How to Shave Your Golden Retriever
You probably love your Golden Retriever as much as I love mine. Like many goldens, he is mild mannered and handsome. I recently found myself wishing I could spend more time with him, but unfortunately I was spending most of our time together sweeping his hair off my wood floors and following him around the carpet with my vacuum. That’s when I came to the decision to shave him. Some will criticize you for shaving your dog, but our retriever seems to love the fact that it no longer takes him 3 days to dry off after a day at the lake.
Step 1: Give those long locks one last good bathing. Brush out his coat and untangle his knots. Cut them with scissors if you have to (it’s all coming off anyway!)
Step 2: Determine the length that you want his coat to ultimately be. Keep in mind that a retriever’s undercoat protects him from the heat and sun so you don’t want to take off too much. Choose a clipper that has comb attachments and make note of the clipper number you use for future reference.
Step 3: Choose a spot outdoors or in the garage for your pup’s first haircut. It will be messy! It’s best to secure him to a table with his leash so that you don’t break your back in the process.
Step 4: Begin clipping at his back and sides, going in the same direction as the growth of the hair. You should overlap your clipper strokes so he doesn’t look like a freshly mowed lawn.
Step 5: Move to the neck and head area. Take special precautions around his ears as he might twitch and move around due to feeling tickled. This might be a good time to enlist the help of a spouse to talk softly and keep your retriever calm.
Step 6: Next up: arms, legs and feet. Use scissors to trim excess hair, especially in that underarm area. Once the areas are cleaned up, clip away, one limb at a time.
Step 7: You’re ready to move to the business end now. With scissors, trim the tail to the desired length and style. Then lift his tail and use the clippers to trim the hair around his anus, moving from the anus outward.
That should do it! Your retriever will be the talk of the town with his summer cut. There’s good news for both of you: With the broom put away in the closet for a few months, you now have time to head to the lake!
This article was written by Jessica Taylor and provided by Pet Super Store an online pet site featuring dog carriers, electronic dog doors and dog crates.