Puppy coat

[Stephanie]

I keep wondering what type of coat my doodle will have.  It seems like it's starting to curl around his ears, his face isn't very full yet, does that come in later?  I'm so looking forward to watching him grow up.

I don't have allergies or anything like that so shedding isn't a big deal (I also own a German Shepherd).  I haven't been able to find other puppies with a coat quite like his, or maybe he's just not old enough to "doodle" yet.  

He's 13 weeks!

[Bonnie and Kona]

Your little guy is going to be doodley, I can even tell from this photo. You really don't know exactly what their coat will look like for quite a while. If you go to my page you will see photos of my DD's blond doodle from little on up. We lost our baby photos of my big guy. There is one picture of him at 6 weeks at the breeder's. Anyway, there was a discussion earlier this week about puppy coat to adult coat. I'm on the run so can't look it up for you but someone might help out with that. Enjoy that tiny pup!

[Stephanie]

Thanks for the reply!  Darwin does look very similar to Owen!  He's a handsome dog, it will be interesting to see how Darwin changes as he gets older.

[Lori, Daphne, Lucy & Pippa]

My Daphne has a wavy coat and it looks like Darwin does too. He is so adorable!  I wish you lived nearby since you are a groomer and I am so afraid to go to the groomer. I have read many horror stories on this website since most groomers dont know how to properly groom a doodle. I will have to find out soon though. Daphne's hair is growing too long and really needs to be cut.

[Stephanie]

Lori, if you can show me what you are wanting for your doodle I can probably give you some tips on what to tell your groomer and maybe it can clear up any mis-communication. 

I do hear from some groomers that they dislike grooming doodles because owners request them "not to look like a poodle." and since the dog is half poodle they feel that is difficult.  I don't really agree to that, I never want Darwin to look like a poodle myself!  The print out sheet floating around this site is pretty helpful as well.  But as far as specifics what it seems most doodle owners want I would just explain (no topknot, leave hair on head blended into the ears, don't shave between the eyes; use thinning shears instead, don't shave feet, they should be neatened up and clean looking and not trimmed to the skin.)

Overall when I groom a doodle and the owner wants the dog to look like a doodle I pretty much neaten up the dog and don't "shape" it like you would on a poodle.  Most owners want the dog to leave still looking a bit scruffy, and I think that's just hard for some groomers to understand.  They may spend an hour scissoring your dog perfectly and then get confused as to why you are unhappy with it.

So, take lots of notes, take lots of pics, and be as specific as you want to be!  It does help some groomers understand what you want!  I think quite a few grooming mistakes are really just based on communication errors since phrases like "puppy cut" "teddy bear clip" and things like that don't really exist, and may mean something completely different to every single groomer.

[Lori, Daphne, Lucy & Pippa]

Stephanie,

Thanks for the suggestions! I do like the scruffy look. I like what you said about "no topknot and leaving the hair blended into the ears. Basically I do want her to look just like she looks now, just shorter. I think the problem area might be the eyes. Daphne has little pieces growing off of her nose and they flop right in front of her eyes. I'm not sure whether to cut them shorter(because they will just grow right back in front of her eyes) or to leave them alone and hope that as they get longer they will kind of flatten out of her eyes?

[Stephanie]

I personally would trim it with thinners..you can even buy some cheap ones at some pet supply stores that would be fine for a job like that..and you could do it yourself anytime it becomes that long.

You could try growing it out.  I had a client that spent a year trying to grow that area on a maltese and it just seemed to never get as long as the other hair on the face..so we ended up trimming it anyway.  I've never had a doodle owner request that I leave it there, I never shave it out unless the owner wants it (some do want a poodle looking doodle!)..but if it were me, I would trim it!

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3749494 even those would be fine for that job!

[Lori, Daphne, Lucy & Pippa]

Thanks! I think I might go get those scissors and give it a try.

[Emily & Wispa]

I'm also constantly wondering what Wispa's adult coat will look like, especially after seeing some doodles amazingly change colour!!  My issue is that I can't tell if she'll be curly/wavy fleece or wool, as she's fleecy everywhere, but with wooly undercoat on her butt!

From what I've heard, doodle coats change several time in the first couple years before they settle!