This time of year happens to be one of the times when groomers see severe matting. Bella and Max go outside to play in the winter wonderland and come back in covered in snowballs. What you don’t see is what’s happening in those snow balls. Wrestling around, hair getting twisted, tangled, and frozen together. As they start to dry, those tangles get tighter. It’s cold outside and you don’t want to cut their hair for fear they will be too cold.
Fast forward to spring time and it’s time for a grooming appointment. After months of playing outside and being covered in all that fun snow has tangled your poor pooch so much that we are left with no other option than to go short.
I have seen all the horror stories and read all the posts from other groomers, as well as, owners upset with the haircut. 9 times out of 10, it happens to be doodley, poodley mixes. As groomers, we spend a lot of time and a lot of money making sure we have the latest and greatest equipment and education to provide the best we can. A lot of times, these expenses for us come out of pocket and the education is on our personal free time. While we would love to leave these pups long and luxurious, we have to do what’s in the best interest of the animal and the safest, least painful way to do this is to get under the matting, most times resulting in the “scalped” look.
Brushing and combing all the way to the skin with the proper tools for your dogs coat type is the most effective way to prevent matting. The longer you desire your dogs coat to be, the more frequent you should be brushing and combing at home. We hear, “He does not like it when I brush him.” Or “She tries to bite me and run away.” Matting is painful and if they are biting, kicking, and screaming for you, there’s a good chance they will behave this way with the groomer. This is where groomers recommend coming in a little more regularly so we can help you maintain the length you desire and create a bond with your dog in order to create trust and be a familiar part of their life. We can only do so much in 3 hours with a coat that hasn’t been brushed in sometimes 8 months. Think about all the fun things you have done with your dog in the time between appointments, that’s a lot of swimming, running, playing in the dirt and mud with friends, runs through the woods, etc.
Matting can also cause and hide health issues you may not be aware of! It can pull the skin away from the rest of the body, starving it of blood flow and oxygen, causing the dog to lose feeling. Women with long hair know the feeling of letting your hair down after a long days work and your scalp is a little sore. That soreness came from 1 day. I’ve had dogs come in once a year and needed to be taken as short as I could safely go. Imagine how they must feel to let their hair down after a year! I’ve heard of dogs being “embarrassed” or “ashamed” and start acting out of character. Well, they haven’t felt the air on their skin for X amount of time and it was like their entire body “fell asleep” and they are tingling all over as the blood flow comes back. Not to mention, tight matting or pelting can cause hematomas which are like blood blisters under the skin and if your dog is tingling and feeling funny, they may start trying to itch the funny feeling and break open the skin causing bleeding. The most common area we see hematomas are in the ears at the tips and they almost always burst due to the dog shaking its head. It is very difficult to stop the bleeding and keep your dog from shaking their head or itching their ears long enough for them to heal. We’ve had dogs come in so matted I’ve found sand, which can damage our equipment in an instant making our tools unsafe and dull, flea infestations, infections, hot spots, lumps, and injuries.
As groomers, we stand behind Humanity Before Vanity. If your dog is not cooperative at home, please consider visiting your groomer a little more frequently if you desire a certain haircut. A lot of times, in between cuts or maintenance grooms can be a little cheaper than if you wait a little longer than is recommended. Every 6 to 8 weeks is standard for a shorter to medium length haircut and every 4 to 6 weeks for longer, thicker haircuts. We can teach you how to properly take care of your dogs coat between appointments and guide you in purchasing the correct tools for your dogs coat type. Please understand we do not enjoy disappointing our wonderful clients and are simply trying to do what’s in the best interest of your dog causing them the least amount of pain while trying to reassure your pup that grooming isn’t bad, but if your dog is not used to being groomed on a regular basis, the pain of the matting and the fear of the grooming can be very traumatic for your dog causing injury to themselves and more likely, the groomer.
