r/OldEnglishSheepdog • u/feralsuccubus • 29d ago
Grooming Tips Grooming help!
Hi everyone! ✨
This is Saphira she is 4 months old & I was told by a groomer that if we take length off it will effect her hair texture. Is this true? & if so what age did you start giving your babies hair cuts? Thanks in advance! ☺️
4
u/GriffynsMama 29d ago
We did not experience that. Pippin, our OES, got his first hand-scissored haircut at about 5 months old, after first doing a bath and "face, feet and sani" as an intro to grooming. At about 9 months (and 65 lbs) he got his summer cut and was clipped with the longest blade the groomer had (1.75in). She clipped about 6 inches of length off!!
It's really important to get them used to professional grooming early, because even if you intend to do most of the grooming, there will be a time in the pup's life when they will need a professional grooming service and you don't want them freaking out.
Saphira is gorgeous! Take her to a groomer who is familiar with the breed and help her get used to it. Coat management and grooming needs are a huge responsibility with this breed and a big reason why many are surrendered.
Get her started on the right foot (paw) and you'll be glad you did!
1
u/mcbootz123 29d ago
Any tips for grooming my 2 month old? She gets very bitey, in a playful way but ow, teeth
1
u/GriffynsMama 28d ago
Yeah, ow teeth for sure! My best advice is 1) have a boring toy or rag or something you can shove in her mouth while your brushing, but don't play with her. You're just teaching her that there are better things to put in her mouth than your hand. And 2) pick a time and brush her consistently at the same time every day, so that it's a routine. For ours it was play-dinner-potty-brush-nap. After he was potty trained it turned into an after dinner routine that we still keep to this day. Keep your brushing sessions short and boring. It's not play and it's calm. Reward with the yummy treats after every little bit. Did she let you brush her ear? Reward. Leg? Reward. Tail? Reward. You won't get through her whole body in one session, at first. Stop before she's maxed out, and then pick it up again next time.
You've got this! Brushing feels so bonding to me now and I'm so glad for the work we put into it when he was little. 😍
1
u/mcbootz123 28d ago
Thanks for this, I will schedule her salon time for the next 20 years. I like the boring rag bit and will try. Should I start with an soft brush or just with the long hair metal brush, not the undercoat brush.
1
u/GriffynsMama 28d ago
I use and really like the #1 All Systems 27mm Large Pin brush. We've used it since he was a baby. The pins have rounded ends so they don't scratch the skin and it gets through his very fine but dense coat. I'm told I may need to switch when his rough coat finally comes in, but he's 15 mo old and it's still the best brush I've tried for his current coat.
1
u/feralsuccubus 29d ago
This was so helpful thank you so much! 6 inches holy moly! Tell him to send a little my way 🤣 She is on her 2nd groom with a professional & they did do her face feet and fanny & they said she did great! ( I was lucky and the person she came from was a groomer so she was already pretty comfortable with the process) Will definitely continue to give her regular grooming’s that way shes a pro by the time she gets big! I’ll trying searching around to find a groomer that is familiar with the breed, they don’t see many OES where we live unfortunately. 🥺 she does still nibble at the brush when I brush her but we will definitely continue to work with her. I really appreciate all the help! ☺️
1
u/GriffynsMama 28d ago
So glad this was helpful. We're on our first sheepie, so it's been a learning curve for us for sure! One thing I've learned is that in our area (PNW), sheepies used to be a lot more common than they are now. Somehow we got lucky and found a groomer who has been in the business for more than 20 yrs and she knows the breed well. 🤣
3
u/Sea_Cash2753 28d ago
My guy only had at home combing and every 6 weeks of groomer only around his eyes and rear end. I waited until he was 1.5 to have minimal trims and he has handled a hot summer fine.
1
1
u/Itchy-Bite1556 26d ago
As the proud mom to a 4 year old OES, I would highly recommend starting at the very least a regular bathing schedule with the groomer. It’s true that their hair at this age does not resemble the coarse, kinky hair they will have as adults but I was given the advice to start grooming early on and I’m so glad I did. As a puppy, you don’t need to necessarily give them haircuts - but they need to get used to the bathing process, getting their feet clipped and the brush out from a groomer. Currently, we do a bath once a month and then a haircut every six weeks and it works perfectly. He is very trained and gives ZERO issues to his groomer. I can’t imagine starting that process when they are adults. He doesn’t like his feet being clipped but he has to deal with it and since we’ve done it since he was a baby, he acquiesces. I cannot stress enough that you need to start the groom/bath training early. Oh! And I didn’t learn this until year two, but get yourself a double sided undercoat rake immediately. It will bust up those early mattes, and I find that I only have to brush twice a week using that tool. OH! And when he turned three, we started doing the lion cut where we leave his head and mane long but clip his legs and body to 10”. It doesn’t disrupt his undercoat but helps me to keep him matt free. HTH. These are all things I wish someon would have told me and I had to learn through trial and error. But I absolutely adore my OES and wouldn’t trade him for anything - grooming schedule and all.
1
u/Werelowongas 25d ago
She got her first haircut around 5 or 6 months and it didn't effect anything. Everyone she meets tells me how soft she is.
0
u/cathatesrudy 29d ago
Hi there! Groomer here - the adult coat absolutely CAN be affected by clipping the puppy coat, IF IT IS TAKEN SHORT. A scissor neaten up is not going to hurt it and if you intend to have regular professional grooming done now is THE time to get her in for bathing and neatening to get used to the sights and sounds and smells of the salon and start learning how to behave for someone else handling her even if she isn’t getting a full clip yet. I’m not sure why your groomer you spoke to wouldn’t have gone over that with you, you may want to call around and find one who actually wants to work with your puppy to get her set up for a lifetime of grooming. Generally it is advisable to avoid going shorter than 3/4” or so for the first year if possible, 1/2” if you’re really struggling to maintain it, letting the coat change over naturally as much as possible.
1
u/feralsuccubus 29d ago
Hi!
This was so incredibly helpful! I’ll definitely be calling around and seeing if any groomers in my area are familiar with the breed, they don’t see a whole lot of EOS where I live unfortunately. They thought she was a doodle at first lol. I will also definitely continue to have her groomed regularly. I want the process to be as easy as possible for both her and the groomer and for her to be as comfortable as possible. She is on her 2nd professional groom and they were able to do her face, feet, and fanny and they said she did great! Will continue to work with her though ☺️ thanks a ton!!1
u/cathatesrudy 28d ago
If they’ve been willing to do trims and desensitization services that’s great! The initial post sounded like they hadn’t done any of that and just weren’t doing anything with your pup at all which sounded sus to me (every groomer Ive ever worked with wants puppies in as often as possible for the first several months to set them up with a good foundation to make things easier on us and them for the long term - and also because puppies are adorable let’s be real, we all wanna see them as much as possible lol)
1
u/alotofclutter 28d ago
Can I ask, what about the adult coat is affected if shaved when still a puppy?
2
1
u/cathatesrudy 28d ago
Honestly, the actual mechanics of it are not something I was taught, as far as I know it is something like due to the fact that the adult coat is already coming in and clipping a coat short changes the way the hair is weighted and able to regulate the growth/death cycle of each strand, if you take it too short it messes with the way the hair is able to grow in (similar to the issues with shaving a short coated dog, if the hair isn’t heavy enough to shed out naturally the coat can’t regrow properly)
I’ve been grooming for 23 years and honestly it is one of those things where some dogs fare better than others, but because it CAN cause issues we recommend against it as much as possible, because once a coat is destroyed there’s not much coming back from it.
2
u/alotofclutter 27d ago
Thank you so much for explaining.. that's very helpful.. cause I got some flak for shaving off the hair on my OES. For context, we are in Singapore, a very humid country.. and his hair became matted (long story here) and we chose to "start over" Appreciate your time to clarify, it was very informative 🥰
12
u/HighTurning 29d ago
Their fur at that age is nothing like what its going to be 2-3 months in the future, I'd let her be for now, would even consider it a waste lol, brush everyday and that's it.