I have a new appreciation for yorkies with floor length hair :)
 

I have been growing Bentley out for months now. His hair is driving me crazy! It's taking everything I have to not go have it cut down. When we went to the vet, the vet said, "poor guy can't see". It made me feel terrible! He was talking about the hair on his nose. Which of course has been the hardest thing to grow and is a mess at this stage. Today I finally got it all up and out of his eyes! I can finally see his pretty eyes again. I saw a few pictures of him yesterday shaved down though and he was just so cute but I know I will hate myself if I have him cut bc I've been growing him for so long. In seconds, months of work growing out his nose hair can be cut off. Does anyone else obsess this much over hair like me? I feel as attached to his hair as I am with my own. Haha! Which I have also been growing out. Haha! For some reason when we got him I thought it would be so easy to grow him to the floor like his dad. I don't think people really know how much time and work goes into growing it long. I have a great appreciation for those that have made it :))

You sound like me- I had a couple stages where I was growing it out- then I cut it- then I was growing it out again!! LOL I think because their hair is so much like ours it’s fun to play with- However I caved every time and shaved Peanut- Peanut is really active, especially in the summer- We are always out on the boat, in the lake, at the desert- so for us it is easier for him to be shaved- in the winter months I will grow it out to a point where he is just “shaggy” just so he stays warm!

I know for sure those who have full coats or ½ full coats is a lot of work!! I could not brush him every day, or bath him once a week!

How long is Bentley’s hair?

I know what you mean! Floor length is so pretty, but such a pain! The longer it gets, the easily it tangles and the more often it needs to be brushed out, given hygiene baths, and all the rest. The annoying part of growing the hair out is that the parts you want grown out the most (face) takes the longest. Lexie has finally grown out her face after 2 years! I've gone through an entire large tube of hair gel!

I understand why people keep their dogs in puppy cuts, but I love a dog in full coat.

Ill have to get a current picture up later today. He is at that shaggy stage. It seems to have hit a point where it isn't growing very quickly now. It's very close to half way. When he was about 1yr I had him grown almost to the floor. Then he got neutered and they put an IV in and shaved his leg so i just had him cut back so it wouldnt look funny. Then grew him long again and decided with our second baby to cut him back down. Throughout though, he always had his nose hairs trimmed. Which I deeply regret. Where we would be now if only I had not cut it the first time. Haha! He's just so shaggy right now. Bentley is also very active so as soon as I brush him, he gets it all tangled up. I agree though, I do the same thing with my own hair. I cut it short, grow it long, cut it short, grow it long. Haha! I've been growing mine long while growing his too. So mine is driving me crazy too. Haha! I'm grooming him today and usually after I do, I love it so much. Then he plays outside and comes in all shaggy again. Haha! Glad I'm not the only one that's obsessed with their babies hair. I'm sure he thinks I'm ridiculous worrying so much over it. :)

His face hair has definitely been the hardest part to grow. I always feel like people are looking at us thinking I'm terrible for it being in his face. I find myself explaining when we meet people.

Person: Hi, your yorkie is so cute!
Me: Thank you. We are growing him out so that's why his hair is in his face.

Hahahaha!

Hi! I am also growing out my Bentley's hair. He will be 4 yrs. old in March. I had to cut him down because of allergies in Sept. 2011 and he is now a little over 3/4 the way to the floor. I use Pantene Ice Shine conditioner and really like it. I brush him once every morning...might be his hair type but he doesn't get tangled and he has a lot of hair...even his groomer says so! lol I do love the look of a full coated Yorkie and am trying my best to get there with Bentley.

Same here, I want to grow Joels hair but it's so hard to manage. Then it matts and he hates getting brushed when it's matted:( I haven't found something that works on him

I've heard really good things about Pantene in the past. Bentley has never had a matt before but it does get tangled easily. It seems like when I put conditioner in his hair it gets oily very quickly. The last few times, I have been watering the conditioner down a lot before putting it on him and it helps a lot. My Bentley is so fluffy but I don't think he has a cotton coat. It is very straight when I bathe him but still fluffy. His dad and mom both had silky coats. I think he may look fluffy still bc he isn't quite long enough for the weight to pull it down. I should take progression pictures. Haha! Then I could look back to remind myself that he IS in fact growing. It's like watching watching water and waiting for it to boil. :) Hopefully we can all hold out long enough to reach full coat status.

This is what I like about Pantene Ice Shine Conditioner...he just doesn't get oily. He used to but not with this conditioner. I didn't like him getting oily either. You may want to try it out.

Do you mean Pantene conditioner for people? Or is there a dog shampoo called Pantene? Sorry about such an odd question! I am always looking out for new ideas to keep Teeka's hair tangle free. :)

It's for people.

I would somewhat disagree with your vet about your Yorkie being able to see..lol My Yorkie-Poo had the hair flopping over the face, and other breeds have that naturally and can still see. But, I understand the guilt...and I know this problem well. lol

Brody was taken to a groomer by his former owner THE DAY I got him...he was 14 months old and had had long hair but they 'puppy cut' him. :confused::( The groomer did NOT trim his ear hair...ever...which was very long...but DID trim the top of his muzzle (nose hair) and tried to cut a visor. His hair was very fine, thin and silky with little to no 'body' and the visor hung down over his eyes and the muzzle hair made a 'fan' in front of his eyes. To make it worse, his muzzle hair grows straight back toward the top of his head...no natural part, like Mia has. I grew out Brody's muzzle hair for about 8 months before it got long enough to create a visble "V" looking like it might lay down on each side of his muzzle. I would 'slick' it down with water, and it would pop back up when it dried...lol He dropped the puppy hair on his head when the 'more body, slightly darker golden tan' hair came in. Today, I can 'slick' it down, or it may separate into a "V" on top of his muzzle, but it still does not lay down nice...like Mia's.

Mia, however, was cut VERY SHORT when I got her and her hair grew very fast, and laid down the whole time. Her muzzle is a little longer than Brody's, though. She also has fine, silky hair, but thicker than Brody's, and neither tangle hardly ever unless they get weed seeds, etc. caught and scratch to get them out or something.

If you want to grow him out, you may just have to 'arrrgggghhh' your way through this wicked growing phase...:p:D

Yes, it is the one for people. It was suggested on Yorkie Talk a while back. I gave it a try and I am happy with how it keeps Bentley's hair trouble-free and he also doesn't get oily.

My hair is now short and my boys are getting their puppy cuts today!!! LOL They are 7 years old and never had hair, Ive always kept them in puppy cuts. Its adorable and easy! I don't miss their hair at all, when grooming goes any length of time after 2 months it's too long. I used to get them groomed only every 4 months because it was all I could afford, but now I can afford every 2 months and they go! HAHA it's been 2.5 months now and they are there today!

Bentley has a short muzzle also. He has never had a natural part either. It's beginning to lay somewhat flat but still sticks up a bit. Think ill try a bit of Vaseline to train it to lay flat. You're right though. Gonna have to "arrrgggghhhh...!" My way through it. Hahaha! I also disagreed with the vet saying that but still felt guilty. Like he thought I just don't groom him. It seems like people that don't know much about the breed tend to give me that look. Especially about his muzzle hair. So many people think you HAVE to cut it. I cut my bangs short recently and I can relate with Bentley. Haha! It's annoying but it'll get there :) I groom him myself bc I think I'd have a heart attack if I took him and they cut his nose hair into a fan. That happened once before while I was trying to grow it. I was so upset that I decided to stay grooming him myself. And now with many more months into it than that time, I know I'd freak out. Haha!

LOL...I know, huh? People don't seem to realize dogs have 'cowlicks' in their hair, too...and it goes every which-a-way, hangs in/over their eyes. I got a jar of Vaseline, and thought about trying that...but I was using a bit of Aloe gel with a bit water to 'glue' that stickie-uppie muzzle hair down, and still do if I need it to stay down longer than just water. The clean up is nice but I wondered how schmuckie he'd get with Vaseline and so have not tried it. Does Vaseline really 're-train' the hair? Or will it always grow that 'odd' direction any not lay down flat anyway? 'Cuz I've already bit my lip and muddled through one growing-out mess so with that experience, I could probably do it one final time. LOL

I think it would be a lot like how we retrain our hair. I do think it's possible. I've seen quite a few Vaseline threads on YT. Ill be trying it so I can let you know :)

I did get kind of hyper about Gracie's hair growing out. We had two bad trips to the groomer where they cut her nose and topknot even through I had asked them not to. That just make things so much more upsetting for me and difficult for her. It is a lot of work, time and trouble to grow out a long haired dog's face and body.

Last summer I did let our groomer cut her length for the first time. It's all grown back now. But no one can cut her topknot or nose. It took too long to get to the point where she looked good and could see. I suppose I may eventually do something else with her hair but for now we are enjoying the long look.

Yeah, why is it that the hair on the face grows sooooo slow compared to the rest of the coat?

I keep Kyra in a long coat with no issues, Laddy was also till his allergy issues and now we are at the growing out again stage, I hate it. Also for some reason this time around the hair on his face doesn't seem to be growing, it gets very frustrating. Kyra's face furnishings are wonderful we have to keep hers trimmed which I count as a blessing lol.

I never tried the vaseline but I did buy some doggie gel. She hated it so much that she rubbed her face into the rug and irritated one of her eyes. The stuff just dried and the hair stuck up again anyway. I did think the vaseline might collect dirt on her so I didn't try it. She always sticks her face into things when we go on walks. The way her whiskers grow also made her face hair stick up more in some places. It can get frustrating.

Tibbe is very active and into everything checking it out and I am so afraid that with a long coat he'll catch his hair in something and panic before I can get to him, hurt himself somehow. He hardly ever gets burrs or much stuck in his short hair and rarely has a matt. Plus, his short, curly coat is cute and easy to care for and he dries in a matter of minutes by only wallowing on towels and running about in the warm house. He looks pretty cute to me in a puppy cut.

If Gracie has a curly coat I'm sure I would keep it short also. The long coat is more work but I enjoy it so it is not that much of a bother. She does come in looking like a shrub after walks in the fall. I always have to comb her anyway to check for fleas or ticks she may have picked up along the way so a few leaves get combed out too at certain times of year. The waterless spray shampoos come in really handy, too.

I don't keep Huey floor length, but he has never been cut short. I do the visor over the eyes and clip the top of his nose and inner eyes. Other than that, I keep a contoured cut a couple of inches off the ground and clean feet-all more of a modified silky cut instead of a yorkie cut. We did a bath and face trim this morning. I do bathe him every week, but contrary to everything I've heard, I only brush him with his blow dry and maybe one other time between baths Thank goodness he has good hair. The only part that gets knotted is his mustache and sometimes a bit on the top of his head. I condition him well with the bath and straighten everything out with the blowdry. Here are a couple of photos. The one in front of the fire has a crooked part, I know :rolleyes: but you can see his clean feet, coat length and nose/visor. I agree with gracielove that the grooming is more work than a short coat, but I just love the way he looks with the big ears and long hair! :D

I totally feel you on this one. We tried to grow out, but it's just not for us. Katie Scarlett doesn't have the true silky coat, but it's not all the way cottony. I think she has a mixed sort of coat, but I'm not sure. If hers gets too long, it's mat city and I felt that she was uncomfortable when we had to detangle. So in the end, we keep her cut back. But I adore the floor length look. I admire anyone who has a Yorkie with floor length hair. It's gorgeous!!!

I am trying to grow Honey hair as well but the nose hair is killing me. Dont know what to do to get it out her eyes. I really want it long but i might just fold.

I know what you mean- I don't know how full coat people do it, LoL ....

Every time Jax gets to a certain length, I'm like UGHH cut it off!! Like right now it's to that point. Here's a pic of him last night. He's seeing the groomer Friday.

The one thing we've been trying to do is grow out his hair around his face a bit. Groomer had started doing a visor cut and I don't like it. It just grows back too fast and then hangs in his eyes and he looks like a grouch lol. So yeah I have told the groomer we're growing it out and not doing the straight across visor look anymore.

I wish we could have it both ways -- full coat and puppy cuts. :)

Teddy messes up his hair 2 minutes after I finish combing him. Oh well, he is a cute mess.

I'm sure one of these days, both of my boys are going to end up with shorter hair.

I love long coat. That is one of things I love about them. I am going to try to grow Galen's coat. Do you start when they are puppies or do you wait until a year old?