Shaved all 3 Collies today

I am not in favor of cutting the hair on long hair dogs for summer unless for medical reasons. It is counter-intuitive, but the long hair can actually help cool the dog. Just like a layer of insulation in your attic keeps out the heat, so does the long hair. Also, many breeds skin cannot adapt to sun exposure.

I also think it helps breeds who don't get rid of heat easily? My daughter keeps her Shih-Tzu shaved: he's got NO nose; hairy feet; tiny ears - and he's black. A first-class case for heat stroke if ever there was one :-(

This has been an interesting back and forth.

A lot depends on what is meant by "shave." I don't think anyone is saying shave in the sense that we do for surgical prep - that's down to the skin and leave nothing. Most grooming shaves leave some hair.

There is a difference in hair growth in different breeds. I've had some patients that never grew back hair after a shave down - usually older animals or those with medical problems (hypothyroid).

I have recommended annual shaves in some collies who had repeated hot spots and this was a preventive measure (very successful, too).

I guess the best advice is find what works best for your dog; shave, trim, comb out, or whatever.

Doug

corgi-traveler wrote:
Single-coated breeds (poodles, yorkies, wheaten terriers, etc) can be shaved with no ill effects. When you shave a double-coated dog, you are doing much more harm than good. The answer is to keep the dense undercoat combed out. Yes, it is time consuming. It's part of the "cost of doing business" of owning a double-coated dog, though.
Why you should not shave a double-coated dog.

I gently disagree with this article. Maybe there are breeds where the coat grows out "funky" - but in the case of my Aussies, their coats grew out normally. In a few months, their coats were back to normal. And when the dogs were BEGGING to be shaved down (then acted like crazy puppies afterward) - it tells me that they felt better and were definitely cooler. It also allowed me to towel-dry the dogs after their daily swims.

Granted, a dog who lives outdoors; or leads a hard working life in rough conditions; OR is being shown competitively - then I might reconsider shaving. But for the vast majority of us, those parameters don't apply.

corgi-traveler wrote:
Single-coated breeds (poodles, yorkies, wheaten terriers, etc) can be shaved with no ill effects. When you shave a double-coated dog, you are doing much more harm than good. The answer is to keep the dense undercoat combed out. Yes, it is time consuming. It's part of the "cost of doing business" of owning a double-coated dog, though.
Why you should not shave a double-coated dog.

That article is incorrect in that it classifies Shih Tzus as single coated. They're double coated. And yes, those double coats get trimmed/shaved regularly with no bad effects. ;)

OK, so let's define "shave". In my case there's still a good covering of fur on the dogs. We don't "shave" in the human sense of leaving nothing but bare skin. There's enough fur left to completely cover the skin so there is no chance of sunburn.

Single-coated breeds (poodles, yorkies, wheaten terriers, etc) can be shaved with no ill effects. When you shave a double-coated dog, you are doing much more harm than good. The answer is to keep the dense undercoat combed out. Yes, it is time consuming. It's part of the "cost of doing business" of owning a double-coated dog, though.
Why you should not shave a double-coated dog.

I keep my Std and Min Poodles shaved pretty close for most of the year, except the depth of winter. They have enough hair to cover, but barely. We live on a farm and their coats are like velcro for burrs, sticks, and any other plant/insect matter. As it stands I clip them every 5 or 6 weeks.

They've never been matted and needed the short hair cut, in fact I spend a lot of time grooming!

Years ago we had a mix that had an undercoat that was incredibly thick. I'd clip her in the spring and she'd run around like a mad dog as soon as I was done :-)

Old-Biscuit wrote:
Our Border Collie/Lab turns 15 this year.

She has the LONG overcoat with THICK DENSE undercoat.

We 'TRIM' her short every year since a puppy.....after the first time that I 'shaved' her and she got sunburn.

Don't forget to provide a blanket at night if temps still get cool

Same here but ours is a Pomeranian. I have never had one before with a coat like this and he's a swimmer with our Lab and loves to roll in the beach sand sooooo this is the only solution for us.
He has a couple of sweatshirts to keep him warm when it gets cool.
When he is first shaved and we are out in the sun I spray his back with a Coppertone sunblock, then he gets a bath when we get home.

Sher

I have two yapper dogs that require grooming monthly, which I've learned to do myself (saves $50/dog!). I do use a clipper blade that trims their hair shorter in the summer, but no, I don't completely shave them down. Some hair is needed to protect their skin from the summer sun, IMO.