Hot Dogs In Southend

As soon as the sun comes out the dogs start panting and the groomers' phones start ringing off the hook. That lovely furry coat suddenly seems such a burden when the weather gets hot!! It's understandable that the automatic response is to get rid of it all but, depending on the breed and their coat type, this may not be the best solution for your dog.

Double Coated Breeds are not suitable for clipping and a good groomer will almost certainly question the wisdom of doing this.

Collies Are Double Coated Dogs

Double Coated breeds include Collies, Huskies, Pomeranians, Akitas & German Shepherds among others. The coat has a distinctive shiny layer known as the guard coat with a thick downy under layer known as the undercoat. The job of the guard coat is to protect the dog's skin whilst the fluffy undercoat traps air and helps to keep the dog warm. In hot weather the dog will naturally shed its undercoat and if the dog is brushed out properly and regularly air will be able to circulate easily, helping to regulate the animal's temperature. However if the dog is not brushed the old hair gets caught up and tangled with the new (or impacted ) so that the coat is unable to breath well. Consequently the dog will suffer much more in hot weather.





Clipping a double coat repeatedly will result in damage to the fur which in some cases may never recover.

The Pomeranian in this picture has recently been rehomed. The previous owner had the dog clipped repeatedly and as you can see, it has completely changed the texture and colour of the coat. This dog  should be a beautiful fox red all over. The new owner has asked me to help recover the coat. All we can do is make sure the fur is kept in good condition while we wait and see if the fur will eventually grow back its original colour without being weakened by clipping. The white fur you can see is basically all undercoat and at the moment there is only a very slight vestigial guard coat still there but there are hopeful signs it will come back if we are patient.

The correct way to groom a double coated dog is to thoroughly remove the dead undercoat at intervals with an undercoat rake. Excessive hair can be thinned and shaped (typical areas would be the ruff and the 'trousers'  and under the tail) with scissoring. It should then be relatively easy to maintain with regular brushing and combing. A healthy coat maintained this way will help to regulate the dog's temperature.

Although many breeds and coat types have this double layer to their coat, not all of them are classified as double coats and happily other breeds are able to withstand clipping with little or no damage as a consequence.

Spaniels are a typically heavy coated breed which are commonly clipped. The traditional grooming method is to handstrip but unfortunately coat changes as a result of neutering can render this method unsuitable. If clipping the dog down entirely feels too extreme then a good groomer will style the coat for you, or you can keep the spaniel look just by keeping ears & tail in character.


With so many breeds and coat types to choose from it is important to consider these factors to keep your pet looking and feeling good. If you are not sure ask a groomer!
Call Scalliwags on 07555207128 and ask about the best way to groom your pet.