# at home poodle grooming



## jakl (Apr 24, 2008)

well it appears that I'm on my own to groom Sis. I was getting help from a friend who is a pro, but she suddenly decided to run off to another state. what i want to know, is what do I need tools wise, I have some things already but know I need others. I only have one standard poodle, my others are short haired. thank you in advance.


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## Purplex15 (May 28, 2007)

it depends on what kind of cut the dog is in. if the dog is shorter, i would suggest a slicker, a greyhound comb, and a fine tooth comb. for longer hair you will need to add a pin brush and some sort of dematter to the list. i would strongly suggest going on a groomer website (like petgroomerforums.com) as oppossed to websites for dog owners b/c they can give you much better advice on how to use these tools. 

a better discription of how long your dog is would be helpful.


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## Graco22 (Jul 16, 2007)

Are you looking to give her haircuts, or just bath and keep her brushed out at home? If you are wanting to give her haircuts, you are going to need LOTS of tools and equipment, and its not going to be cheap. You can learn to do it yourself though, many owners do. I can tell you what you need and how to do it if you tell me what length you are looking to leave her/type of cut you want, etc.


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## jakl (Apr 24, 2008)

I am going to cut her at home as well as bathe her. I brush her most every day, it's something we enjoy. Also, I have some equipment already and will (eventualy) get the rest. I hadn't planned on getting it quite so soon but my friend (10 +yrs) and teacher decided that Colorado was more fun than here and suddenly ran off (well there's more to it than that, but anyhow). So here I am with a basic understanding of what I'm supposed to do but...

I have: assorted brushes and combs, ear cleaner and powder, hemastats, decent clippers with combs and several blades, preasurized homade wash hose (for horses) high velocity dryer, shears.

Need /want? : table, curved shears, what shampoo, and ????

not exactly sure of what cut yet. She looked like this when we got her in march OMG!!!








then Abby and I cut her down to one length all over.
I did this on my own 2wks ago (not perfect but I did it alone for the 1st time with a new pattern)








I'm thinking that I'll just give her a bikini cut for this summer. but am open to other ideas also. thinking short because I ride horses and she goes with and gets so hot, but she loves it, and gets excercize. as I'm sure you know 9mo old poodles need to moveLOL. even nice mostly calm ones.


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## Purplex15 (May 28, 2007)

ok well seeing her hjelps a lot. 

ill start with the bath. i most def. recommend a shampoo called coat handler. its a tad pricey, but it last a long time since you dont need to use a lot of it. my boss breeds standards, has 7 herself, and her best friend is a master poodle groomer. they both swear by this shampoo. we get a lot of poodles at the boarding facility i work at and it really is great for poodle coats. it cleans them without changing their coat textures. you can get it from petedge.com. when you bath, do two rinses of shampoo and rinse really well. one rinse of conditioner, and rinse it off really well as well. 

drying. the most difficult part about grooming poodles is that in order to get a good hair cut, they have to be completely dry and completely straight. to get the dog straight, you need to dry one spot at a time and keep the nozzle on that same spot until that spot is dry (this is actually a good technique for all dogs b/c it dries them faster). i would recommend getting a stand dryer like this one: http://grooming.petedge.com/Rapid-E...tegoryId=190&categoryId=191&subCategoryId=263 
that one is a bit pricey but that is the type that i mean. these dryers are needed for drying the ears, tail, and head (this is b/c most dogs wont allow the force dryer around their head and ears, and even then, this dryer gets a much nicer finish on poodle heads). i wouldnt say its a necessity, but it is a great dryer and something i would look into. 

actual grooming. i would highly recommend a more practical cut, especially for your lifestyle. i would do a number four or five blade on the whole dog, and make her all one length, maybe leave the legs a couple blades longer. it really will be easier on you and her. for the face, if you want a clean face, the 10-40 blades can be used depending on how short your want, same with poodle feet. from your pictures it looks like your biggest problem is blending. that haircut on your dog makes her look like a robot, lol. no offense, we had 2 poodles come in from a pro groom a couple weeks ago and they really didnt look much different from your, except that they paid 80 bucks each for the cut, lol. truly, blending is really hard. not something you will pick up right away.


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## jakl (Apr 24, 2008)

Purplex15 said:


> ok well seeing her hjelps a lot.
> 
> actual grooming. i would highly recommend a more practical cut, especially for your lifestyle. i would do a number four or five blade on the whole dog, and make her all one length, maybe leave the legs a couple blades longer. it really will be easier on you and her. for the face, if you want a clean face, the 10-40 blades can be used depending on how short your want, same with poodle feet. from your pictures it looks like your biggest problem is blending. that haircut on your dog makes her look like a robot, lol. no offense, we had 2 poodles come in from a pro groom a couple weeks ago and they really didnt look much different from your, except that they paid 80 bucks each for the cut, lol. truly, blending is really hard. not something you will pick up right away.


I Know tat she would be easier to groom with a more practical cut, but then whats the point of having a dog with hair if you cut it all off? Not meaning to sound *****ey, I wanted a poodle not only for temperment, but also because of the hair. Maybe I will not always like it, but at least for now I'd like to keep some hair. She's very patient with my attempts, so I will figgure it out.... someday.  thank you for the advice


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## Graco22 (Jul 16, 2007)

It sounds like you have many of the tools you need. A HV dryer is a must, and like purplex said, the drying is of utmost important to get an even cut on her. Always wash, dry and clip her the same day, right after each other. I also love Coat Handler, but there are other that are great too. If you get the coat handler, don't get the clarifying, get the regular. The clarifying is great for once in a while, but it can be too harsh for every time bathing as it strips the coat some removing buildup. EZ Groom shampoos are one of my favorites, and their Structure shampoo is great for poodle coats. It looks like your girl is not done completely changing over from puppy coat, so expect her coat to course up some more yet. I do not condition my poodles when I am going to give them a cut. It softens the coat too much for a good scissor finish. I do use Coat Handler conditioner exclusively at my salon though, it is the best. 

I would also recommend a coat spray for brushout after the drying and in between baths, etc. Crown Royal # 2 is my favorite, a light mist and brush the area. Helps with the tangles, and keeps from breaking/damaging the hair, which will cause matting faster. 

I prefer a #30 reverse on feet, face and tail. I agree that a 4F or even a 5F Miami would be a good style for her for summer and lots of activity. If you want, you could even go shorter, with a 7F. 

The cut you have on her looks like you are trying the town and country look. Its a great job for a first time. Some things to work on the next time would be bringing the shoulder pattern down lower. Its hard to see the rear pattern with her sitting, but that cut is not blended, it poofy at the top of the pattern. When you do blended cuts, it takes lots of practice, and blend with shears before trying to blend with blades, its easier not to make an oops.. 

Do you have the book by Shirley Kalsone, called "Poodle Grooming and Clipping"? If you don't, I HIGHLY recommend it. It has about every poodle cut, both show and pet trims and then some, all with their variations. It goes step by step with each cut, and also including other basic grooming info, where to set the lines on each pattern, etc. Is only like $20 and WELL worth the money! 

If you do the Miami, with the poms on the legs, set the rear poms first. They should be just about 1/2 inch above the hock. If you want to get really bold, after setting it 1/2 inch above the hock, angle the front of the rear poms down, just enough to get the right look. Then set the front poms even with the HIGHEST part of the rear poms. That way she will be even and balanced. Of course, you can make the poms as large or small as you like to keep her balanced too. The shorter you go on the body, the shorter the poms would be. Of course, practice makes perfect. 

I am with you. If you have a poodle, try lots of cuts. Thats the fun of it. I have had my boy in 3 cuts so far, and he is growing into a German trim after being cut down from a Continental. That is him in my avatar. All that hair is gone now.. I didn't cry when I cut it off though..lol Good luck, and let us know if you have any other questions.


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## jakl (Apr 24, 2008)

thank you so much, I knew the lines were off, and by looking harder when she was down after, both front and back are too high. they are evenly too high at least lol. by the time I figgured out what was wrong, neither of us had any patience left, so next time we'll get it right(er).


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## poodleholic (Mar 15, 2007)

jakl said:


> thank you so much, I knew the lines were off, and by looking harder when she was down after, both front and back are too high. they are evenly too high at least lol. by the time I figgured out what was wrong, neither of us had any patience left, so next time we'll get it right(er).



Well, hey! You did a pretty dang good job for a rank beginner! I'm glad that Maddy and Beau (my Standards) were so patient with me when I was first learning! What made the difference between looking "ok" to looking professionally groomed was a DVD I got from Muddy Creek Grooming. Best $35 I ever spent! I had Shirlee Kalstone's book, but, it sure didn't do much for me. This DVD tells and shows you how to do everything - from changing blades to shaping topknots, tails, bracelets, where to start on the body, etc. Especially helpful was how to clip the body (directionally) and hold the clipper when doing different clips, and how to bevel from body to legs. Check it out here: http://www.muddycreekreflections.com/webtv/video.html

For lots of info, and to ask questions from professional groomers, go here: http://www.groomers.net/cgi-bin/discus/discus.cgi
There's a section on Poodles, and you can learn a LOT! Sure helped me. 

For FFT, I use the cordless Wahl Arco on the #40 blade, shaving against the grain. I also use it on the tummy, and inside the ear flap. I have the Andis UltraEdge 2-speed clipper, with a #7F, #10F, #5F, #4F, and #3F blades. 
For a Miami Clip, I use a #7F on my female and a #5F on my male. 

Get an HV dryer - it's well worth the investment over time! I got the K9 II and love it! You can take the concentrator off and use it to fluff dry, too, saving the cost of another dryer. Learn how to properly blow dry, because getting the hair dry and straight is the foundation necessary for any clip you decide on. Once dry, back brush the hair to get it ready for scissoring or clipping. 

Get a grooming table if you don't already have one. 

Get a dremel for nails (DON'T get the Peticure - piece of junk). So fast and so easy. To keep hair from getting caught, I slip on a ladies' kneehigh nylon; the nails pop through, and no hair gets in the way. I also use a snood, or just pull the ears up and put a velvet scrunchy on to keep them out've the way if the dog leans down to sniff the dremel. 

I was going to get curved shears, but, I learned without it, and now do a lot of my beveling, even the topknot, with my Arco! LOL Had misplaced my shears, so . . . Turned out looking great, so now I almost always do it. 

Have Fun!


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