Many dog breeds have double coats, resembling the coat of their close ancestor: the wolf. The soft, dense undercoat provides protection during cold and hot weather. This coarser topcoat, also called guard hairs, repels moisture, shields the skin, and creates color patterns.
Double coats come in different varieties: short, as in a Beagle or Labrador Retriever; medium, like a Golden Retriever or Border Collie; long, in a Collie or Newfoundland; Arctic, in a Pomeranian or Samoyed; and wired, as seen in a Norwich Terrier or wirehaired Dachshund.
Grooming Advice for Dog Owners
Double coats that aren’t maintained correctly can become tangled, irritate a dog’s skin, and spread hair all over you and your house.
“Most double coats are meant for northern climates, so while the dog who lives in a colder place may shed their undercoat only in spring and fall, they could shed four times a year or all the time, if they live where temperatures are warmer,” explains Dale Martins, a professional dog groomer in Laurel, MD and breeder of Norwich Terriers who compete in agility.
Martins has groomed double-coated dogs for more than 40 years. She offers the following advice to owners to keep their dog’s coat healthy:
Puppy Care
“A puppy should be groomed from the day you bring them home,” says Martins. Get them used to gentle brushing, touch a soft toothbrush to their gums, handle their feet and nails, look in their ears, and check their eyes.
Martins recommends taking a puppy them for their first visit to the groomer, once they’ve received all their shots (at about 12 weeks old), for a bath, brushing, and nail trim. “They’ll learn and get used to the grooming process,” she says.
Maintaining Skin and Coat
Brush your dog with a slicker brush and follow-up with a comb at least once a week. This removes dead hair, spreads natural oils, prevents skin infections, and stimulates new hair growth.
“Be sure to brush the hair, not the skin, like you would brush your own hair,” explains Martins. Slicker brushes come in three strengths. Use a soft slicker brush on a puppy and a medium strength slicker brush on an adult dog.
When To Bathe
Martins warns that it’s important not to overdo it when it comes to baths. Bathing too often can deplete your dog’s natural oils and dry out their skin and coat.
Shampoo your dog with a good quality de-shedding dog shampoo when they get dirty or stinky. Be careful to wash out all the shampoo. Rinse, rinse and when you think you’re done, rinse again. After you’re finished, dry them off.
Under-Eye Care
Even healthy dogs secrete a little bit of discharge from their eyes that can get stuck in their coats and cause tangles. “It’s best to check under their eyes every day,” recommends Martins. “If there’s a discharge, you can soak a cloth in warm water and gently wipe it or brush it away.”
If the eyes are red or teary, or if the discharge is heavy, discolored, or only appears under one eye, a dog may have an eye infection that needs to be checked by a veterinarian.
Ear Care
Ear care is important, regardless of the type of coat your dog has. However, Martins says double-coated dogs are less likely to have hair grow thickly inside the ear canal.
Check your dog’s ears for dirt and infections at least once a month. If needed, clean the outer ear with a cotton ball dipped in mineral oil. Your dog may have an ear infection if the ear is red or smelly, or if they’re shaking their head. If you notice these signs, call your vet.
Teeth Brushing
Dental health is important for all dogs. Ideally, you should brush your dog’s teeth daily to keep them clean. Use a soft toothbrush and toothpaste made especially for dogs.
Nail Trimming
Some dog breeds, like Martins’ Norwich Terriers, have black nails with quiks that grow fast to the end of the nail, which can make them more difficult to trim. “If you trim the nails a little bit each week, you can keep them softer, and you’re less likely to cut the quik,” Martins says.
To Shave or Not To Shave?
Martins advises that you shouldn’t shave the coat of a double-coated dog unless there are so many tangles and thick hair build-up that the dog’s skin can’t dry out under the coat.
Shaving doesn’t eliminate shedding, but it does damage the topcoat and can increase the chances of skin issues or sunburn. It also damages the undercoat that insulates the dog in winter, keeps their skin dry, and allows room for air to reach the skin and keep it cool and dry during hot weather.
When To Get Help From a Professional Groomer
How often you need to take your dog to a professional groomer depends on how well you maintain necessary grooming practices at home, as well as the specific characteristics of your dog’s coat and the climate you live in.
A dog who lives in a humid climate and isn’t brushed weekly may have a thick undercoat that gets packed in and keeps moisture next to the skin. Routine professional grooming can prevent this situation from developing and fend off bacteria growth and skin infections. Groomers are also adept at removing matted hair and thick tangles gently, and when necessary, cutting down the coat to remove the tangles and allow the skin to dry.
A professional groomer may “hand strip” dogs with hard, wiry coats, such as the Welsh Terrier. Due to the thickness of that hard-wire-hair shaft, these dogs don’t always easily shed naturally. Hand stripping is a painless way to keep dogs’ coats healthy and promote new hair growth. Shaving a wire-coated dog cuts that hair shaft off at the skin, so they may never fully regain a natural hard coat.
Finally, a groomer can serve as a detective to alert you to the condition of a dog’s health and well-being. “A good groomer will look for body lumps, soreness, cracked foot pads, ear wax and ear infections, inspect teeth, gums and eyes, and express anal glands,” says Martins. “We check the dog all over and notice problems the owner may not yet have detected.”
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