Hi all,
My Chisum is a working Cocker with a working Cocker type coat. He's the first Cocker that I've had, though my mom had one and my Aunt used to breed them (American Cockers). Grooms for them always seemed to be the same basic 'style' - shaved back with the skirt.
I took my boy in yesterday and said I wanted a longer tail, longer ears, and a short cut/shave all over - no skirt. His leg hair and chest hair just gets really tangly really easily even when I keep him combed and after looking at pictures online that was kind of the style I preferred.
Anyway, I was really proud of him for surviving his first groom and I posted pictures on Reddit, just to get bombarded with people who were upset that I shaved him. I know that shaving is a no-no for double coated breeds (like Aussies, which my parents currently have) but it was my understanding that it was pretty typical for Cockers? I also know that working Cockers are handstripped sometimes, but my boy is anxious anyway and it seemed like too long of a process to put him through for his first time.
I've tried reading up online but of course answers are all over the place - some say Cockers are single coated, others say double. Some say shave, others say absolutely not. I will say that compared to the double coated breeds I've had in the past (Aussies, Shelties, Collies) Chisum's hair doesn't really act like that - there's no descernable undercoat that comes up and sheds out.
So in short - help! Did I do the wrong thing? Should I do something differently next time? I have a link below to his before vs. after pic.
https://imgur.com/a/X8tNqOs