I have three G.P.s and they are so miserable right now. Should I cut their coats back or does their coat's keep them cooler? I know their coats protect them from injury but like I said they look so miserable?
................Just my opinion......I had my Akita given a haircut and soon figured out it was the wrong thing to do. Their hair coat is the wall of defense against the bugs and sun and what have you . If they were going to spend alot of time indoors then it might workout. But , if they are exclusively outside dogs I don't think it would be a smart thing to do. you might want to cut and remove the major tangles but NO shear. Contact a vet before making your decision. There is also a time factor involved here. If you have fairly cold winters their hair coat mayNOT have time to regrow ......fordy.....
Shaving isprobably not a good idea- they need it to protect from bugs and stuff (especially sunburn!), but you could just shave their bellies. A lot of my friends with longhaired dogs do this, and it does seem to help as much or more than shaving the whole dog, with the added advantage of a normal coat to protect from wet and bugs and sunburn. You might also put out a kiddie pool with an inch or two of water- or a tarp in a hollow- or a mister, if you can leave a hose on all the time. Cait, not logged in cause she's being bad and posting from work
Animals with long hair need lots of brushing. Most enjoy the attention. If you find you shouldn't cut thier hair, ask for advice on type of brush to use. And don't for get to give them lots of water, year 'round.
Do not shave. Brush a lot. Use a slicker brush and expect to spend quite a bit of time at it. One episode will not do the trick,you will need to groom them every couple of days. Although they are shedding, their fur is not falling out (except all over your furniture). Brushing helps loosen shy fur, and pull out the fur that is shed. You can save the fur for spinning or batting. As suggested by another poster, a kiddie pool in the shade will help keep them cool, but regularly change the water.
Depends on what you mean by shearing. Took the heavy coated collie mix and springer mix to the groomer for a summer haircuts. She left the hair at a length that they could run through the weeds, encounter sun and bugs, and manage as well as the short-haired terrier mix. The added plus was that they could do this, but before the haircut, they were as eager to move as we would be wearing our winter coats. Another added plus was being able to moniter for ticks and things. Shaving (removing the hair down to the skin level) a dog is terrible, as it exposes the skin to all the elements and bugs. Mother nature did not intend for dogs to have long fur--people did that. If your dogs are well socialized so a stranger can handle them to bathe and brush, would recommend most highly summer haircuts. If not, be sure they have cool places to go, plenty of fresh, cool water, damp places to dig in, a kiddy pool, and lots of brushing. Neighbor's GP died of heat exhaustion while they were at work--spilled his water and had dappled but not heavy shade.
Agree w/ advice so far... I would just like to add; Get em a little wading pool and keep it full.. They love that.
I trim the hair on my dog, but I wouldn't say that I shear it. We trim it down at the beginning of summer so that it's not long enough for him to tangle. It's still about 1 inch long. We only take off the wispy, wild, wirey hair on top and on his legs and belly, trim his face, his tail, and leave the rest. It works pretty well, keeps the food and dirt from clumping, but leaves enough that he's still got a thick coat.
Agree w/ advice so far... I would just like to add; Get em a little wading pool and keep it full.. They love that.
A good groomer or Vets office groomers know how long to leave the hair so that they won't sunburn but will get some relief from the heat. They can give you a summer cut without exposing too much. We do this with both our Border collies, our outdoor male is left like the smooth coated kind while our indoor female has a shorter cut. Her time outdoors is watched and they act like "new" dogs after their haircuts. Easier to keep clean as well.
No I did not mean taking all the hair off. These are working dogs so they have the run of the place including stock ponds,deep woods . I guess I'LL just keep brushing and brushing,and..........Thank all State of Misery(MO,)
Unregistered: There's a tool that you might find useful called a 'Coat King' that's available from Pet Edge and some of the other catalogues. It's not that cheap (about $25-35 depending on the size) but might be useful for you. How it works is by stripping out the undercoat, leaving the harsh, protective topcoat. Thinning out the insulating undercoat will help your dog be cooler, and since this is the part that grows back most readily, you wno't have to worry about it not coming back in time or leaving him completely unprotected. I use one of these to thin down Indy, who is a tricolor corgi- in the hot sun, he heats of MUCH faster than the brindle, white, or red dogs here, and just removing undercoat on his ruff and sides helps a great deal. Cait
DO NOT SHAVE your Great Pyrs. We have had them and raised some now for almost ten years. The breeder we got our first one from told us not to ever shave them because they are pink skinned and will burn no matter how much hair you try to leave and then they get skin cancer and die. We lived in Alabama our whole lives until three years ago. Our dogs were hot in the summer but grooming is the only answer. Ours go for walks thru the ponds and lay in the shade. Please don't shave them. North Dakota Implant
