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Should I shave her? HELP! Luma is nearly four months old. I made an appointment for her first grooming on May 1. I got a recommendation from a YT member who used to live here in town, and she shows her dogs. So I trust her. Originally it was just going to be sanitary, between her toes, her ears, and get her nails clipped. However we've started going to the dog park multiple times a week, and she always comes home filthy, and covered in little prickly stickers. She HOWLS when I have to pick these out of her fur. I bathed her today and realized, ashamed, that her fur around her armpits and legs is HORRIBLY matted, I tried to pick most of it out but it was agonizing, especially for my little girl. I feel so bad. I think I should ask them to shave her down completely....I hate to do it, she has the softest, prettiest hair ever...I'd still keep some length in her beard. Would it look weird for them to just shave her legs and then trim her saddle, not shave it completely off?? I need suggestions badly. |
How about leaving her legs, beard and topknot and shave the saddle. It works really well for us and Bogie is pure cotton coated. |
But her saddle is fine. I pay a lot of attentiion when I brush there. I neglected her armpits and her legs and they are densely knotted up at the root. I can't brush it out :( |
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1 Attachment(s) The "joey cut" works great for Zhoie too and she is a modified cotton coat. You can also shave the armpits. Zhoie's pits, head nor legs doesn't tangle, but I would put clothes on when she had a longer coat, she would. Here she is in the closest I could get to trimming like the "joey" ;) |
Luma would look beautiful no matter what you did to her hair!!!!! I would just shave everything except the face/top knot and just start over. It's going to be a hot summer anyway.. I'm sure she'll appreciate it :) |
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And I'm sure Luma would appreciate the shave down, its gonna be a HOT summer in Texas! I just want her to still look like..herself. :( We'll see... |
I saved Jada and Zhoie's pics on my phone and will show the groomer. If I dont like it I can just bring her back and get her legs shaved too! Lol thank you guys so much. :) |
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If her legs are badly knotted or matted and she's so young I doubt the groomer is going to demat her. Its cruel to do that to a puppy on their first grooming. Besides, yorkies can be difficult to groom because they are so small, fragile, and wiggly. Its best to shave her down all over, except the head, and start over again. You can bypass the puppy to adult coat stage (which is a nightmare) and just get to growing out that beautiful silky adult coat. Now that you know her matting points be sure to pay special attention to them when combing her from now on. Continue her grooming routine even if her hair is short just so she gets used to it. |
Something else I thought about is how often do you brush her? I am always brushing my two. I know at least 2 to 3 times a day. I think it does help to prevent the tangles. Just a suggestion. |
Thank yall for the suggestions. Cant wait to get these mats gone. I tried again today and no luck. She was in so much pain. Rhonda, I brush this girl nearly everytime she breathes. Her coat is BEAUTIFUL. I was just a bad mama and neglected to get behind her arms and legs, near the joints. The hair is pretty much a solid ball at the root. |
If you shave her just keep in mind that she will look completely different, and not as much like a puppy, after the black puppy hair is shaved off. Make sure you get all the pictures you want beforehand, and be prepared for the shock. By the way, I once got Jax the cut you described (shave the legs, trim saddle area) and he looked fine. I'll probably groom him that way for summer. |
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When you only have the legs to brush, it really doesn't take much:thumbup: I have to admit, I hardly ever brush Zhoie. We fixed her topknot every morning and wash her face....a couple times a week, I may run a comb down her legs but that's about it. |
3 Attachment(s) I'm not a big fan of a fully shaved Yorkie, It takes away from their natural Beauty! The long flowing hair is what makes a Yorkies a Yorkie and once that is gone they look odd. There are cuts that you can give her that leaves the skirt, leg and head hair but shortened. Plus you can ask the groomer to trim her pits but not fully shave them. (unless it is necessary to do so) Once it starts to grow out again keeping up on the grooming process is really the only way you can prevent the matting. I have sat hours upon hours grooming my Ruby (a cotton coat) who also got horribly matted in her younger years. No madder what I did she always got matted within days of being groomed. I keep Ruby in a modified Schnauzer cut. I'm sure that it would be doable even if it was necessary to shave Luma's pits, without cutting her legs and shirts or head. The longer hair would hide the fact that her pits were shaved, giving it time to grow out again. |
It just downed on me after I saw your avatar, Duh.... * Do you keep her in clothes all of the time? If so, my guess is that that is why she is matting so much. The friction from the material is what causes the hair to matt. It has happened to my dogs, which is why I not put them in clothes. I do Ruby occ. but not for days on end and I make sure that I groom her frequently. |
I used to, until we started going to the dog park everyday. I'm getting a so tired of having to pull out abbout 20 sticker burrs from her feet and leg hair everytime we go. I did have a thought though. Lots of times that we scoop her up, its by her armpits. Also when we bathe her sometimes I give in and hold her directly under the faucet. I hold her around her armpits. I've brushed out a lot of the matting but it'll just keep happening again, and I dont want to keep pulling those burrs out. Maybe if they just cut her legs and feet really short, not shaved, it'll help. I called them to reschedule and they know I have no clue what I want done, lol. :( Her apt is now May 11 at 8am. |
Do you use any product on her? A detangler or anything? |
Just a petsmart detangler I use when I brush her. I'm trying to decide between all the higher end product lines. I posted a poll and thread a while back but no one replied lol. |
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Ice On Ice Detangler Conditioning, finishing spray, stain repellent with sunscreen Leave-in conditioning finishing spray & detangler with sunscreen. repels dirt, dust, urine and pollutants that damage and break coat. Water soluble, can be added to final rinse. Adds elasticity and strength to the coat when brushing. |
if she's matted the longer you wait to get her groomed the worse its going to be. Just take her in, have them shave her, and save both of you the torment. |
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:thumbup: :thumbup: CC Ice On Ice is GREAT!! |
I know what you mean. The smallest bit of cut grass will get tangled in my dogs hair and if I dont catch it it becomes a compleat mess. I myself had never had to deal with stickers thou. I wonder why you would prefer to have her shaved instead of finding a different park. One that does not have any weed and sticker patches. After the first few times of having to de tangle her after a trip to the park, I would have been out of there. I have a grooming page on my web site that may be helpful. It may help you find an easier way to get those tangles out. Grooming - Dawn's Yorkies Ohio |
Those stickies are a blinkety pain. Now what I have for my Blackies (but not yet for my Yorkie) is a mud jacket that works great. What it is, is a plasticey type of material, all four legs and the belly are covered, and then the straps go up over the back. It works really well and keeps those stickies out of the leg and belly hair. Razzle uses his wrapping jacket - another thought for you to employ. |
The good thing about shaving her, her hair will grow back. With this in mind, you could get a good start on cutting her or having groomed in a way that will work best for her and you. Once you see the areas that start to tangle or mat, maybe those would be the areas to keep short/shaved. Mine get shaved down for the summer because we live in an area that has ticks. I would love to let their coats grow out but I don't want to miss any ticks on them if I can help it. |
My Dexter is all cotton coat... and he's a BABY! Brushing him is out of the question. He's almost 7 years old and Ive given up. He gets shaved. They do leave the hair on his head a bit longer though. I think he looks adorable shaved and he seems soooo happy to have it all gone. Right now he's sooo scruffy. I REALLY need to make an appt for them. (both my boys get shaved, but Fletch is just for maintenance really, he does not mat up at all) |
Thank you guys for all your input. She's definitely getting her coat cut short at the very least, maybe not shaved, but she LOVES being outside and I don't mind her puppy hair getting cut at all, so it's no big deal to me. I'd rather her be happy. |
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For some dogs, I believe they look better shaved or short. Also Jackson is ALL BOY -- he is an outdoor boy, who swims all summer, runs thru tall grass, runs thru the woods, and rolls around in dirt. Shaving/short is the easiest and I think he looks quite handsome and would look like a stringy rat with long hair, haha... He would be a miserable dog if he had to be brushed every day, and extensively groomed, etc.... His happiness is more important to me. |
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