Don't Shave My Doodle!

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Comment by Gwyndolyn Morasko on February 8, 2014 at 9:03am

I have searched and searched for Doodle Comfort on FB and can't find it. Can someone post a link?

Comment by Helga, Nimbus, Sierra, Clooney on January 21, 2014 at 4:51pm

Nimbus' coat looks a lot like the top picture of Kona. So far I haven't cut it yet, only around the eyes, his beard and between the pads. I am hoping to be able to keep it long.

Comment by Rosemary (Ro) and Enzo on November 21, 2013 at 1:02pm

Gwyn....Either way: Adorable, with the personality to match! 

  Guess we'll just have to wait and see what Lil Miss Enzo's coat does.  From the pic, it looks like Kona's has a bit more curl to it, at the younger age.

Comment by Gwyndolyn Morasko on November 21, 2013 at 12:58pm

By the way....this is a photo of Kona at 8 months when he still wasn't matting at all and was super super easy to brush.  I thought I had won the lottery!  But alas...the next week I had to start dealing with adult coat coming in.  You can see that it was really long and flowing and probably people assumed that it was hard to maintain.  Yet it was the easiest possible! 

 

And this is Kona with his adult coat.  Still quite long, but takes more time to maintain.

Comment by Gwyndolyn Morasko on November 21, 2013 at 12:46pm

Rosemary....it can start happening as late as 10 months, so don't get too comfortable.  I was so hoping that I got the "wonder dog!" that would never ever mat.  His coat was sooooo easy to comb and brush and I just didn't understand all the fuss....and then one morning I woke up and he had 3 mats....then the next morning....and the next.  It was bizarre how his wonderful soft easy coat developed a layer of "cotton" at the base of each hair.  That's when the "stripping" started.  It was still pretty easy until Maggie arrived a few weeks later and then BAM!!!!  100 mats in 2 days!  I'm not exaggerating.  That's when I got really good at the open scissor sawing method to get at the base of each mat and slice upward to retain and save as much hair as possible.  (The dematting tools only work on loose mats.  Still good to have, but the open scissor method is much less painful and annoying to them if the mat is a bit tight because there is no pulling involved.) No horizontal cutting at the base of the mat.  It was very time consuming for those 4 days, but worth it to save him from getting shaved.  Here are some tips for your hind pocket for a few months down the road when this MIGHT happen to you:  http://laurelmountaindoodles.com/id57.html   I do miss Kona's coat when it was identical to Enzo's.  Now he looks more spiral and it will mat around his hips where Maggie herds him around, but I stay on top of it every night. Since you don't have a second pup, Enzo might get through her coat change a lot quicker.  It's already lots better for Kona, so I'm hoping the coat change is about done. He is almost 14 months old now and the change started at 8 months.

Comment by Rosemary (Ro) and Enzo on November 21, 2013 at 11:59am

Thanks Gwen for the heads-up!  I've heard so many different things of what Enz's coat may do....my head spins!  :p    I do have a slicker brush that I use on her all the time and I have a Les Pooches on order ( if they ever get them all back in stock).  Will be ever vigilant, since I don't want her cut!

Comment by Gwyndolyn Morasko on November 21, 2013 at 9:32am

Hi Marie.  I'm with Rosemary....I love the look of the long scraggly doodle and plan to keep it that way barring some emergency that would require a short cut.  I know Enzo and he has the identical hair that Kona had at that age and it was a breeze to brush it every day several times a day without a single mat.  Unfortunately, at exactly 8 months, Kona's adult coat started pushing through, causing several mats per week, but those were easy to stay on top of.  Then he got an adopted sister who completely trashed his transition coat the next week from the hours and hours of wrestling, and I spent about 4 hours per day for 4 days getting all of those dozens of mats out.  So I can relate to the temptation to go with a short cut, but I still managed to live through that very trying week and did take his coat down to about 2 inches instead of his usual 4 inches.  It has finally grown back out to 4 inches and he is flipping adorable again. 

Obviously, I'm one of the doting mother types that DOES take care of the matting as it occurs and bought the table and the tools necessary to make it more doable and more enjoyable for the pup. 

 

Rosemary....just be prepared to check for mats more carefully around the 7 to 9 month time period.  That's when the new coat starts very sneakily wrapping around the baby hair (or vice versa) causing minute little knots that start getting worse if you don't catch them with a very fine slicker brush early on.  The regular combs and brushes won't take them out.  If you don't have a fine slicker brush yet, order it now to be ready.

Comment by Rosemary (Ro) and Enzo on November 21, 2013 at 9:07am

Hi Marie: thanks for your input. I can only speak personally: Enzo is brushed/ combed at least once a day, most times two. Her coat is very wavey and a comb goes through it quite easily. Part of the reason in my obtaining a Doodle, was for their great look. I feel shaving it all off, or even short, takes away from that. It's a personal preference. I would never allow her to mat up.

Comment by Marie Dennen on November 21, 2013 at 6:51am

I stumbled upon this group by accident. I feel compelled to offer perspective. I am a groomer and doodle owner. I have seen alot of doodles over time due to their popularity and need for frequent grooming. While I love to groom them, I find it is an uphill battle to educate owners on their grooming needs. If you keep your doodle this long you HAVE to be invested in caring for their coat. In recent years I cut back my doodle customers but when I amwas taking more and new customers it was very common to see doodles in my salon in terrible condition and owners insisting not to cut anything off. Matting is not just is not a cosmetic issues it physically hurts your dog. Matting is progressive and worsens over time. Matts get tighter and tighter and pulls at the dogs skin. It is like having a pony tail pull super tight and walking around never being able to take it out. Recently I read the funniest description on a groomer's website. If you want to know what matting feels like take a long piece of duct tape attach it at the inside of your thigh run it up over your groin up over your tummy. Blow dry it so it sticks on there really good and leave it on until your dog's next grooming appointment then try yo take it off. Getting matts out has to be done very carefully especially when working on the tender, sensitive areas of the body. Dematting too much , you run the risk of injuring the dog. Also matts cut off air circulation to the skin. I have seen every thing from hot spots to maggots in sores under severe matting. I just wanted to share some perspective. Please don't take offense to any of this. I am just speaking up for dogs who can't speak for themselves. If your doodle is long, take a comb, touch it to the skin and run it through the coat, the entire coat,every inch, head to tip of tail. If it cannot glide through like butter, or if you hit matts that take longer then a few minutes to dematt- you may want to reconsider the length. Be honest with yourself how much time you spend caring for your dog's coat.

Comment by Shanen Sadowski on November 17, 2013 at 9:19pm

I love the term "Muppet hair". :) I'm quite certain that Barkley on Sesame Street was the original doodle. 

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