Clipper question

[CraftySam]

Colin, how long is it since Jimmy was castrated? How long did it take after him being done before his coat started to become wooly? Just asking because Barney was done last month, and I have to say I'm kind of dreading his coat change. I was hoping to cope with it using the coat king and thinners, but you've shattered my illusions with that now! 

Sorry about that.  It does differ from dog to dog ( although sadly the golds seem to come off the worst ) so maybe Barney will be luckier than Jimmy. Jimmy was neutered at 2 1/2, he's now almost 5. I'd say it was around about a year after he was done that it got a lot woolier, for a while he actually looked better than he did before - the red had faded a bit but he'd grown body feathering which he'd never really had before. His coat was previously non-trim in that it didn't need handstripping on the back, front of legs or thighs - suddenly it exploded everywhere.  It was only really once I started to trim the new thick fur with the thinners that it deteriorated and started to grow back wooly and curl up at the ends - the coat king just stopped having any impact at all apart from on the very top of his back.

Well I'd like to say thanks for that....but    Right I'm clinging on to "it differs from dog to dog so maybe Barney will be luckier than Jimmy"   

Barney was a wooly monster as a young pup, and he's always needed a fair amount of trimming and has loads of thick feathering. Oh well, hey-ho I'll have to spend the next few months with my fingers tightly crossed! 

[Jane S]

Yes, I am in the US. Most of the people I know use a stripping knife on show coats, (except on reds and goldens, they are hand plucked) It's more a matter of technique, which I'm not good at explaining    Of course for a show dog you have to kind of alternate stripping knives and hand plucking. The knife does eventually give the roans a more coarse coat if overused.

Coat presentation in the US is very different to over here While the use of Coat Kings & stripping knifes is evident on some show dogs in the UK, the presentation is generally much more natural than it is in the US. We have friends who have just imported an ECS from the States but they won't be able to show him over here until his coat has grown out which could take a few months. Not a criticism of how you do things over there - just an observation that things are a lot different this side of the pond

[daunting]

the red had faded a bit but he'd grown body feathering which he'd never really had before. His coat was previously non-trim in that it didn't need handstripping on the back, front of legs or thighs - suddenly it exploded everywhere. 

that's exactly what happened with Saffi - i never needed to have her trimmed at all as there was barely any feathering anywhere - she was spayed a while ago and she now has loads - which i am reluctant to cut as its such a shock seeing it i want to keep it awhile longer 

[Gilly]

Jane - yep I'm probably expecting too much.  The bits I've mentioned have already faded from red to blonde anyway so clippers might not make the coat any worse in that sense.

Gilly - those clippers look really good but are really expensive. Not sure I can justify spending £115. Are there any cheaper alternatives you can recommend ?

I was really, really lucky and got mine for £50 off Ebay..brand new!!! had to buy the blades though 
Well in all honesty I still recommend my Moser Rex ones as very good intermediate clipper. Colin I have promised my pair to one of my puppy owners, otherwise you would have been welcome to them  The cheapest I have seen them for is on Ebay £39.99, they are normally around £50, they are even quieter than my Andis ones. I've used them on my friends Orange to good effect.

[Colin]

Thanks Gilly, those clippers sound more in my price range.  That's quite a bargain you got off ebay. 

I took some pics this morning to illustrate the scruffy bits. I was a bit taken aback how scruffy he looks in the first one, the problem areas look a lot worse than they actually are but will give an idea of what I'm talking about...



He looks a million times better standing up and after a brush. The sticky out bits are hard to see - but are still there when viewed in the flesh...



And here's an old pic of him pre-neutering. You wouldn't think it was the same dog  ...



As you can see, he only really had feathering on his forelegs ( not that I'd groomed them very well.  )

[*Jay*]

Vegas' coat looks just like the 1st pic - the coat king doesn't touch it anymore  Jimmy looks very smart in the middle picture - you have obviously done a great job with his coat 

[sportsmonki]

If the coat king isnt working, and stripping is no longer an option, I wonder whether one of those 'stones' would.  I'm not sure what they are called, but I know someone who uses one of her springer.  It gives a natural look, and their coats are nice.

They are almost like a pumice stone (the one she has is black).  

[Jane S]

They are almost like a pumice stone (the one she has is black).  

Sounds like a stripping stone - I have one and they're great for stripping out bits of light fluff but they don't have much effect on the thick hair of a neutered Cocker.

Colin, I can see what you mean and think you are doing a great job of keeping Jimmy tidy but if he was mine, I would probably be thinking about clipping him now to make life easier for him (and you )

[Colin]

Thanks Jane - looks like clippers are the way to go.

It's a shame a stripping stone wouldn't work - would one help me blend the shoulders into the tops of forelegs on Misty and Stevie, do you think ?

[Dunton4]

I think you are doing a great job with Jimmy, Colin.  He stills looks such a handsome lad  . 

I am having the same problem with Tilly since she was spayed.  I got a professional groomer in to help me with her two weeks ago, just using scissors,  and Tilly looked great.  But after only two weeks she is looking wild and woolly again  .  Tilly looks much scruffier than the clippered pet cockers we meet in the park now, so maybe clipping is the way to go for the Tillster too  .  Crikey - another new skill to master  and more grooming equipment to buy !

Sue and Tilly

[Gilly]

I think your doing a great job too  I would clipper everywhere you would normally hand strip except his head and tops of ears. I clip Buttons now and I don't think it's that obvious at all, well apart from her back maybe. I still think you can have a really smart looking clipped cocker 

[DennyK]

Blimey: don't want to start a ruck, but I think Jimmy looks cuter in the first picture (all cuddles and curls) than in the last one. 

heresy I know.......

Denise

[sportsmonki]

Posted by: Jane S 

Sounds like a stripping stone

Thank you Jane 

Colin, I'm not sure if it would help blending.  I have seen one being used on a springers head and body and it seemed to be getting quite a bit of fluff out.  (I tend to use thinning scissors on the area you describe, and that keeps everything tidy, but Storm isnt a show dog)

[dollop]

Just to say that I also have a neutered cocker (in fact she's been "done" twice- long story!) and my vet recommended Starflower or Evening Primrose oil capsules, one a day, to help her coat. Three months on and I have seen a definite improvement- she is nowhere near as woolly as she was; there seems to be more hair than wool now (where it used to be the other way round) and she's much, much easier to groom!

[scooby's mum]

Colin

I'm having the same struggle with Scooby - since his neutering his coat is an absolute nightmare 

I was keeping on top of it myself with thinners and the Coat King but was really struggling so I have given in and taken him to a professional groomers, although I'm not going to have him clipped she did a great job with thinning scissors, much better than I was doing.  I had him done last week and he looks so much better.

I treated myself to a pair of Moser Max clippers (around £100) to do the top of his head and his neck as I was doing them with thinning scissors and a week later it would be back to normal and seeing as I've now got 2 I thought it would be easier.

Misty is now 12 weeks old and she already has loads of coat, thick and quite wavy on her legs, so I think I'm going to have a nightmare with hers too.

I'm determined though I'm not going to give in to the clippers