# Long haired dogs with full faces?



## Yvette (Sep 13, 2007)

I've had this question for sometime now & was wondering what you all have to sat about it?
We groom alot of Shih Tzu, Lashas & Schnauzers & always leave beards & Moustaches. They always come in stained, smelly & matted all the time.
I was wondering (these are all pets & farm dogs). Why not just clean the whole face off? I have one Shih Tzu that has a clean neat face & no stains or matts. I clean it off like a poodles.


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## 0hmyd0g (Aug 18, 2008)

I groom a lot of farm dogs too and there are some shih tzus that I shave the face or still keep the face scissored round but short. I think shaved ears look good with a clean face on a dog like that.


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## Yvette (Sep 13, 2007)

I think they all look so cute with full faces, but it can get pretty gross.
I was just wondering why owners keep them that way & not ask for a clean shaven face? My new Shih Ztu, I just cleaned his face off. He was clean, but
Had some staining. I am now working on the staining to keep it satin free.


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## StarfishSaving (Nov 7, 2008)

People have an idea what the dogs should look like and I think they like to preserve that. We groomed a lot of schnauzers who were consistently horribly matted on the skirt and feathers but their owners would not let us just clip them down. In fact, many owners didn't want the dogs clipped even if they were completely matted- they weren't given a choice, but they fought like heck sometimes. As if your dog looks better full of knots and mats and hair sticking out everywhere?? Give up, already!


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## MyCharlie (Nov 4, 2007)

I keep my schnauzer clean (I think you mean shaved when you say "clean"? LOL) on his whole body except his beard, but it is shorter than the "standard" and I comb his beard at least once a week. If it was dirty and stained and matted all the time, ick! I wouldn't want that!! That's why we don't have a skirt on him - too much to deal with. 

But to get back to your question, the reason he keeps the beard is because he looks so weird without it. Like a rat. A groomer cut it too short once and it was NOT pretty.


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## Graco22 (Jul 16, 2007)

MyCharlie said:


> But to get back to your question, the reason he keeps the beard is because he looks so weird without it. Like a rat. A groomer cut it too short once and it was NOT pretty.



Oh you are so right! Not much yuckier looking (IMO) than a schnauzer with a shaved face....Not pretty. I do alot of shorter schn. faces on schnauzers, yorkies, etc. You can still make them cute, but easier to maintain. I do many shih faces with a "full" face, though I call them "round" faces, and I keep the chins short, to help with the messy mouth stuff. I also do some shih with a "clean" face, (which does mean shaved, its the correct term for a shaved poodle face...clean face, clean feet, etc.) I think they look very cute that way, and I call it the "monkey" face, cause they look like little spider monkeys. LOL 

Here's a pic of a short round face.


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## Yvette (Sep 13, 2007)

So, I just thought I'd work my boy face.
Getting rid of stains.
I also need to work around his face more too. I don't think anyone has done it ever.









I am going to try to grow him out more.
I just don't like working on clients' dogs that don't do anything. 
Especially once a year dogs.


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## Love's_Sophie (Sep 23, 2007)

It all depends on the owner; some just don't care for super short faces. We do shave off a few faces though, that are 'traditionally' left long. If the owners don't like it 'rat faced' short, then just take a 4 or 5 blade to it  But you really have to give them what they want, if the dog isn't matted, or otherwise unkempt. 

A simple trick to keeping those faces a bit 'less stained' is to brush the hair foward immediately front of the muzzle, and trim what ever sticks out from the nose and mouth; trim it even with the front of the muzzle...done correctly, you still have a full appearance to the beard, but you get rid of the yucky stained wet hair, and the owner's still have their cute fuzzy face. I do this on all dogs who get a beard left, no matter how long or short; you don't take much off either, but it's amazing how much of a difference that little bit makes. 

I groom a couple of Wheaton Terriers, and when I first started grooming them, their beards looked AWFUL! They were dirty, stinky, and stained...all because no one ever took anything off the darn things. Now after a good handful of grooms by myself, their beards look amazingly changed...all because I brush that dirty stuff forward and trim it off...there's not much to trim off now, either, because it's now just maintainance...but before...yikes!



StarfishSaving said:


> People have an idea what the dogs should look like and I think they like to preserve that. We groomed a lot of schnauzers who were consistently horribly matted on the skirt and feathers but their owners would not let us just clip them down. In fact, many owners didn't want the dogs clipped even if they were completely matted- they weren't given a choice, but they fought like heck sometimes. As if your dog looks better full of knots and mats and hair sticking out everywhere?? Give up, already!


Next time, hand them a comb, and a brush, and have them start combing the dog...then they'll realize the pain their poor dogs are suffering for 'their pleasure'...or rather, neglect...

I just saw a toy poodle the other night at petco, that I wanted to grab my clippers and zip it down, she was so dirty and matted to the bone...her owner didn't even twitch when i mentioned that it looked like the dog could use a grooming...poor thing!


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## TeddieXRuxpin (Sep 11, 2007)

I can't stand how Ted looks when his face is shaved short or "clean" so I keep his face medium and his ears longer than his beard. Then I decided on his body length. 

With the beard staining.. Ted went from 









to this









And it was all from changing his water, using a good shampoo and changing his food. There is to much crap in tap water and it will actually turn his beard orange. Once I started using filtered water his beard started going back to his natural color, which is white, and it's so much better. 

But I keep his face about that length and his body goes between super long and short. They shortest his face has ever been is like the picture below.


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## Love's_Sophie (Sep 23, 2007)

Wow, teddy, that's an awesome change!


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## echo8287 (Jul 5, 2007)

My 2 Schnauzers have their little beards. I brush them everyday. They don't usually care much for it either. Their beards are stained, probably cause we have well water. When they start looking too unruley they get a bath. David


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## Yvette (Sep 13, 2007)

Teddy's face is the look I want to go for. 
Looks very neat & clean! 
But I tell ya. I gotta Shih Tzu that came in today! She comes in about 2x a year.
Thier dang Guinea Pig comes more often! It makes me so mad! The Ztu is so cute & so good to do! Luckily they shave her face down! I give her the Poodle face. They do like it that wat too & thank goodness! Oh I feel for this poor girl! The eye boogers are the worst! The cling all the way down to her nose & chin! I am not sure about what these owners are about?


> her name is Foster!


She does have a beautiful, very light colored coat. She comes in so filthy dirty gray, full of knotts! She can not see, because of it. She also pees & poops on herself, because she is so matted down there too!
My boss did give the owners a good talking to today. Today, she went home with Poodle clipped feet too! I also really hate making thier nails bleed. Especailly the good ones that do not wiggle ever. Today I had to.  Her nails were pretty close to being embedded.


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## echo8287 (Jul 5, 2007)

My 2 Schnauzies have their beards. I think they would look weird if cut short, cause when they are wet they have such long noses(long little tongues too).They are constantly getting them brushed, at least once every day. When they go out they are always nosing around in the leaves,stumps,holes in the ground etc.There hair grows pretty fast too. I give them a bath at least every 2 weeks and wash and condition their noses good. The worst part is one gets a lot of eye gunk. The other not so much. They also need the hair between their feet cut frequently as they slid on the hardwood floors. David


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## Graco22 (Jul 16, 2007)

I agree 100% with you David...I have had to shave schnauzers faces/beards off, and it ain't pretty.... If I can at all save some of the beard on a matted dog, I will. There are some good coat sprays you can use on their beards to help with combouts, and make gunky stuff slide out much easier. My favorite is EZ Groom's "Answer" diluted 15:1 and just a light mist goes very far! Especially after a bath, before drying..makes leaves, twigs, and tangles slide right out.


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