Shaving with a 7/8ths Blade.

[Barb @ Gemstone Labradoodles]

I don't usually shave my doodles. I have quite a few wool coats and I like to scissor them. This year I decided to experiment with a 7/8th blade so I could provide more information for my group members. This more traditional grooming style is time consuming as the coat must be perfect...ie no matting at all.... for the blade to go thru.

If any of the pictures appear distorted, just click on them for a different view. Next I will be doing my fleece girls.

 

Here is Jasper with a coat that has been rough cut with scissors, then brushed and combed thoroughly, then washed and fluffed with a brush while blowing with a high heat standing dryer. He is already for shaving. Sorry there is a divot on his right front leg, but he had cut and stitches there.

 Here he is after the shave.

I like the natural air dry look best so he is a little fluffy for my taste. I did NOT brush or comb his head. I checked for mattes, washed it and let it dry. I had to fluff his face but as soon as he is wet again, his cute dreads will come back.  I also experimented with his ears. I actually shaved the bottoms of his ears too. I use a number 10 inside and the 7/8ths on the outside.

Here is the shaving cut off line where I started the scissoring. This low line works because of the short do. If this was a longer coat, the scissoring would have to start higher on the leg.

Part II

Here is my little soul mate, Jasper's sister Swee'Pea. She definitely got bored with the picture part.

First picture is of her with a rough scissor cut with no brushing yet.

 

Now her with a complete brush and comb out, a bath and a fluff dry with the high heat dryer. She was definitely embarassed at this point.

Now for the final haircut. She was quite put out and would not stand for the pictures. Not spoiled at all.

Not looking at youShe thinks she will look better after getting wet again too.

And then, I am sure you are not surprised by an attack of the zoomies. 

[F, Calla & Luca]

Well said and true.

[Nicky, Riley & Boris]

This is so brilliant and I'm looking forward to your pictures of how you do the fleece coats.  Riley is only a baby at almost 14 weeks but he definitely has a soft fleece coat which I am hoping to scissor cut.  I might use the clippers on the belly but that's what I am going to try to do.  At the moment I am grooming him every day, cleaning his ears and teeth weekly and he seems to like it and has no problem staying still for me.  Your advice is invaluable here so thank you for going to all this trouble.

[Stacy, Bruno, Molly and Gracie]

What a helpful post! Thank you for taking the time to help all of us who groom our doodles! I am a newbie and I love learning and seeing. I appreciate how you have helped.

 

[Camilla and Darwin]

Wow, they look gorgeous!

[T Eaton]

Barb, your instructions are amazing and so helpful. I am purchasing new, better clippers. I love grooming and am DONE with the groomers! I am planning to buy the Andis cordless. I have a couple of questions: Which blade(s) do you think are essential? Which blade do you use for the stomach and private areas? Do you always scissor the legs? I notice some negative comments about combs, which I have used in the past, but I am curious why do you prefer the blade without a comb? Is it still true, with a blade, that the finished length (in direction of hair growth) is about twice the size of the blade/comb (3/4 would be 1 1/2")? Hunter is wavy fleecy coat and I think I would like to keep him about 2" long since he is very active in field work and water. He was shaved 8 weeks ago and now it's time for me to take over from here :)  I want to make sure I get the right blades ordered! THANK YOU!

[Barb @ Gemstone Labradoodles]

I prefer solid blades instead of combs because I have a lot of wool dudes. I could use a comb attachment with some of my fleece dogs. I find the 3/4 inch gives a coat slightly longer than 3/4 when it is a wool dude whose coat will stand up for shaving. A coat that lies flat, will be longer with the same blade. If that flatter coat is not too thick, then a comb attachment would work well. Sometimes this has something to do with the dog's age as well. Younger dogs that might be in the coat change are more difficult to trim. This is where the 3 3/4 skip tooth shines.

I need several #10 blades to keep going with feet, ears and bellies. I use my 3 3/4 skip tooth and my 3/4 and 7/8 for haircuts and then scissor the legs. I have a 1 1/4 inch extention I use on my f1 with a very thin slightly wavy coat that lies flat. It leaves not quite double the length on that coat.

I have lots of other blades, but only seem to use them on my schnauzer.

[T Eaton]

Saw this after...thank you sooo much!

[T Eaton]

Did I read in a discussion somewhere that you don't recommend the skip tooth unless you are really experienced?

[Barb @ Gemstone Labradoodles]

Avoid the No 7 skip tooth. The teeth are quite short so the blade is closer and the spaces are wide. That combination makes it dangerous.

The much longer 3 3/4 is a lot safer. In this numbering system, the smaller the number, the longer the blade. You still need to be careful around places that have skin folds like the neck, armpits and just in front of the hind leg.

[T Eaton]

hi Barb!

You can ignore my previous questions about blades and combs....I knew that if I looked long enough on here I would finally find what I was looking for! I am sure you must get tired of answering the same questions over and over.... thanks for such great information!! I think I have all my answers.

[T Eaton]

 hi Barb,

Me again. . . I got my new clippers. Can you tell me which blade to use on the stomach area? I am going to use a comb (3/4") for Hunter's fleecy coat, is there a blade which works best with the combs? I currently only have the 10 that came with it! Thanks again for all your help!

[Barb @ Gemstone Labradoodles]

You only need that 10. You can use the 10 for feet and belly and sani and under the ears. Then you can use it with the comb. Just watch the heat. I put the blade on the underside of my arm every few seconds to check for heat.