I'm so thankful for, my then mentor and now friend, Chris. When I first brought Jenga (renamed from Joy) for a grooming lesson, Chris demonstrated how to trim the pads, pluck the long hair from the inner ear, bathe and show groom my puppy. Since I'm still not very good at show grooming though, I continue to take courses and attend seminars. I've made lots of mistakes but believe that I'm on the road to looking more professional. I'm going to share how I groom my dogs.
I've tried all kinds of different shampoos, conditioners, detanglers, and finishing sprays. I'm very thankful that the dogs I have don't have a profuse undercoat so tangles or mats are fairly manageable. We have been experimenting with different products and have our favourites. I can't stress enough how using the right product has made my grooming regime so much more simple. My favourites tend to change from time to time since I'm always open to trying a new product IF it's composed of natural ingredients. I do like certain products from Pure Paws and Belcourt Grooming (Dirty Dog Shampoo) but for certain Moroccan Oil is a necessity. Recently I was told about a human grade conditioner that I quite like as it contains Moroccan oil as well. It's called Argan Oil and is found at many places such as WalMart, Shoppers DrugMart, Rexall, etc.
So let's go through my steps:
- First I brush the dog completely to remove any tangles, loosen the dirt and check for problems.
- With warm I wet the entire dog.
- I shampoo the coat similar to human hair. Apply to the roots and scrunch or run your hands down through the sides. I don't rub the coat to avoid tangling and I try to maintain the natural part. This first shampoo I use my Dirt Dog protein shampoo.
- Don't forget to wash the face and beard avoiding soapy water in the dogs eyes, nose and ears. You can use a child's tear-free shampoo such as No More Tears
- Rinse throughly with luke warm water. If your dog won't stand still, check the water temperature as it's likely too warm for their skin.
- It's important to wash your dog with shampoo a second time as the first shampoo breaks the oils down so the second shampoo gets to the skin.
- If the dog has a build up of previous products or added stuff from showing, this is where I apply a vinegar mixture (2 Tblsp white vinegar to 1 cup warm water) and allow the mixture to run off the dogs coat - head to tail. Be sure to rinse before adding the conditioner.
- Apply the conditioner to the coat and again scrunch in.
- After allowing the conditioner to work for about 3 - 5 minutes before completely rinsing the dog off.
- I use my hands to remove water from the coat then a chamois (a vehicle chamois works best) and without rubbing, remove as much water from the coat wringing the chamois about 3 or 4 times before moving to the towel.
- I take a very small amount (dime sized) of Moroccan Oil and rub my hands together quickly to generate a heated oil before rubbing the oil over the entire coat lightly.
- I wrap the dog in a nice warm towel and go sit with another blanket over top to prevent shivering for about 10 minutes
- There are some wonderful de-tangling sprays available. Not only do they smell wonderful, but brushing out is so much easier.
- If I use a blow dyer, it is on low heat or cool. Hotter will create frizz and split ends. I prefer a blower.
- This is when we do line brushing. Start with laying the dog down on their left side (or judge side). Separate a small layer of hair next to the natural part and use a soft pin brush, brush AWAY from the dog basically lifting from the roots away. Once that section is dry, take the next small section and repeat eventually getting to the dogs shoulders/belly/thigh area.
- Repeat on each leg the line brushing and sectioning until you have reached the pastern but be more gentle to protect the leg ligaments.
- Lift the dog and repeat for the other side.
- Be sure to remove any matts & tangles from the coat. Especially under the elbows, between the front leg chest area, belly, back inner thighs, and hind quarters.
- Once the dog is dry I'll apply a finishing anti-static spray and brush the dog while standing from part to tips as this is a drop coated breed.
- The trick is to start with a soft pin brush for the first time brushing, then repeat the process with a medium tooth comb, to a fine tooth comb and finally a soft rake for that impeccable show coat.
- Grooming in this manner will ensure your Havanese looks stunning for several days and makes the next bath time even easier.
- For the show ring we are not allowed to use any products other than shampoo and I have been told to refrain from conditioner due to the extreme softness to my coats.
Trimming
We trim the dogs feet and anal areas only. We do not trim around the eyes. Make sure the dogs nails are short so they can walk properly. To trim the leg hair, brush all the leg hair down to the nails. Hold the paw in such a way you can see the pad and the circle of long hair. Using scissors trim the hair about 1 cm in front of the toes following the shape of the foot (circular). don't cut the back though as its too easy to make a mistake here. Then have the dog stand and using thinning shears trim the foot so the hair all around the foot is JUST touching the table. This is my weakest area still and one that needs lots of practice to get right.
Be sure to cut the hair in the foot pad as well so you can see the 'flash' of pad when the dog walks. I have a small cordless clippers to trim the hair in the pad area or you can carefully use blunt tipped scissors.
Cleaning the Ears
It's also extremely important to remove the hair from inside the dogs ears to avoid a build up wax and remove a breeding ground for mites and other infections. I use my fingers to carefully pluck the long hairs. Once all the hair is removed, use a gentle cleaner by putting a few drops into the ear, rub gently and then with a cotton ball swap dry. My favorite cleaner which doesn't contact any drying agents is #1 All Systems - Ear So Fresh
Cleaning the Eyes
Many dogs have a stained eye area offered referred to as 'poodle eye' which is nothing more that sleep from the eye discolored by the dye in dog food. It's important to use a warm cloth daily to remove this from the corner of each eye. Products such as Angel Eye are available, however I choose not to use products. Instead I use distilled water for our pets drinking water to help reduce the amount of minerals that they consume. Using a baby elastic to hold the long hair away from the eyes will help prevent tearing from the hair getting into the eye area. I've been told that a few small drops of 'Apple Cider Vinegar' on your dog's daily food will also remove the unsightly tear staining.
The Havanese Fanciers of Canada have a nice book called 'From Nose to Tails' which covers in detail the grooming of a Havanese.
