today and we'll see what happens. You'll have to post to let us know how he did today. Quote: ...BTW- your dogs are adorable!...
...your babies are beauties!!!!!... Hey... thanks. I have to agree with Abuckie... ALL sheepies are adorable no matter what the hair length. |
| We're for short hair cuts all year round. |
| Well, I picked him up from the groomer's a little while ago. He is so cute! She did what she called a mutt cut- short cut with the legs a little fuller. He is so fluffy and clean and has a yellow bandanna on!
Then.... I took him to our local cemetery to go for a walk. It's on the edge of a lake and everyone goes there to fish and walk and enjoy the view. No sooner did we cross to the path than two huge ugly brown dogs came tearing out of the water and jumped all over him! He was whining, the guy was yelling at them and poor Max didn't know what the heck was going on. The guy had no collars or leashes on his dogs and had no control. They kept following us and the guy kept yelling for them. Poor Max. He was soaking wet. Today was his first day home alone- my s.o. is a trucker and left yesterday to take a load to Chicago. I thought he had done well- his previous owner said she let him free roam. So did I; he had no accidents- until today. He pooped upstairs. I can tell he tried not to go in one of "his" rooms- so he went on the landing. Not sure what to do now. It's been a day. lally Will post pics soon- promise! |
| Archie is just coming upto nine months old and has as yet only had his pad hair and around the eys cut.
I am in two minds as to even give him even a single annual cut/shearing. He is a ball of fluff, I try to brush him everyday, but not over intensely only 15-20 minutes a day, I may miss bits one day but probably pick them up the next day or so, when he starts to fall asleep sometimes it is difficult to swap sides. I had to wash him on Sunday as he had become a little messy at the rear (has had a few runny moments with his reaction to his worming tablets)and it is this that has me questioning his coat length, when they say OES coat are water proof they really mean it, I had been bathing him for over half an hour trying to work the shampoo into his coat at the same time as trying to convince him to stay in the bath, when pulling his coat back to work the shampoo revealed masses of totally dry dog - from the outside he looked like a drowned rat, needless to say I spent at least another 40 minutes trying to wet him shampoo him and rinse him. Can you get washing machines to pop an OES in? 
He was nice and clean and a big puff ball again, that evening on his walk, off he bounced with another young dog to a nice patch of mud
Archie too does the yellow front legs trick!, but with his long coat it runs off very quickly and vanishes. I like the fluff but can appreciate the sense of a shorter coat, not sure it wouldn't look very odd on him he is a gangly thin thing |
| Sunny is such a dog's dog I have NO idea how anybody could keep a dog like her in full coat! |
| I sure am glad to hear about all you folks clipping your sheepdogs. I was afraid I might be the only one.
We learned about clipping our sheepdogs when our first got into a major patch of burrs. If you've got a lot of burrs in your area grooming is a never ending job! One of my favorite things (and my pups as well) is going for long walks through the mountains where we live. It was physically impossible to keep our sheepdogs clean and groomed without clipping. We clip once in the spring and again in the fall. The short coat in the spring allows us to take our long walks during the hot weather (we visit several springs along the way) and by the time cold weather arrives their coat is 2-3" long. It has always worked great for our circumstances. |
Quote: Will post pics soon- promise! OOOOOOOOO!!  He's beautiful! What a handsome sheepie boy you have Quote: No sooner did we cross to the path than two huge ugly brown dogs came tearing out of the water and jumped all over him! Sorry to hear the about the encounter he had with the other dogs. They weren't mean though? Just excited to see him? I hope... Quote: I thought he had done well- his previous owner said she let him free roam. So did I; he had no accidents- until today. He pooped upstairs.
Also sorry to hear about the poo incident. You might want to confine him to a smaller area in the house until he settles in... maybe a room that is puppyproofed and can be cleaned easier. Everything is just so new to him... it takes time for a new dog to settle in. Thanks for posting his new pictures |
| As summer ends (for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere) I thought this topic warranted a 'bump'.
I'm contemplating keeping my girl Hermione's coat short all autumn and winter. I might have worried, originally, about doing this, what with cold New England temperatures, but an experience I had late last winter quelled my fears. It was March, and she'd gotten badly matted and I had to have her shaved. I figured, well, Spring is around the corner anyway (sort of-- truthfully Spring really starts late April around here). Sure enough, the very next morning we had 18" of new snow. So there she was, shaven nearly naked, in the snow. I wondered, would she shiver? Want to go back in, as she does in the rain? Instead she bounded through the snow, rolled in it, ate it, chased it, tunneled through it, etc., for a good 30 minutes. When we got in I dried her off and STILL she sought out the coldest spot in the apartment to take her exhausted nap. So I have decided she'll be fine with short hair this winter! I can totally understand traditionalists wanting to maintain a classic OES coat, but by the same token, they are SO cute in a puppy clip. I've gotten completely addicted to the look, especially being able to see every subtle facial expression! Anyone else feel this way? (PS, the picture at left shows her coat at more or less its longest. I tend to clip it quite short once it gets any longer.) |
| Archie is still in full coat I don't stop him going in the river and generally larking about, he was a mass of seeds from his walk in the fields earlier, most have fallen off with him tearing around the garden, I will brush out the rest after his late night walk.
I am not sure about Archie reacting, but it certainly would be a big shock to me to imagine him clipped now! |
I keep mine in a puppy cut all year round. The cleanups are easier
 |
| Obe stayed in full coat this summer and did great. Walks were early in the morning and late in the evening. He went swimming a couple of times a week (additional brushing, but always clean). Now we are going through the 2nd coat change, at least I assume as he is matting over night and this has never happen before. So the swimming is put on hold until this is over.
For me it was not hard to keep him in full coat during the heat as it hit 90 degrees once this year in Evergreen. I live on a north facing slope with lots trees so we never really get direct sun. There are spots but 75% shade all day. Under these circumstances it was easy to keep him in full coat. If I lived down the hill (Denver) he would have been shaved too hot for him down there. Personally I dont mind the brushing nor does he (most of the time). Kind of a bonding time for us. Then we go play and the process starts all over. |
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