Haircuts

What type of haircut is recommended for my dog?

We can essentially perform any haircut to a customer’s specifications. Please bear in mind the following points when deciding whether to give your dog a short haircut or keep its hair long:

Long Hair & Full Coats

Owners wishing to keep their dog’s coat long should consider the following:

  • Dogs left with longer haircuts allow the breed to maintain a look that sticks more closely with its natural appearance but with greater refinement and neatening of the coat. Most would consider a dog’s natural coat length as its most beautiful look and longer haircut types focus most on that visually pleasing perspective.
  • The longer haircut options we offer include: specific breed cuts that are a “by-the-book” haircut that varies by breed type; total body scissor cuts leaving the dog’s coat an inch or longer (puppy cut); or feather trims (where long hair is sculpted on the legs, underside, chest, rear and tail).
  • Longer-type haircuts usually come at a higher grooming cost. Longer hair can mat and tangle more easily and make the groom more time consuming. The grooming cost can also be higher because of the added complexity that longer haircuts create because of more hand-scissoring and knowledge required to do specific breed haircuts.
  • Every 6 to 8 weeks is the general guideline for maintaining your dog’s haircut. With longer hair, you can expect more maintenance between haircuts which the pet owner can do personally with periodic brushing; or you can bring your dog in to us for a bath/brush-out between haircuts. This will help keep matting and tangling under control so that the dog’s coat can be kept at the longer length without the need to shave out impending matted hair.

Short Body Cuts

Owners wishing to keep their dog’s coat short should consider the following:

  • Our short haircuts are performed with clippers and range in length from 1/8 inch to ½ inch. They can change the natural appearance of your dog because the emphasis on this haircut type is not based primarily on the dog’s look, but rather easier maintenance of the dog’s coat. However, we have mastered cute and sporty short clips that are certainly attractive as well.
  • These haircuts can ultimately be maintenance-free if done every 6 to 8 weeks. With shorter hair, mats and tangles build up less often (which can affect the grooming cost).
  • Shorter clipper cuts can be maintained year-round providing your dog isn’t primarily an outside dog during our coldest winter months. Some dogs’ coats were meant to handle colder climates and removal of the coat with a short clipper-cut can provide tremendous relief during our hot and humid summers here.
  • Shorter cuts help out during inclement weather like rain or snow where a shorter coat is less likely to retain moisture or bring the elements inside the house.
  • Dogs with naturally short coats like hounds and labs can have short clipper-cuts to help combat excessive shedding hair that makes our carpets and furniture a hairy mess.