Clipping Dogs In Summer

[Chipps]

Hi all, dumb questions time.

Getting pretty hot & humid here, so we usually give our dogs a very short clip to get them through the heat of summer.

I have a cairn terrier & a cattle x lab, my ex has 2 maltese.

Questions:

1. Is it true that dogs perspire using their tongue & not through sweat glands to the skin like humans?

2. Is clipping to reduce heat stress a myth?

Cheers

Chipps

PS: I don't clip the cattle dog

Edited December 18, 2010 by Chipps

[aussielover]

Dogs lose heat through panting.

They also have sweat glands in the pads of their paws, but that is about it.

They can lose heat by conduction as well- exposing skin to a cool surface.

You will find mixed views on clipping.

Personally all the dogs I have seen clipped do appear to be more comfortable and energetic than their non clipped counterparts of the same breed.

It will ruin their coat though and it will potentially grow back thicker and coarser.

So you have to be committed to regualr clipping then.

I wouldn't clip my lab but i clipped the aussie shepherd as we had bad ticks in our area and her coat was too difficult to search through.

Would not get a long coated breed in this area again.

[Chipps]

Interesting feedback aussielover.

Hadn't considered it can ruin their coat or alter its thickness. Other than that, you feel it does help with the heat problem.

I agree that ticks, burrs etc are easier to find. I have only ever clipped once a year as it seems adequate for grooming & maintenance on these little guys.

Ours are simply companion animals, not for breeding or show btw.

Ta for the reply

Chipps

[dunnwarren]

I clip off my silkys just not the ones I am showing. It makes them more comfortable I think, not that they need it today, pouring here and only 8 degrees. Doesn't seem like it's nearly Christmas

[tlc]

I clip my guys all year round about every 6 - 8 weeks but I do find they are much happier in summer with short coats.

I don't find any difference in coat type or texture from one clip to another.

[becks]

Cairns in pet trim, I clip every 8 weeks, I find it surprising you would leave the dog a whole year between clips.

Dogs who have relatively short coats to begin with, like the labs and goldens, I see no reason to clip these for summer

[Sandra777]

With the Cairn you might find it is just as comfortable if you strip the coat, clipping only cuts everything off to the same length, with stripping you actually take out the undercoat which holds the heat against the skin. The harsh outer hair you can pluck to suit yourself.

I think it's a similar coat, may be wrong though!, as the Norwich - I used to look after a Norwich in boarding kennels and when he was clipped it made no difference, but when I hand stripped him for his owner he was much better off as the fluffy undercoat was gone - the undercoat which is designed to keep them warm and protected when working in the UK countryside - a fair bit different to Australian Suburbia LOL

The Maltese only has a single coat so while cutting the coat may not make all that much difference in the heat stakes, it makes it easier for the owner to keep the dog respectable looking and if the dog goes paddling or swimming it will dry off quicker.

Yes dogs perspire through their tongues and feet and their only other way of cooling is via evaportative cooling from exposed skin.

[GoldenGirl85]

I clip my guys all year round about every 6 - 8 weeks but I do find they are much happier in summer with short coats.

I don't find any difference in coat type or texture from one clip to another.

hmm, but your dogs all have poodle in them dont they? maybe if they have that woollen coat the fur texture doesnt change like a regular coat would

[Evolving]

I clip of Bob in Summer. He seems to like not having to carry around all his coat.

[Crisovar]

The biggest problem with many dogs and the summer season is that quite simply they are not groomed out thoroughly.

Undercoat and dead coat needs to be groomed out, it makes a huge difference to the dog.

If you resort to clipping the dog off and then fail to groom out as the coat grows you end up with a dense carpet which almost defies the shortest shave and a very uncomfortable dog and unhealthy skin.

[Danois]

I clip my guys all year round about every 6 - 8 weeks but I do find they are much happier in summer with short coats.

I don't find any difference in coat type or texture from one clip to another.

hmm, but your dogs all have poodle in them dont they? maybe if they have that woollen coat the fur texture doesnt change like a regular coat would

One of the 'joys' of cross bred dogs - there is no consistency.

My friend had a spaniel x poodle and his coat was different after the first clip and then after each time, it grew back differently. His coat was never the same.

[kiwioz]

I have a cairn terrier and I only clip him once a year ;) I don't think you are meant to clip them at all if they are being shown, you are meant to strip them like sandra has described. Cal gets nice and shaggy and toasty warm for winter then I chop it all off for summer. He does seem much more comfortable and tears around the place after he gets clipped.

Finn is a poodle cross and I clip him every few months, that is more to keep his coat manageable than for the heat though.

[raz]

With the Cairn you might find it is just as comfortable if you strip the coat,

Yes I agree with this. I have terriers and would never clip them but strip them. The double coat is designed to be a temperature control unit. Clipping it destroys the temp control (so I have been told by die hard terrier men).

Edited December 19, 2010 by raz

[Bjelkier]

Hi all, dumb questions time.

Getting pretty hot & humid here, so we usually give our dogs a very short clip to get them through the heat of summer.

I have a cairn terrier & a cattle x lab, my ex has 2 maltese.

Questions:

1. Is it true that dogs perspire using their tongue & not through sweat glands to the skin like humans?

2. Is clipping to reduce heat stress a myth?

Cheers

Chipps

PS: I don't clip the cattle dog

I'm not going to answer for all breeds, just my own.

I would never suggest someone shave their Sammie for summer!

The double coat acts as insulation and on truely hot days you can touch my Sammie's and they will be cool, touch my Lab and the poor boy is very hot.

[Gayle.]

Once I strip out the undercoats, which loosen up and drop easily anyway, there's barely any coat left and the dogs are a lot cooler. For my breed, that's the correct way to groom a dog, not clip their coats off.

[mita]

You will find mixed views on clipping.

Personally all the dogs I have seen clipped do appear to be more comfortable and energetic than their non clipped counterparts of the same breed.

It will ruin their coat though and it will potentially grow back thicker and coarser.

I agree about the mixed views. And also have seen results from 2 approaches.

Years back, I bit the bullet & got our then 2 tibbie girls, clipped. But only at the hands of a groomer who was known to be excellent.

When the 2 little dogs came bouncing out, they looked gorgeous. The breed has a firm & nice little body shape.

I don't know why, but their coats grew back the same as before by the next winter. So no ongoing problems.

However, I now take our 2 present tibbie girls to other groomers, who have a great reputation.

They said, 'We don't ever want to ruin the magnificent coat & look of a tibetan spaniel!' So they don't elect to do a full clip. They throughly strip out undercoat, do a fantastic bit of 'disguised' cutting back at the rear end, a tummy trim & very subtle trims elsewhere.

When I saw the results, she looked stunning & more breeze could get thro'!

She's the 'work' of wonderful Scandanavian breeders & it showed. The groomers were happy, too. They said, they'd just do this a few times over the summer.

[Sayly]

With the Cairn you might find it is just as comfortable if you strip the coat,

Yes I agree with this. I have terriers and would never clip them but strip them. The double coat is designed to be a temperature control unit. Clipping it destroys the temp control (so I have been told by die hard terrier men).

I agree. Stripping the Cairn out would be a better option, I think.

[flyingduster]

double coated dogs (samoyeds, aussies, sibes, keeshunds, etc etc) are generally better WITH their coats on, though strip out the undercoat as much as possible to lighten the load, but shaving it will remove it's natural insulation against the heat and you face sunburn and a thicker coat than ever!

Dogs with a coat that grows continually (ie poodles, maltese, shih, lhasa, and many of the crosses containing them) don't need a shorter coat to be kept cooler, though they do need to be kept very well brushed out so no mats form against the skin causing discomfort and also keeping them too hot. (Ie, my poodle has 6+ inches of hair, but she's not at all overheating in the summer weather, but she's kept brushed out!)

Terriers are best stripped, BUT in saying that if it's only clipped off once a year and it's undercoat is kept well brushed out in the mean time then a once a year shave off isn't going to ruin the coat like a regular 8 weekly clipping will. And when clipping them the coat can still be carded out a fair bit very easily to keep it from being 'ruined' totally.

In the end most dogs are pretty much better off with their coat properly cared for than being clipped off if you sole purpose is to keep them cool. If any dog is being shaved down you need to be careful of sunburning which is a big reason so many coats come back 'weird' after being clipped off, especially double coated dogs when their skin has never seen sun!

I will always try and educate owners, but in the end if they really want their border collie shaved off short, I'll still do it. If I don't, they'll only go elsewhere and get it done by someone else who may not know the dangers of sunburn etc.

[poodlefan]

Judging by some of the dogs I've seen whose owners clip them only in summer, most would probably be just as comfortable if they were THINNER.

Clipping a short coated dog like a Lab sounds like a recipe for sunburn to me.

[WreckitWhippet]

Judging by some of the dogs I've seen whose owners clip them only in summer, most would probably be just as comfortable if they were THINNER.

Clipping a short coated dog like a Lab sounds like a recipe for sunburn to me.

Ohhh hell yeah. I've had people asking me to clip off their Sibe's and Mals because they are "hot". When what they really need is to lose 10-20kg's.