What Are Double Coat Dog Breeds?
Double coated dog breeds have a coat that seems to have a mind of its own. A double coast is precisely as it sounds. This type of coat grows in sections.
The bottom layer is a more refined, more delicate type of hair that works to insulate and add bulk to the longer and more coarse primary hair type.
The primary coat is the coat you are used to seeing on dogs. The primary coat is the layer that consists of a dog’s unique color or a wide variety of markings.
Aside from growing in multiple layers, a double coat has a shedding cycle. This cycle maintains the appropriate level of warmth or insulation the animal needs. The shedding cycle is affected by weather conditions and environmental factors.
When warmer weather begins to take shape in the spring and summer, the double coat’s undercoat begins to fall.
All double coat dog breeds are mostly adventurous. Think mountain and water dogs—giant fluffy breeds like Huskies, Akitas, A German Shepard, and a Labrador retriever.
The undercoat is produced and shed in cycles. The primary coat (glossy and shiny topcoat)has longer hair, mostly for protection from the elements. These hairs are much longer and work as a shield from rain and snow in the winter.
The secondary coat is mostly for bulk and insulation.
This insulation is not only for colder seasons and templates, but it also helps to regulate a dog’s body heat in summer, when the weather is warm.
Since a dog’s only sweat glands are on their paw pads, the only other escape of body heat is through panting of their coat’s insulation. While the insulation has different purposes, the double coat is not super thick all year round.
Quite the opposite is true. When the double coat is appropriately maintained and cared for, the shedding amount can be manageable. Encourage your clients to make a regular grooming appointment if their dog has a double coat.
Here are three reasons why you would not hand–strip a breed that is supposed to be hand–stripped: 1) You do not have the skill or you are unwilling or unable to do the work, 2) the owner does not wish to pay the added cost of hand–stripping, 3) the dog comes to you already clipped beyond the point of repair.
Hi Natasha. This is a very confusing issue for new groomers. There are so many factors to consider when making the choice to trim the outer coat or not. Your question is breed and/or coat type specific. Cutting the outer coat is perfectly acceptable on some breeds and coat types and not on others. To make things even more confusing, it may be acceptable to cut some areas of the body and not others.
Your question about the how the coat grows back is tricky because there are multiple factors that determine whether the coat grows back to its original length. Genetics, whether the dog has been spayed or neutered, age, breed and coat type can all play a roll. If all goes well, the coat will look like it was never trimmed.
When discussing the grooming with your clients, try not to use phrases like “show groom “or “show trim”. They will almost always come back with, “Oh he’s not a show dog, he’s just a pet”. Try instead to use terms like “proper trim”, “correct techniques”, “modified techniques” or “alternative techniques”. Keep in mind that using the phrase “show grooming” only refers to the most correct way to groom that breed. Many pet owners who never intend to show their dogs still want them to look like the breed is supposed to look.
There is a point at which the coat is ruined by clipping and will never look like it is supposed to again. It requires a long, expensive, uncomfortable, and in most cases, unnecessary rehabilitation of the coat to make it look like a WFT again. Most likely, the client was never given the choice, they simply took their puppy to the groomer and the groomer shaved it.
What we ARE supposed to do with double coated breeds is brush out that undercoat! Obviously they shed alot – it is natural and extremely healthy and functional for their coats to do just that! Their coats do an amazing job of protecting them in all sorts of weather. Yes, their undercoat needs to come out – often and regularly – and is easily brushed and combed out. Its also easily removed with the high velocity dryers that we use at Love Fur Dogs. You can see in the photo how easily the undercoat of a double coated breed blows out when a professional groomer properly grooms this coat. Its so much better that your double-coated dog’s undercoat ends up all over our bathing and drying room, rather than your living room!
To complicate this, there are approximately 9 general categories of dog coat, with some sub-types, thanks to years of human genetic engineering of the dog and its functions. These coat types include: Smooth (Boxers), Long (Shih Tzu), Flat (Golden Retrievers), Curly (Poodle), Hard or Wire (Scottish Terrier), Corded (Puli), Hairless (Chinese Crested), Combination (Doodles), and the most common type – Double Coat – that has a fluffy insulating undercoat and a weather-resistant outer coat. Double-Coated breeds come in short (Labradors, German Shepherds); medium (Siberian Huskies); and long (Samoyeds, Collies) varieties.
The grand exception to all this is a pelted coat (extremely matted in a solid sheet close to the skin) where there is no humane choice for the dog’s comfort but to clip it off. For a haircut type dog, there is no humane option but to shave. But for Fur Type dogs, there are techniques that will allow the natural coat to be mostly saved. We hope that this option is never forced upon you. We would be proud and happy to spend a few minutes in the lobby with you any time to discuss what kind of coat your dog has and what is the long term best care plan for your beloved dog.
Shaving a double coated dog does not stop the shedding – it only makes the hair that is shed shorter. Little spikes of hair laying around your house can be even harder to deal with than the regular length hair that is shed off your Best Friend!
Love your double-coated dog. Know that to DE-SHED it is easier, healthier and more effective than shaving it down. Brush and comb it and regularly bathe and condition it. Better yet, send it to us for regular grooms. Best of all, we at Love Fur Dogs have set very low prices on weekly maintenance so that the shedding hair ends up in our place, not your home.
To clip or not to clip? – Dog coat types explained
Most people who have a popular breed of dogs are of their pup’s specific attributes to make their relationship unique. Maybe one of your clients has a golden retriever who loves playing fetch.
Or they could have an exceptional German Shepherd who loves to sniff out a scent trail.
A double coat on a dog refers to the specific type of fur that makes up their coat. The type of hair can significantly affect how the dog’s coat grows and sheds. A double coat can also shed multiple times a year in a seasonal “shedding period.”
What does your client’s dog need to stay adequately groomed? Clipping or a simple scissor trim?
Double coat dog breeds need special attention when it comes to the upkeep of their furry coat. Proper coat maintenance and patience during the shedding season are crucial to your pet’s health and safety.