What should I be worried about?
I try to keep a puppy trim on him, and I maintain as best I can. Right from the start I've been giving him "mommy cuts". They aren't always pretty (I'm getting better) but it keeps his fur mostly under control. I haven't trimmed his tummy at all yet, and he's 11 mos. Just recently he's been getting tons of mini mats on his belly. Is it ok to clip that area down to a pretty short lenght??? Will he be cold in our Alberta winters?? He has to go out in the snow quite a bit. I only been using scissors, so what lenght should I keep the tummy? Also, do I need to keep the hair immediately around his eyes quite short as well?? What should I cut that area with, if at all? What about his bum? What the best way to cut that? How short? If someone has pics to show, that would be fantastic. Should I be concerned with the texture/feel of his coat? He feels a little wiry on the back end but his shoulders are still soft. How do I know if he needs conditioner? Should I only use doggy shampoo and conditioner? I'd like him to be as soft and cuddly as possible. What's the best brush/combs to use on him? So far all I have is a slicker brush. I have a long way to go to mastering this stuff....but at least he still loves me despite it all. |
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| Wowsers, lots of questions. GOOD FOR YOU!!! Thats the best way to learn. The matts on the stomach are probably from coat change. They will mate and you will have lots of little baby matts soon  Yes you can clip the belly hair and I keep mine pretty short so 1) no matts, 2)helps to keep my hot dogs cool.Hair around the eyes is always a big discussion here. You have to keep the hair out of your baby's eyes or they cannot see. Period. Its a myth or Old Wives Tale that they can see through all that hair or they will go blind with too much light. That means either trimming the hair or keeping it in a top knot. I use a scissors and sometimes dh to hold that head still. Hair around the butt is always a hot discussion too. We call it the poop chute. I truely wish that I had a picture of the best trim I ever saw. You do need to keep a clear path for the poop to "fall" or you will end up with poop tangled in the hair. Been there, once and vow to never do it again. Not fun! I just do the best I can and keep it clipped to about 1-2 inches. Check around on here and you will find tons in info on grooming. Line brushing is important so you don't end up with felting, undercoat matting. Dawn did a good presentation on that. A good pin brush is needed to get all the way to the skin. Most folks like to have more then one brush and find that different brushes do better in different places on the dog. I have one pin brush, one slicker and on dematting comb. Wish I had more. Oh yeah, we need pictures too |
| You'll get lots of help here. Yes, you can trim the tummy, it does get matted under there. I keep the bum trimmed out, creating a poop shoot. Others here bevel the hair so the bum remains fluffy but the hair is shorter near the exit port. The fact you are feeling texture differences indicated the coat change over is beginning. You'll need to keep up on the brushing and trimming as necessary. How wonderful you are learning how to trim now! By the time you have an adult, you'll be quite handy at trimming. We all have different coat length preferences. It's up to what you want. Over conditioning may make things worse. That coarse coat will be easier to handle, once it comes in totally. |
Quote: Hair around the eyes is always a big discussion here. You have to keep the hair out of your baby's eyes or they cannot see. Period. Its a myth or Old Wives Tale that they can see through all that hair or they will go blind with too much light. That means either trimming the hair or keeping it in a top knot. I use a scissors and sometimes dh to hold that head still. It's not done but here are some videos.   Darn it... I laughed again. http://untilyoufindme.com/Old-English-S ... pknots.htm |
| [quote="Simon's Mom"]Wowsers, lots of questions. GOOD FOR YOU!!! Thats the best way to learn. The matts on the stomach are probably from coat change. They will mate and you will have lots of little baby matts soon Yes you can clip the belly hair and I keep mine pretty short so 1) no matts, 2)helps to keep my hot dogs cool.Hair around the eyes is always a big discussion here. You have to keep the hair out of your baby's eyes or they cannot see. Period. Its a myth or Old Wives Tale that they can see through all that hair or they will go blind with too much light. That means either trimming the hair or keeping it in a top knot. I use a scissors and sometimes dh to hold that head still. Hair around the butt is always a hot discussion too. We call it the poop chute. I truely wish that I had a picture of the best trim I ever saw. You do need to keep a clear path for the poop to "fall" or you will end up with poop tangled in the hair. Been there, once and vow to never do it again. Not fun! I just do the best I can and keep it clipped to about 1-2 inches. Check around on here and you will find tons in info on grooming. Line brushing is important so you don't end up with felting, undercoat matting. Dawn did a good presentation on that. A good pin brush is needed to get all the way to the skin. Most folks like to have more then one brush and find that different brushes do better in different places on the dog. I have one pin brush, one slicker and on dematting comb. Wish I had more. Oh yeah, we need pictures too Here's one of his more recent chop jobs. It's not pretty but it's improving. He hasn't been brushed that day so you can see how choppy the hair cut is. It's not as obvious when he's brushed out fluffy. I still have no clue what to do around the eyes and head.    |
| Cute pup. I have yet to clip howie (8 months old) so I have no advice for you in that department. As well, he has yet to go through the transition coat phase. The way you clipped him (sorry don't know his name) makes him look like a stuffy toy, a GUND! He looks so cuddly. peg |
I love the sheepie head tilt in pictures. Ryleigh does that all the time too.  Ryleigh is also 11 months old and her coat is changing. The back is now a little corser than the white fluffy part. I keep her bottom cut short to help with poop hanging on. Also I keep the hair between her pads cut too. Now you living up north not sure if she needs that hair for protection. I live in Texas so its not that cold here. I also trim the hair on her tummy with scissors kinda short because its so fine it does matt easier. I usually do this late at night when shes tired from playing all day. She also sleeps on her back with her feet straight up so it makes it easy to get to all of this. Good luck and dont be afraid to ask tons of questions. everyone here is so helpful and dont make you feel like you are asking dumb questions.  |
| Thanks everyone for the pointers. I have since purchased a pin brush. Mostly Foster tries to eat it but we'll get beyond that soon. It works pretty good when he's distracted. I've decided to try to grow the fur over his eyes long enough for two top knots. Not sure what to do with it all in the interim but hopefully he doesn't bonk into anything before we can get them tied back.. I've also scissored his belly pretty short. His choice not mine. He put his foot down to me trying to comb out the 200 mini mats. At least now it's fuzzy again. After christmas I'm gonna get me a FLOWBEE. Can't be any worse than the haircuts I give him and I've read some good reviews. I'll keep you all posted if it's worth it. |
| good for you trying to keep foster into a good cut what a cutie and welcome from fl |
just remember growning the top know is like you growing a fringe! you just got to get through that hell stage!!!! but if you cut it your back to square 1 it take patience and love  as for trimming around the eyes i trim billies hair from between his eyes to just under his eyes. this is because when we first got him from the rescue his eyes were so vacent and now there happy and i just have to see them lovely wall eyes    but top knots come in all shapes and sizes!  and as for the belly, if its cold, try to scissor it, but if all else fails get some clippers, just remember matts can hurt. and when a matt gets wet and then dries it tightens up. nobody sees the belly so hack away if its cold there. good luck and i hope you find what works for you best xxx ps foster looks so lovely your doing a great job |
Dirtybird wrote: Here's one of his more recent chop jobs. It's not pretty but it's improving. He hasn't been brushed that day so you can see how choppy the hair cut is. It's not as obvious when he's brushed out fluffy. I still have no clue what to do around the eyes and head. I think he looks just great. You did this cut yourself? With a clippers? I am very impressed. My OES is 7 months and needs a cut like this. |
| HI Serpico, No I didn't use clippers. Honestly, as a beginner I went to Walmart and bought a new pair of scissors (nothing special) and basically went all over his body (carefully), leaving what I hoped would be hair that was 2 fingers high. lol. It was messy, and a little choppy the first go round. then I brushed him out AGAIN, and looked for any choppy spots and tried to smooth them out with the scissors. I found I got the best results when I cut perpendicular to the direction of growth, if that makes any sense. I seems to blend better. But seriously...I started along his backside and it now amounts to just grabbing and chopping to get the desired lenght and to remove the bulk of the growth, then going back to fine tune. Also, I was finding spots that I missed for a couple days, so each time I saw a rough spot I'd just have the scissors handy and try to blend as I went. All in all, not a totally difficult process. It also took his body's weight in cookies but now he lies kinda still. (A few minutes at a time until he looks for another cookie.) We'll get there. Serpico wrote: Dirtybird wrote: Here's one of his more recent chop jobs. It's not pretty but it's improving. He hasn't been brushed that day so you can see how choppy the hair cut is. It's not as obvious when he's brushed out fluffy. I still have no clue what to do around the eyes and head. I think he looks just great. You did this cut yourself? With a clippers? I am very impressed. My OES is 7 months and needs a cut like this. |
Dirtybird wrote: HI Serpico, No I didn't use clippers. Honestly, as a beginner I went to Walmart and bought a new pair of scissors (nothing special) and basically went all over his body (carefully), leaving what I hoped would be hair that was 2 fingers high. lol. It was messy, and a little choppy the first go round. then I brushed him out AGAIN, and looked for any choppy spots and tried to smooth them out with the scissors. I found I got the best results when I cut perpendicular to the direction of growth, if that makes any sense. I seems to blend better. But seriously...I started along his backside and it now amounts to just grabbing and chopping to get the desired lenght and to remove the bulk of the growth, then going back to fine tune. Also, I was finding spots that I missed for a couple days, so each time I saw a rough spot I'd just have the scissors handy and try to blend as I went. All in all, not a totally difficult process. It also took his body's weight in cookies but now he lies kinda still. (A few minutes at a time until he looks for another cookie.) We'll get there. For real ? Now I'm really impressed! You are going to be one good groomer if you did that cut with the method above. I've spent hundreds on grooming tools and uncountable hours to get a cut that looks 1/2 that good! |
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