Hi all,  what shampoos etc do you all use on long coated dogs - and how do you get long coats sprussed up for a show ?  Especially nutters who like to shoulder dive the bed, floor, garden etc etc after they have been cleaned making their feathers get all, well, un feathered like
Thanks, Tara

I have bearded Collies and use plush puppy wheatgerm shampoo and plush puppy reviva coat which is a type of leave in conditioner which is good for harsh coated dogs and doesnt make it go soft and fluffy but helps get any tangles out.
I havent done many shows yet but only fully bathed for  Ch shows and a top tail and feet for  open
I was advised on here by experienced dog show exhibitors to prepare the dog the day before the show.
I suppose it all depends on your breed.

They get the full works he night before the show with Doreen Paige products. LOL they keep clean for just long enough to get in the ring & then back to being gardeners/tunnellers when they get home complete with twigs & soil everywhere ;)

I bath/dry them then put them to bed they don't get a chance to get grubby, but they get so excited when I start bathing the first one that they go to bed happily knowing they are going to a show the next day !

Thanks starryeyes and moonmaiden :)  Didn't think about bathing him just before bed (doh !) normally wash him and then spend a few hours running a round trying to stop him from digging holes, wrestling with the pup, playing rough and tumble with my little boy and generally getting muckier than he was to start off with :D 
The plush puppy products sound good, not heard of the Doreen Paige products so it's off shopping to check things out, need some retail therapy anyway :)

Thanks again for your advice, much appreciated, Tara

LOL it was MM who gave me the advice to !!

I also use Doreen Paige I love the Mink Oil smell lovely on the coats.

oops forgot to add I put the boys in dry coats over night otherwise they look like hedgehogs in the morning ;)

LOL! Wonderful image! :D :D

I wash my boy just before bed too. When he was a puppy I did him on the day of the show, then he could wee before being washed. But now he has far too much coat to wash and dry him and then expect him to show properly all on the same day! Once he has been washed I let him lounge around for 30 minutes while I follow him wherever he flops down to make sure his coat is lying flat underneath him, otherwise it sticks up over his bum! I tried a drying coat but couldn't get on with it.

I was always told to wash them a week before as the coat is stripped of its natural oils so is less glossy?

The oils only come from the skin, by washing the hair and not rubbing it into the skin you do not take out all the natural oils.  use a sponge to rab in the shampoo rather then hands....or so I have read from what an experianced groomer/exhibitor wrote.

My dogs never seem to lose the shine or condition of their coats I use only natural shampoos & avoid non natural human shampoos like the plague(for myself as well)

I shampoo my dogs normally but I do not use a hairdryer i use a blaster that uses the speed to blaster the water from the coat rather than the heat drying the coat

To be honest Moon maiden mine never loose the shine either.  The one who has pantene have a lovely shine after a bath!  So I really don't know what to believe!!!

But then the shampoo's bad for her and her foods bad for her (according to what I read in some places!!! :D )

I can understand how natural shompoos are better though :)

Pantene coats the hair/coat with something(having a bad name day today) & whatever it is can build up on the outside of the hair shafts & of course it is made by Proctor & Gamble who still carry out animal testing

Silo something ;)  Thats why it makes it shiny and looking fuller...the whole reason we brought it for her.

She is also fed on eukanuba and dog bedding washed in fairy...all P&G...To be honest I have gone past the caring of most things since I sat looking at a resturant menu and went though why I couldn't eat any meal on there because of new found facts.  if it works it's fine.  If she had a reaction to anything she would have come off it straight away! :)

ah yes, good point - I can just imagine what wet feathers and long ears look like once slept on over night, a bit like I look like first thing in the morning - good job hubby needs contact lenses and can't actually see much without them that's all I can say :D

LOLOL the secret is putting back the oils by using(in my case anyway)a natural conditioner containing organic lanolin(from a friend who makes natural shampoos etc & has an organc farm) & not bathing too often & the oils etc come from within from the food they eat as well

My boys might look plonkers in their coats but they work for them

The substance in Pantene and similar is SILICONE, an oily type of substance which stays on the outside of the hairs and can clog up the skin.  I found that using products with silicone in actually made my hair very dry and unmanageable, despite the scalp being greasy :(     I haven't used anything with silicone in for 6 months and my hair is improving so much :)  I now stick to natural oils in the shampoos, they seem to have more effect.  I also only use natural shampoos on the dogs too.

Thanx Dill I knew it was something that builds up on the hair shafts it works for a while I think

Plush Puppy day before show.  Thorough dry with hair drier Brushing downward always with long strokes.  My boy then wears his Beardie Boots in the morning to keep his white feet clean.  He will inevetably wee on his frilly knickers at sometime before the judging so we wipe him off in that area with baby wipes before going into the ring.