Would it be a crime to.....

[MollieMoo]

....clip off Daisy's feathering?

Daisy has been spayed, and ever since her coat has been really THICK  , I do clip her body with a 7F blade and keep her feathering to approx 1 to 1.5 inches.  She normally wears a Sporn harness, so the feathering at the front of her chest just gets matted so quickly and I clipped it all off with a no 5 blade and left the rest of her feathering on the under carriage.  Also I had to clip off a few areas on her inside back legs as she had some large matts there too and at the top of her front legs, the hair is so thick (I do try to thin it with scissors), it seems so unmanagable.

When she was a puppy I started grooming her daily-ish to get her used to it, but she really hates the sight of the brush, so it is not easy for me to groom her frequently.

So would it be a crime to clip off her feathering to make life easier for her so she doesn't keep getting matts?  as I have noticed some photos of cockers on here with an all over clipped look.  Or would it spoil her 'look'?  or should I try it and then let it grow back if I hate it? 

Here is a photo of her in September to show what her coat looks like

[cdpops]

Hi
I think you should do what is comfiest for Daisy and easier for you. If you are not sure why don't you just leave a very small amount of feathering gradually going shorter?
I like the clipped look, but I know most people on here prefer feathers attached 

[Beth]

Clipping Jarvis was the best decision i ever made He can now wallow to his hearts content, and i can get away with brushing him maybe once a week and he never gets matted go for it, if you don't like it it'll grow back  quickly anyway

[LucyJ]

I clipped all of Cooper's coat off earlier this year as he was having trouble with wasps burrowing into it, and it's made life so much easier that I think I'll keep him that way. 

He had a thick coat which knotted really quickly and picked up loads of mud and sticks on walks.  He didn't really like being brushed, so its made my life easier and his happier.

I thought I would hate the way he looked, but I actually love seeing his chunky little body  .

If you do hate it, you can always grow the feathers back anyway.

[waggytails]

As Millie got older I started to clip everything off as she is less patient and to save having to comb the Matt's out where her harness rubs.

[MollieMoo]

Ok that's it, all the encouragement I needed, the job has been done  

I have a few bits to finish off around the feet, but Daisy isn't very tolerant of me on her legs, so I have left it for today and will finish her off tomorrow   I was rather surprised at the matting on the lower part of her front legs, I didn't even realise she had any there as they were close to the skin 

Thanks for the replies folks

[Clover]

I think if it makes it easier for you and comfier for the dog, then why not. They are still the same underneath all that hair.

I've had many a day when I've thought, why not, but my groomer talks me out of it. I don't know how long I can hold off though. My last show cocker, was lightish coated, and spayed, but we always managed to keep on top of it. Willow is much much heavier coated.

[Cob-Web]

Poor Bonnee gets clipped closer and closer on each clip 

Since she was spayed her coat has gone woolly - so her tummy feathering came off some time ago, and it won't be long before all the leg feathering is ancient history, too 

[MollieMoo]

I suppose I am just dissapointed as I had plans to never touch her coat with a pair of clippers and I was going to handstrip her with the coatking...........her lovely long wispy coat but that all dissapeared once I had her spayed.  Oh well, maybe she will have lost a few kilos now all that fur has gone