# LF Suggestions on Grooming Styles for New Bouvier



## BouvierFan (Sep 20, 2010)

New to this forum and was looking for ideas on how i should get my bouvier groomed. He has an appt on Wed w/ a groomer that he's gone to w/ his previous owner. Here's how he looked after about a month and a 1/2 after his last clip (he was groomed this way before I brought him home):









I don't think this is any sort of 'style' per se, i just looks like an overall clip (but i could be wrong). Since he has natural ears, would a schnauzer cut look good? Or should I go for a traditional bouvier cut? I don't mind grooming him (i do it almost every night while watching tv but recently it's taking me about an hour now that his coat is about 2-1/2" long).

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!


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## Graco22 (Jul 16, 2007)

Personally, I can't stand long stringy ears...I think he would look sharp with his ears shaved (as they should be on a bouv, natural ears or not) Looks like he was shaved down before, with who knows what type of head they were going for..Length on the body is up to you, but they look better will fuller legs..and I know a real bouv face can be alot to maintain..but don't go schnauzer...just downsize a bouv head..


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## BouvierFan (Sep 20, 2010)

I hear what you're saying about the stringy ears, I think I'll ask for her to shave them down. 

as far as the head goes, he's got a ton of hair under his ears, behind his jowls (not sure what that's called) that gets really matted. It also makes his head look HUGE. I'm think of having that taken down but not touching the beard. 

What about the hair on top of his head? I think it looks kind of cute in a moppy sort of way but would it look better clipped short? How short should the body be clipped? I completely agree about the legs -- i like them a bit longer and the feet round (luckily this is the one part of his body that doesn't get matted!).

Thanks for your suggestions!


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## Bart (Jul 15, 2010)

The ears should be shaved down with a #10 blade. The beard, eyebrows and fur on the muzzle left long. It can be evened up with shears. The eyebrows over the eyes can be cut at a slightly oblique angle but the "fall" of the brow between the eyes should be left full length until it gets to the nose. The hair on the crown of the head (occupit) should be very short too. It would be clippered with like a #10 also but personally I like it a little longer like 1/4 to 3/8" but right now it looks over an inch long. The cheeks should be thinned (although this dog at present doesn't have full cheeks as it has been clippered). The Schnauzer Graco mentioned has the cheeks completely clippered off with just the beard and brow left. The belly and the groin should be clippered short for sanitary purposes. Males can pee on their belly and dribble around the groin area. The furnishings on the legs should be grown out more. When the fur on the feet grows out, it should be trimmed round and tight so that it is off the ground. You should be able to see the pads if you get down and look. You can grow the jacket (body fur) out as long as you like or keep it clippered if you want an easier job combing. Personally I like it long, about 2 1/2 to 3 inches. This dog looks like it's no more than 3/4 inch long.

I agree with Graco22, the most striking negative thing on the dog at the moment is the long ear hair (and the long hair on the crown of the head). I'd clipper that off and then let the rest grow out for a while. In the mean time, practice brushing with a slicker and combing the dog a lot. 

There's a few basic guides if you search for Bouvier Grooming on the internet. There's also some grooming discussed in Bouvier books by McLean and another one by Pollet. I haven't found a comprehensive guide for beginners yet. I suppose most people endeavoring to do more than brushing and combing learn all breed grooming first and then they just need a few tips on Bouvier specifics.

You can look in Bouvier books or do an image search on Bouvier des Flandre and look for the style you like. The show dogs are going to have the correct breed style but you'll see a lot of pet dogs with more practical styles, some even with full shaves. Find a breeder near you using the American Bouvier des Flandres Club website, call them and ask about grooming. Maybe they do it themselves and can teach you, or maybe they send them to a groomer that knows bouviers and can refer you. I had bad luck finding Bouvier expertise in my area but I live in a rural area with few people overall so it's just made me more determined to learn it myself.

Read any of my posts in this forum's grooming section as they're all from a beginner learning to groom a Bouvier.


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## BouvierFan (Sep 20, 2010)

I'm printing this out and taking it to the groomers in case she has any questions or I can't remember everything you said (the latter being more likely ;-) )

Here's a more recent pic that shows his head better:









Unfortunately, I trimmed his eyebrows straight across b/c he kept running into things! i knew they should be trimmed as you mentioned but don't know what i was thinking! I'll post pics in the next couple of days post-grooming. Wish us luck & thanks for the suggestions!


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## Bart (Jul 15, 2010)

This site has a lot of pictures of quality fawn Bouviers http://www.bajoronkennel.com
Look in the gallery and "our champions" sections
They have a little grooming advice too and promise a book in the future.

I have a black bouv. I'm going for a look something like this: http://www.bajoronkennel.com/Champion Destiny.html
but my dog's coat is presently shorter. He looks about like this one: 

http://www.puppyeducation.com/breeds/images/dogs/bouvier_des_flandres.jpg

but with no beard because we had a beard crisis

my dog is not from bajoron, I just found they have lots of pictures


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## Bart (Jul 15, 2010)

would love to see an "after" shot if you get a chance


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