Start at the base of the skull and work back
toward the tail, using a #7F. It's spring,
so everyone wants them short, always shave
with the grain of the hair, down to the knee
on rear legs and elbow on front.
Attach # 5 blade, hold leg out at elbow
and shave DOWN all 4 legs...
Using a # 7F, shave down the cheeks
from the corner of the eye to the neck,
then shave the back of the ears, from base to the tip
with a 7F. The tips of the ears are shaved
with a #10, about 1 inch.
Shave under the armpits with a #10,
this area tends to get matted if the hair
is left long, it's hard to brush out
and it hurts, so just shave it. Do this under the
tail and belly and under the eyes.
I'm sure your dog is not holding still
for all of this, but remember to make
him stand and use patience...
believe me, Precious is a little toad
and WILL NOT STAND,
she will choke herself rather than stand,
so she's a real pain in the arm, but
she's adorable, so I deal...
PATIENCE!!!
Now it's bath time, the rough-in is complete.
Time to trim the face and the ears,
be really careful as you scissor the
contour of the ears, just enough to even
them up.
When you have the dog dry, brush the hair
forward and begin the process again,
shave with the #7F the whole body and down
the side of the face, again with the #5
on the legs. A simple method for drying,
I hope you all have a small dog crate, fold up a
towel and lay your hair dryer on it,
blow it full speed on WARM for 5-10 minutes,
then take out the dog and brush against the
grain, if any hair is still damp just spot
dry it with the dryer.
Comb the hair against the grain on the legs,
scissor the long hairs and round the toes,
keep doing it until you have a smooth look,
or just do it the first time if you aren't
that picky, remember, this ain't the
Westminster, so it doesn't have to be
perfect the first time!
Comb the hair forward on the head and try
to trim it round best you can, same with the beard.
Again, don't try to be perfect, it'll come!
Remember, this is just basic,
just to get you started, you can fine-tune
each time as the dog trusts AND OBEYS
you and same goes for you, I think
my very first grooming took me hours.
I studied the book endlessly, but you are sooo
lucky, you have You-tube, check it out,
there are tons of great videos that will
really help you out...
have fun!!!
