Bathing and Drying

Double Coats + Groomouts

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Defining the Double Coat

Includes

HEAVY COAT

Long thick silky coat, and a limited amount of short, smooth coat
Think of Samoyeds, Bernese Mountain Dogs, Chow Chows

And

DOUBLE COAT

Short to moderate length straight coat, with soft down undercoat
Think of German Shepherds, Corgis and Huskies

Double coated dogs need to be groomed by brushing on a regular basis.

The best way to groom is after two very thorough washes with a quality shampoo, and condition so the dog is really clean. Use a force dryer and nearly 'over dry' the dog. At about the ¾ drying point use a slicker brush then comb as you are drying (refer to the Samoyed drying video).

As weather warms up, the thick undercoat starts to do a complete shed. It detaches from the body and is often described as molting.

Why shouldn’t we clip down/ shave a double breed?

Unlike people, dogs do not sweat through their skin. Dogs sweat by panting and in all but northern breeds, through the pads of the feet. Shaving them actually removes some of their natural ability to stay cool.

Clipping short ANY double-coated breed, even once, can and often does cause serious permanent, irreversible damage to a dog’s beautiful natural coat. Their thin skin without its natural coat protection is at risk – no matter what season of the year.

Once all this undercoat is removed the air can circulate between and through the hairs of the topcoat keeping the dog cool, while the topcoat keeps the skin protected from the sun. This topcoat can also protect the dog’s skin from fly and mosquito bites.

Unfortunately there is always that one circumstance like an elderly dog or sick dog or the owner still belives clipping or shaving the dog down is best. In these circumstances we would highly encourage an indemnity form to be signed covering the following:

We cannot guarantee that the dog’s hair will grow back after shaving
Shaving may cause irritation and/or rash
Shaving the coat does not necessarily make the dog feel cooler
Shaving does not reduce shedding; it only makes the shedding coat shorter

Following is a commonly used diagram that can help you understand double coat.

SAMOYED

PART 1 Coat Check and Pre-Groom

PART 2 The Bath

PART 3 The Dry

PART 4 Line brushing, Groomout and Tidy - final steps

CORGI X

Sheeba is a double-coated Corgi cross. She has a very sore nose, and Jess baths her face gently with a cloth to avoid upsetting her Lupus. Double-coats that are thick and oily take a long time to get wet and clean. Choose your products wisely and let the hydrobath do the hard work for you.

Part 1

Part 2

PART 1 Jess uses the hydrobath to clean and de-shed Sheeba. A hand wash will feel the pressure points on the dog where hair may be compacted. 2 really good washes and 1 conditioner! Note: Any shampoo left on the dog will make the dog itchy. Rinse, rinse, rinse!

PART 2 Drying the double-coat. Jess blasts the moisture from the skin using a high velocity dryer. For the purpose of the video, Jess is not wearing her PPE mask. Jess uses a rubber curry comb when the dog is fully dried. Apart from a nail clip and an ear clean, Sheeba is ready to go. Note: De-shedding a double coated dog gives the dog the ability to cool or warm itself, depending on the weather. A compacted coat makes it unable to correctly insulate.

POMERANIAN

PART 1 Pomeranian Bath

PART 2 Pomeranian Dry

ALASKAN MALAMUTE

Alaskan Malamute Bath and Dry

JAPANESE SPITZ + FUREX

How to use FurEx (by ProGroom) to de-shed

STEP ONE: CLEANSE

Cleanse is a deeply penetrating yet gentle shampoo designed to cleanse and neutralize the ionic charge within the coat and remove all dirt, odour, and excess sebum. This prepares the coat for loose hair removal and begins the deshedding process.

STEP TWO: RELEASE

Release contains Protein ingredients which fill in damaged or rough areas of hair cuticle making a smooth surface that permits easy release of loose coat. Advanced silicone ingredients provide slip and allow dead coat to slide out with little or no force.

STEP THREE: CLOSE

Close is a mildly acidic silicone conditioning spray further seals the hair cuticle and promotes maximum release of tangled and collected hair within the coat. Spray application allows the groomer to adjust the amount of product applied to different areas of the coat as needed.

Bathing Tips:

On badly packed coats, consider using forced air dryer to push suds through the coat.

When bathing twice, use a more diluted (10:1) shampoo solution for the first bath to help thoroughly wet a thick coat and follow with a less diluted (4:1) shampoo solution for thorough cleaning.

Force Drying Tips:

Use a cone nozzle or a small flat nozzle, or towel thoroughly to remove excess water before applying ProGroom FurEx Close spray.

Best results are achieved by being systematic and thoroughly drying each area before moving to the next. Dry front to back, top to bottom. The greatest hair release will occur as the coat in any given area is thoroughly dry. The Close Spray will work as it dries.

To encourage the release of coat, gently wave the nozzle of your dryer from side to side 3-4 inches.

Directions:

For best results, always use all three of the FurEx system products. The ProGroom FurEx system has been designed to work together to greatly reduce the time and effort of removing collected undercoat. No pre-bath brushing is necessary with ProGroom FurEx system.

Step One: Place dog directly in tub, thoroughly wet coat and apply diluted FurEx Clean shampoo and work through coat completely. Rinse lightly and apply a second shampoo. The goal of the first shampoo is to thoroughly wet the coat; the serious cleaning happens with the second shampoo.

Step Two: FurEx Release Conditioner can be diluted and poured through coat, or applied full strength to seriously packed areas such as ruff or hip area. It is important to treat the entire coat with the Release conditioner. Rinse well.

Step Three: After toweling and/or blowing off excess water, spray damp coat thoroughly with FurEx Close spray. Lift coat from bottom up to insure that entire coat is treated. Spray lightly, but thoroughly.

Use a high velocity, forced air dryer to gently blow out the loosened undercoat. Brushing is only necessary in severe areas. Apply more spray product as needed.

Download the FurEx dilution chart