# spring spaniel grooming



## PennyM (Aug 15, 2013)

While Cooper is still just a pup, I am wondering about grooming for him when he gets older. A friend of mine keeps her springer cut very short...almost like a shave. I have searched for some photos of what a springer should look like when groomed, but they all show the dog with longer hair...like a spring should I suppose. I do want to keep Cooper cut short to minimize the hair in the house, but I don't want to "ruin" his coat by shaving it. My apologies if I am not using the appropriate grooming terminology. I am open to input and photos of various options for springers. I have learned so much from this forum! thanks.


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## ireth0 (Feb 11, 2013)

I am not a grooming expert by any means, but I know that were are different cuts for springers. You have the show cut;









And field;









So, it would depend on the look you wanted, and what lines your dog was from.


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## Keechak (Aug 10, 2008)

English Springer Spaniels are not a double coated breed, shaving them doesn't harm the texture of the coat and it will grow back in perfectly normal right away. Most show dog English Springers get their throats shaved short. Although I personally can not stand the look of a close buzz cut on any dog, I would think doing a 1 inch trim below with a 1/2 trim on the back wouldn't look too bad. I would suggest scissoring the belly and legs over clipping them tho.


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

Keechak said:


> English Springer Spaniels are not a double coated breed, shaving them doesn't harm the texture of the coat and it will grow back in perfectly normal right away. Most show dog English Springers get their throats shaved short. Although I personally can not stand the look of a close buzz cut on any dog, I would think doing a 1 inch trim below with a 1/2 trim on the back wouldn't look too bad. I would suggest scissoring the belly and legs over clipping them tho.


I don't entirely agree. They are doubled coated and have an undercoat, just not nearly as much as more full coated dogs do. You will see a difference in the coat when it is shaved (the lighter undercoat shows through). I do agree that it seems to grow back fairly well, but there is always the risk that it will change the texture over time. 


A lot of spaniel grooming depends on how much coat your dog has. A field bred springer might not need anything more than neatening around the ears and feet, and possibly clippering the throat area with a #10 blade. That's all my Welsh springer requires. A dog with a lot of coat (or a thicker "neutered coat", which some fixed dogs get) might require a body trim and in that case I agree with Keechak's suggestions on length. If you don't trim the body coat, a stripping knife is great for removing undercoat. You can look up tutorials on YouTube by searching for "carding". 

For neatening the ears/feet/feathers with scissors, I would get a nice pair of straight shears, and a pair of thinning shears. Most of the work is done with the thinning shears and I only use the straits around the feet and tail really. Taking bulk out of the ears and feathers would be done with thinning shears in the direction the coat grows.


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## PennyM (Aug 15, 2013)

Thank you so much all. Coopers mom is field type and dad is a bench show type or so I'm told. It will be interesting to see what is coat will look like as an adult. I agree that a shave type cut is not flattering but I do want to keep him trimmed and tidy. Thanks to you all for the input and visuals. I suspect I will use a groomer as I have no experience with this, but at least I know what to ask for.


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

I can't say I'm an expert on English springer grooming, but I have my first welsh and groom him for shows and it's really not that hard. If you ever have questions or need help doing a simple pet groom, I would be happy to help. Pictures of your dog and his coat would help, though he's young he's probably pretty light on coat so far.


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## PennyM (Aug 15, 2013)

Thanks elrohwen for the offer. As the time approaches, I will take you up on that.


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## Tankstar (Dec 30, 2006)

I'd suggest getting him in to groomers now. Even if it's just a bath and tidy type of groom. Waiting until a dog is fully grown to introduce grooming such as shaving is a night mate for both dog and groomer


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

Tankstar said:


> I'd suggest getting him in to groomers now. Even if it's just a bath and tidy type of groom. Waiting until a dog is fully grown to introduce grooming such as shaving is a night mate for both dog and groomer


I agree. Even if you decide to do it yourself in the future, it will help if he has some good experience already. And if you decide to take him to a groomers forever, then it's definitely best to get him started now.


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