I've just given Holly a bath and she looks so sweet now. She's really slender with a thick coat and she's got curls to die for.

Unfortunately her fur doesn't dry flat, more at right angles to the skin so she'll end up looking like a big fluffy bear :(

Does anyone have any suggestions how I can get her coat to dry flat and not fluffy?? I've tried a hairdryer but her coat still ends up fluffy and Chris won't let me wrap her in a pair of tights as someone has suggested. Mind you the fact that I was then going to make him take her for a walk probably had something to do with it :D :D :D

Thanks,

Fiona
x x x

Well Fiona had to laugh at this, Have you every seen dogs of flanders my dog's are supposed
to look like that the head a tight bubble of curls the times I tried to get Zac's head like that
each time he looks like Johnny rotton or Elvis That bloody dog of flanders must have had a perm
I swear it. Taken Zac a few times to be coffured now but no good and I HATE elvis's appearence & music
going to try rag rolling next time ha ha ha

Pat xx

Philistine! How can you not like the King??? I was fed his music with my bottles of Cow and Gate formula, and still remeber the shock when he died! :D :D

Brainless showing your age LOL I do not like cliff richard Iver haha and my dog really looks like elvis doh....

Patxx

Oh I loved summer holiday, good ol Cliff, lol

Don't think there's anything much you can do Fiona - puppy coats do tend to stick out at all angles. Our 5 mth Cocker pup looks like a hedghog most of the time & when she's had a bath, then it's definitely the fluffy teddy-bear look :-) You can get little towelling coats that you tie on whilst the coat is a bit damp & it helps straighten out any waves - can't remember who sells them though. It might by Country Mun or Overhills - perhaps someone else knows?

Jane

You need a toweling coat....very simple, they lay across the back & down the sides and they tie around the middle and around the neck. This will dry the coat flat (except the head :D)

Are you going to Windsor on Friday? Overhills sell them

Sarah

Do you have any contact details for Overhills?? I have tried doing a google search, but nothing relating to grooming products comes up??

Thanks

Natasha

Hi,

It's Overhill Shop .

HTH

Fiona
x x x

Thanks Fiona

N

Fiona

The hairdryer will make her more fluffy so don;t bother with it. You didn't need to at this time of year anyway. Get a towelling dog coat of somekind - I made mine with a towelling outer and a fine silk lining to prevent the hairs getting caught and drying bent and they work great. Buddy has a naturally flat coat - gorgeous but Jasper's can tend to stick out a bit but the coat on makes a huge difference and his coat always gets so many comments on how nice it is. Use a normal dog coat for a template, a hand towel and velcro to make the fastenings and get stitching:)

hth

Pam n the boys

who look awful as they've had nothing dome to them for five weeks because of our holiday!!! and I've done my back in so it'll be another couple of weeks before they get bathed and trimmed:()

I didn't think of making my own :) I made some nappies last week and I've got some lovely purple fleece with paw prints on and some lime towelling I could use.

I know what I'll be doing this evening :D :D :D :D

Fiona
x x x

Hi, try not to bath her too often, only once every couple of months unless she rolls in something awful, should be the absolute maximum or you may start of seperate skin problems. She is going so fluffy and curly because there is not enough oil in her coat plus it is probably quite long by now. She also gets a lot of undercoat along her back which is making it stand up. have you got a really close togther toothed comb- like a cat comb? Comb her thoroughly with an ordinary comb and then with the cat type comb. Make sure you get right down to the skin and you can drag a lot of the undercoat out. Dont worry she will enjoy it on her back!! I would continue to use a hair dryer, her coat is so thick she does need it -or will stay damp all day and if she is lying around or out in thew garden damp she will soak up more grub - but comb the hair in the direction of the hair not against it and lift the hair with the comb "up and over" like you are trying to get an inward curl. Dont EVER use a brush, always a comb, by the way :-) You can get spray on conditioner to help lay the coat - but I think you are going to have to bite the bullet and either get her stripped or clipped!! You can always bring her down to me and I'll give her an afternoons going over!! Get down the chemist ,get some chalk and have a go at stripping her, at least over her back - I double dare you!!! :-)

Fiona,

What type of dog is Holly?

I am having visions but not sure exactly what..

Pam

She's a 6mth old black cocker spaniel.

Fiona
x x x

ooops, I'm getting mixed up - sorry all - me brain has gone. I have a Holly (Westie) re-homed to a Fiona - how could I be so daft to not recognise your different "handle " sorry. !!

I was getting worried there Westie Lover, thinking what's she on about saying you shouldn't bath a Cocker more than every 2 months :D It all makes sense now I know you were talking about a Westie :-)

Jane

Jane, how often should I be bathing Holly? She really enjoys it and doesn't scream anymore so I'm fairly keen to bather her regularly enough that she doesn't forget she likes it!!

Should I be using shampoo all the time? At the moment I'm alternating between shampoo for black dogs (that I bought at WELKS) and Avons raspberry scented kids 2 in 1 shampoo for thick wavy hair!! She had the Avon shampoo yesterday and she smells lovely now. Whenever she runs past you get a waft of raspberry :)

She's not suufered any itching from the Avon shampoo so am I ok in contuing to use it, it's a really gentle shampoo as it's a childrens one.

Thanks,

fiona
x x x

Just a thought Fiona .....but if you have just used shampoo for thick and wavy hair could that be why she now has a thick wavy finish to her coat?

Not having had much to do with Cockers its just a guess?

:)

Melody

Fiona, I was told that human shampoo, however mild and gentle was the wrong Ph for dogs, but I don't know for certain.

I've uesed human shampoos on the dogs and dog shampoos on myself and have never had a problem!

You may be right about the human/dog shampoo thing, I am really not sure but you have got me wondering now why there is such a thing as a dog shampoo.

Probably for the same reason there's baby shampoo, shampoo for children, shampoo for greasy hair, dry hair, coloured hair etc.

The almighty £££££.

Not that I'm cynical you understand :D :D :D :D :D

Fiona
x x x

One of the best shampoos I have ever used is a lavender one by Abbotsbury (they are a St Bernard Kennel I believe) and it was lovely to use smelt beautiful and never irritated either me nor the dogs!

What would be the reaction of a judge if Holly walked into the ring smelling of lavender or as is the case at the moment, raspberry?

Does that count as altering the nature of the coat??

Fiona
x x x

I was recommended by the breeder to use human 2in1 shampoo as it makes the black coats really glossy. She doesn't use it on her goldens just her blacks.

I'm now really confused so I'll put it to the vote on the Cocker site - after all we live in a democracy :)

Fiona
x x x

Hi Fiona

Out of interest what is the cocker site? I have a six month old black cocker spaniel like you and am always looking for tips.

Also my breeders told me to use Johnsons baby shampoo and it seems to be fine

Fiona

Hi Fiona,

Can you email me and I'll send you the details.

Thanks,

Fiona (my email is in my profile.)

Hi Fiona,

Can you email me on buggleywoo@hotmail.com and I'll give you the details of the Cocker website. My other address is 'down' at the moment.

Thanks,

Fiona
x x x

Hi Fiona

I don't think there's any hard & fast rule as to how often you should bath Holly - as often as you think she needs to be bathed I guess :-) I bath our show Cockers usually on a weekly basis (unless we have a dry spell when I can let them go a bit longer) & our older, retired Cockers probably every 6 weeks or so (depending on the weather or what they have rolled in recently :-) ) You'll find that every breeder will have their own preferred shampoo - some will swear by X brand & some will swear by Y brand. I generally use dog shampoo (I like the Groomers range) but will sometimes use a mild human shampoo if I run out & sometimes I use tea tree oil shampoo (from the health food shop) for any itchiness/scurfiness. I wouldn't think there will be any problems with the Avon shampoo as it's formulated to be mild & if it suits Holly, then carry on using it :-)

Jane

I just bathed Ruby in Loreal Kids *so strawberry* 2 in 1
shampoo this morning. She smells divine and her coat is soft and shiny!
The first time she had a bath i used a proper dog shampoo and her coat went all wiry with no shine. :(
Ali

Well I would really like to know for sure now and maybe stop wasting money on dog shampoo and maybe even get them smelling to match them mum :D
What we need is a small investigative team - 1 gardener with a PH kit to establish if there is any difference in the Ph - 1 hairdresser (who understands their chemicals) who can tell us if correct Ph does have any effect on the hair or skin, any takers? :)