Grooming

[Catfish1]

Our groomer recommened the stripping tool I have pictured. I've used it on Fergus for the past three months along with weekly brushing, combing and some limited hand stripping.

I am very cautious with the tool so that I don't remove more coat than I want, however, the knife is very fine, so it doesn't take a lot out at once. To date, I've not seen a difference in Fergus' coat and it continues to retain the wirey texture.

Fergus is not a show dog but I really don't want to ruin his natural coat!

Is this tool similar to the stripping knives some of you use?

What is the difference, if any, between a Mars Coat King and stripping knives?

Do stripping knives damage the coat and how do they compare with the Mars Coat King?

Regards

P.S.

Sorry Brad, I should have posted this in the Behavior & Health Forum. Please move it if necessary!

Fergus & Alf

[Brody'sMom]

That is different than the tool we use, which is called the Mars Coat King. We also have a variety of stripping knives that have an edge that is similar, but they have handles that would attach in a different manner than any handle that you would attach to that. I say use whatever tool works for you. Mia has retained her wiry coat with the Mars tool. Brody's torso has harsh coat, but his legs and belly are very soft. I really don't know if either is related to their grooming.

[Maggie15]

we strip mags using a dr.scholls foot scrub tool for grip (its the blue handled thingy in the middle), works really well... its cheap. But i must say that stripping is a bit of work, we find it a two person job, usually will take us around an hour+ and we take breaks every 20min or so...

a

here's a pic of her from today, she still needs some cleaning up...but she's wondering where all that hair came from!

[kandya]

I've got the rubber fingers and combs and brushes and strippers, but would love to see someone actually grooming a coat.

Does anyone know where I can find a video of a cairn being groomed?

I have no confidence in what I'm doing and I've checked with groomers in my area (both of them) and neither have done a cairn coat before, they just do cuts. I'm not going to show the dog, I just want her to look like a cairn and be healthy.

[Catfish1]

Thank you all, for the replys. I see there is a similar thread in this forum from Rocko, so I know grooming seems to be an issue for many.

Kandya summed up my feelings about grooming. Even after reading a lot of advice, I just don't have enough confidence to feel I can do a good job. I'm afraid to "ruin" his coat.

A....that is a large amount of fur. How long was it since the last stripping? I notice you also use regular scissors as well as thinning shears. On what areas do you use them?

Just as a side note, we took Fergus into the groomer yesterday. This is the third time we've visited her and have only been letting her clip nails and trim his feet, tail and ears. The first time we went, she said she was familiar with Cairns but as she was new in town and reading the horror stories some of the members of this forum have related, we were very cautious. We found out yesterday that she, in fact, was a groomer to a Cairn show dog and let us look at some photos of her grooming that dog. She suggested that I should be a little more "aggressive" in thinning his coat. When I admitted that I just didn't feel confident she offered to hand strip Fergus once, in order to get his coat in shape. Said she would do it first thing in the new year, and that she wanted him for the whole day. Once she gets him in shape, she'll show me how to keep it up. I couldn't turn down an offer like that!

Thanks again to all of you.

Regards

Fergus & Alf

[Maggie15]

It was about 6-7 weeks since she was last stripped, we went away for 4 weeks, she still needs more hair cleaned out but that was a good start... this is my first cairn (and dog) so we are trying our best in terms of grooming. The regular scissors are only for the paws (between the pads and the hair that hits the ground around). thinning shears for belly, chin and bum. stripping everything else, she doesn't seem to mind too much. I hope that we can find the time to 'roll' her coat more often...

we also lucked out (i think) that my breeder found a groomer locally that will handstrip a cairn (for $45!), she is now doing their dogs for show, they do look good. So i might take maggie there to get her done once very well then try to upkeep it ourselves and maybe bring her there periodically to get 'finished'...

a

[Catfish1]

A....I'm amazed there is that much hair after 6 or 7 weeks. I get quite a bit from my weekly brushes and by using the strippnig tool, but nowhere near that much. No wonder Fergus looks lke a furry barrel !!! The poor guy is going to feel naked after he's stripped properly.

By the way..$45 is what the groomer quoted us also.

Regards

Fergus & Alf

[Maggie15]

Hi Catfish... did you find a breeder locally for your Cairn? You're lucky to find one close by. I also heard that 'canadian cairns' are bit shorter haired in the CKC shows than the US cairns...

I agree its a big pile of hair, and thats not even really a full stripping, she still has alot of her longer coat in... she really did look like a different dog when we did her first ever stripping in July (at about 3.5 months old)... all that puppy fluff that was grey and black revealed a wheaton? coloured cairn... she'd be a bit cold that short right now! -she wont like ice fishing at lake of the prairies at xmas without a sweater!hahaha!

p.s. i think $45 is good deal for grooming a cairn!

a

[bradl]

A and J - that's a terrific illustration of removing "puppy fluff" - great pictures! Who knows what color outer coat will grow through that light undercoat. Well done.

I too would be lining up as a customer of the $45 stripper

[Maggie15]

hey brad, thats $45 canadian dollars, it would be worth the trip!!hahaha!

[kayharley]

OMG....is that the same dog? Unbelievable. Wonderful pictures...thanks

[Guest Guest]

Are you supposed to strip the cairns that have the thinner, silkier hair? Mine doesn't seem like she has enough to spare or a reason to pull any of it. Please help anyone.