starting to panic a little

[Stephanie]

So my female F1 goldendoodle was just born. And I did a lot of research about the breed but I dont know how I missed about all the grooming involved? I previously had a golden retriever that we took to the groomers i would say about 3-4 times a year but other then that I didnt have to brush out any matts.  I was just wondering how often they have to be brushed? and is an F1 less brushing then say an F1B coat.  I just cant picture dedicated an hour a day lets say to brush the dogs hair. Please help and tell me its not that bad!!!! and when picking out the puppy is there something I should look for in the coat that would be less grooming?

I JUST POSTED THIS IN PUPPY MADNESS BUT SHOULD HAVE PROB POSTED HERE!

THANKS!

[Laurie Young]

That depends. If you keep the hair short obviously that is less work for you. If you want the coat long you have to commit to taking care of it. That means brushing and coming. The care of these wonderful dogs is nothing compared to the joy that they give back.

[Stephanie]

thanks

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

Well, Tara is an ALD so I don't have a good basis for comparison to an F1Goldendoodle but I can tell you there is a reason why the Grooming Group is the second largest on on DK!! LOL!  From what I have read here on DK it seems that  generally the doodles that shed tend to require less grooming.  The doodles that are non-shedding mat if their coats are not brushed out regularly. Tara is non shedding and has very fine hair. If her coat gets beyond about 2 inches she needs brushed EVERY day or will end up with lots mats. She's a mini so it isn't a huge undertaking but I still  tend to keep her shorter especially in the summer.  So a lot of it depends on how long you want to keep the coat. With an F1 it is difficult to know if you will end up with a shedding doodle or not but your breeder, if they are experienced, should be able to give you a general idea. It is difficult because that puppy coat all falls out usually before their 1st birthday and an entirely different coat emerges that can be curlier or straighter, etc.  On the whole though I would say if you are looking for an easy care coat a doodle may not be the best choice. I've had a GR before too and believe me there's a world of difference!

[Stephanie]

thanks

[Trudy Harlow]

With all due respect to all those who fuss over their dog's appearance....I have a very curly coated F1 GD and, while I keep him short in the summer, his head and tail are not kept short.  In colder weather, I keep him a couple of inches, or even more, longer.  I do not have time to brush him an hour a day, or even every day much of the time.  I brush him as I can, and yes, it is on my "to do" list.  But let's get real!  He is my DOG; I have a life.  I give him the world's best diet, spend a lot of time with him in training and play, but I do let him get dirty all the time.  I have him groomed about every 4-6 weeks, depending on the level of dirtiness.  I would bathe him myself except my arthritis prevents it, and his coat takes a long time to dry.  If you don't want to have to worry about matting and brushing, then just keep your dog trimmed up.  Don't lose any sleep over it.  If you find a mat, cut it out.  I know that is heresy to some, but I assure you, your dog and you will be just as happy (if not more so).  The primary time you have to be on top of the coat issue is during the shed of the puppy coat, when huge mats can develop, but that certainly doesn't last forever. 

Now, having said all that, I have to tell you that I am not a fancy person and so it doesn't bother me to have my dog looking a little less than in show condition.  I figure if he and I are both happy, that's good enough.  I've found a nice, inexpensive groomer who will let me hang around while she works and respects the fact that I am the one who clips my dog's head and face (for the most part).  A golden retriever requires some coat care, some brushing, some washing....your goldendoodle will only require as much more as he or she is poodle.  In other words, at least half again as much.

[Stephanie]

thank you, you made me feel better. so you would say after the stage of puppy coat going to adult its better? I probably would take for regular grooming depending on price, will decide how often. 

[Trudy Harlow]

Yes, after the puppy coat stage, depending on what adult coat comes in, it will probably get better -- especially if you don't leave the overall coat long.  Those big, fluffy doodles you see DO take a lot of work.  It's all how you want to spend your time.  That's a choice you will have to make for yourself and your dog.  To some extent, it's a quality of life decision about how you all will live your lives....

Here's a picture of Paddy in short clip.

[Eric & Rufus]

Rufus is a giant schnoodle and he only sheds after I've brushed him (I get the little balls of hair around the house and such, I'm assuming stuff I loosened but didn't get out). I didn't do much grooming, probably not even weekly brushing, and didn't have any problems with his coat until around the year-old mark. His hair had gotten REALLY long by then (had never been cut) and was getting a bunch of "tufts" and "wispy" at the ends, with LOTS of mats. You'll find plenty of info on this forum about a puppy's "coat change", which seemed to describe what we were going through. Of course the timing could have also just been a coincidence, and the problem may have been my inadequate brushing for such a long coat. All I know is that it seemed like no amount of brushing was helping, mats seemed to be forming faster than I could brush them out!

Things are A LOT easier now though! I don't know if it is easier for any specific reason, or a combination of the things I did. I had him professionally groomed to a length of about 2-3" on his body (longer on his legs to maintain the classic doodle look). I also started doing more homework on this forum and other websites and ended up changing the brush and comb I was using. For Rufus and I, this was huge! See this post for more details: http://www.doodlekisses.com/xn/detail/2065244:Comment:3361377

That definitely made it much more manageable. I did a second professional grooming a couple months later, but I've now tackled that task myself. I've done it twice now, this last time with 3/4". I'm not even doing weekly brushings at this point, just "inspections", since we have foxtails and such out here.

I don't know if any of this helped or not. Like everyone else said, so much of it depends on your dog's coat type and the length you want it. I do know that even a 2" coat on Rufus takes much longer than an hour for a complete brush out, but as it stands now, I only need to do that right before I wash and groom him.

[Stephanie]

thanks for all the info!

[Jen, Lachlan, and Declan]

Like others have said, Stephanie, it depends a lot on the coat, but the reality is most of these guys require some amount of regular grooming. I do wish more breeders would emphasize that with prospective puppy buyers. The good news is that with even the heaviest-coated dog you do have choices.

I groom my guys myself, but like Trudy I'm not a fancy person and I tend to think my dudes are happier rolling around in the mud than having mats pulled out of their hair so I keep them short. And again like Trudy I don't have time to spend an hour a day (x2!) brushing. Simple fact is that they don't care what they look like as long as you tell them they look wonderful. I love the look of a doodle in full coat, but would rather be doing things other than grooming with them. Like Eric points out, the right equipment makes the grooming process easier, but it's really up to you how you want to go about it.

Here's a couple of pictures of Lachlan, one in full coat at ~10 months and the second after I realized that he's really much happier without all of that. You can see he truly has a nightmare coat if I wanted to keep him long - even at two inches he mats like mad. With their coats as short as I keep them now grooming is reduced to once or twice a week to brush out the ears and tail, clean out the ears, trim the nails, and check them over for issues. Ten minutes per dog tops, with a "spa day" full grooming every few months.

[Stephanie]

I agree with you, I just wouldn't have that time to put into grooming everyday like that. If was just a quick brush everyday i could do that but it doesnt seem that would be the case. I hear ya on not being into looks as much as other things....but oh my the pic of your dog in full coat sooo adorable. I guess we cant have it all lol

[Adina P]

All depends on a few factors:
1) Do you want a doodley looking dog/is the 'look' important to you?
2) What type of coat your dog has
3) Is the matting heavy or just a little bit here and there and easy to cut out? Matts can hurt the dog but a few here and there can be cut out. If it gets to be bad though it will hurt him and require shaving.