TIPS FOR GROOMING THE BEARDED COLLIE

I have been grooming, "Redford", the Bearded Collie for about 12 years on a very regular schedule. There have been times when there was severe matting, and times when the feet were so dirty I could not totally remove the staining. This was while maintaining an every two week schedule. Here are some of the things I have learned while on this journey with my buddy, Redford.



A regular grooming schedule is essential. For the first four years, we maintained Redford in full coat to keep open the possibility of a show presentation. I would not have been successful if Redford's owner had not kept to a biweekly grooming schedule. I view our 12 years of success with this beautiful coat as a team effort. Not all beardies require professional grooming every two weeks. This was a decision based on this coat, with an active life, and a very busy owner. They all require a regular schedule, however, and failure to make a commitment to thorough grooming can lead to unmanageable matting and the slippery slop to total clip down.

Use tools to minimize coat damage. Pictured on the table with Redford are two of my favorite tools for grooming this type of coat: the Chris Christensen 16 mm "T" Brush and a wooden handled Poodle comb with long and widely spaced teeth. I rarely use a slicker, except to remove stickers or burrs from a specific place. There have been several times over the years when we've had a coat crisis, with a lot of matting. The last time it was really clear that this was related to tool choice, especially use of slicker brushes.

Line brushing. Brushing and combing the coat from the bottom up in layers is essential to a thorough job. Failure to do this can leave places that are not combed and possible matting for next time.

Keep a record of products used. I wish I had done this. I've used a lot of different products on Redford with few problems. Highly fragrant shampoo proved to be a mistake, and heavy conditioner extended drying time without much value to the coat. Most recently I have been alternating shampoos between Show Season "Bright" and Espree "Doggone Clean".

Conditioner is critical. Some form of conditioner is vital for the management of matting. I have never combed this coat out prior to bathing, but have always cleaned and conditioned the coat first, and brushed/combed after the coat was dry. Assaulting the hair without protecting it is going to contribute to a lot of coat damage. I prefer to use light conditioner with some silicone ingredients. The Best Shot system of products worked well on this coat. For the grooming pictured above, I used a leave in conditioner product from Sally's Beauty Supply that is a knock off of Infusium 23 treatment. I was extremely impressed with the result. The coat was very combable, dried quickly, had texture and body, and felt terrific. I used one ounce through the Bathing Beauty system, but you could spray it on the coat and rinse it through.

Sidebar: I am getting so fed up with the lack of information about ingredients in pet grooming products that I am revisiting some of the human products I've used in the past. Infusium 23 Leave-In Conditioning Treatment seems to have an affinity for dog hair. Simply put, it works well as either a detangler for grooming between baths or as a conditioner after the bath. The Sally's product is very similar at a much better price.

The Bathing Beauty recirculating bathing system. A huge part of my success in maintaining full coats, and my grooming in general is the Bathing Beauty pet washing system. It is a recirculating pump system that dilutes the products in the tub and rinses the solution through the coat for the most thorough application possible of shampoo or conditioner. The Bathing Beauty is thorough, kind to the hair, and allows me to bathe this beardie in about 15 minutes.

Passive drying with ambient air. I dry Redford 3/4 of the way with fans and the Sahara Dryer ducts around an exercise pen. The beardie hair is particularly well-suited for this method of drying, as the coat is light and moves with the gentle air. Passive drying not only cuts down on the table time, it is also more gentle on the hair. I finish drying with a k9II without the nozzle, so the forced air does not whip knots into the long coat.

Trimming with chunking shears allows me to shorten the hair over the eyes and trim the feet leaving a natural "ungroomed" look. Perfectly scissored bangs are a little out of place on this shaggy breed, but the owner likes to see Redford's eyes.




SALES PITCH: The Chris Christensen T Brush, Wooden Handled Poodle Comb, Bathing Beauty Hydro Pet Washing System and the Proline Chunkers can be purchased through my shopping cart. Click HERE to go there. Shop with a groomer, it's good karma. And it your purchases help to support the GroomBlog. Thanks!