[Skylar]

Puppy Theo is now 6 months old. He has the most ridiculous long puppy coat that I adore. I’m loathe to cut. Every one knows him, you don’t see too many puppies that look like a miniature apricot polar bear. Haha.

I know coat change is in our future. Where do the mats start?

What kind of clip did you put your puppy in?

I’m trying to get mentally prepared for when I will have to shave my polar bear down into a minipoo.

 

[Rose n Poos]

puppy fluff about 9w

to change in progress by 5m. The formerly straightish hair changes to curly on the same strand, from the skin outward. At this stage, if you keep the hair this long, it will tangle on itself as soon as you finish drawing the comb thru. This is when many stop fighting the discomfort for the pup, trying to keep them tangle or mat-free, and just trim them quite short, body and legs. TK, ears, and tail fluff is usually ok to leave longer but still require frequent combing out.

to mostly adult coat about 8m His coat is not an example of a good quality coat but his light color is easier to see. His curls are fairly loose.

 

[PeggyTheParti]

For Peggy the mats started on the edges of her ears. I didn’t even know they were there, was just brushing right over them. That was around 8 months. But before that we got to enjoy some cut puppy chops that preserved the fluff.

5 months:

7 months:

 

[Phaz23]

Tekno is 10 months now and he get little mats that seemingly develop out of thin air mostly on his pom poms and behind his ears but for the most part Ive been waiting for it to get really bad and it hasn’t. His coat does look a little rattier than usual due to the multiple textures but eh, he doesn’t seem to mind. I think having the CC coral brush and lots of detangling spray handy has saved us a lot of trouble and having him in a Continental means less brushing of legs which is really nice— but yeah, so far so good

 

[curlflooffan]

@Phaz23 are you showing Tekno? I might be showing my little black girl (FCI shows) and I have some questions about maintaining a show coat.

 

[cowpony]

The bad matting stage of Galen's coat change started rather late; he was around a year. I remember trying to line brush him. I went down a line, got it all tidy with slicker & conb, and did the same to a second line. Then I went back to the first line and couldn't get a comb through it. It had already corkscrews around itself and knotted up. I thought I was just brushing wrong until I took him into the groomer. My husband overheard one of them commenting to the other, "I've never seen anything like this. It's like a doodle!"

 

[Dianaleez]

I was really dreading coat change, but because Normie's coat is always short, his fluff just turned into curls without problems. I've let his ears grow out longer, so I comb his ears more often, but usually just brush his body and check for mats where needed.

 

[94Magna_Tom]

Elroy is only 4½ months old. After his first grooming (½" all over, except TK & tail), his hair is now pretty curly. Is this part of a coat change, or does the hair curl on a puppy coat if wetted and let air dry? I say that because he gets wet playing with me using the hose (mist setting) frequently. Looks pretty curly to me!

 

[Dianaleez]

Elroy is only 4½ months old. After his first grooming (½" all over, except TK & tail), his hair is now pretty curly. Is this part of a coat change, or does the hair curl on a puppy coat if wetted and let air dry? I say that because he gets wet playing with me using the hose (mist setting) frequently. Looks pretty curly to me!

Is it soft and fluffy or wirey and springy?

 

[Skylar]

I can still easily get a comb through Theo's coat - and the hair is soft.

I'm hoping he will be like Cowpony's Galen and have his coat change closer to a year rather than sooner.

Theo just came in from potty - it's spitting rain and he laid down for a puppy snooze. You can see the waves and some curls, but when I brush him out they are fairly straight. Being apricot I know his coat, even as an adult will be softer.



I love the idea that Phaz23 did with Tekno - Continental. If I can, maybe I'll try a continental with a short top knot? I groomed Babykins in a continental several times so I know the lines - but not sure if a silly puppy will be patient enough for me to execute.

Tom, it looks like Elroy may go through coat change sooner - his hair looks more like an adult poodle.

Thanks everyone.

 

[Johanna]

@Phaz23 are you showing Tekno? I might be showing my little black girl (FCI shows) and I have some questions about maintaining a show coat.

I found a wonderful article "Growing Show Coat on the Working Poodle" on the Versatility in Poodles web site. I am attaching it.

 

[cowpony]

I found a wonderful article "Growing Show Coat on the Working Poodle" on the Versatility in Poodles web site. I am attaching it.

That's a very helpful article on coat maintenance.

I do find it ironic that the original lion clip, implemented to help a water dog swim while preserving enough coat to keep the dog warm, has morphed into a show clip so extreme that people avoid participating in the very activities for which the poodle breed was developed.

 

[94Magna_Tom]

Is it soft and fluffy or wirey and springy?

It's soft and fluffy mostly. A little bit springy. Definitely not wirey.

 

[Dianaleez]

It's soft and fluffy mostly. A little bit springy. Definitely not wirey.

Sounds like puppy coat to me (I am not an expert on this). Normie's a light red and his coat remained soft but not as fluffy. But we never had matting issues - possibly because of the cut.

 

[PeggyTheParti]

@94Magna_Tom Peggy’s puppy hair would curl when wet and air dried, especially at the roots. It was less noticeable because she had a much longer coat than Elroy does.

 

[Johanna]

That's a very helpful article on coat maintenance.

I do find it ironic that the original lion clip, implemented to help a water dog swim while preserving enough coat to keep the dog warm, has morphed into a show clip so extreme that people avoid participating in the very activities for which the poodle breed was developed.

I have seen poodles in well-maintained show coats retrieving ducks, participating in agility, and doing all sorts of other activities. At this point in history the show coat is not nearly as extreme as it was in past years.

 

[PeggyTheParti]

I have seen poodles in well-maintained show coats retrieving ducks, participating in agility, and doing all sorts of other activities. At this point in history the show coat is not nearly as extreme as it was in past years.

But from the article you shared:

“It would be very difficult if not impossible to hunt with a dog in a show clip without some type of very innovative protective device.”

 

[Phaz23]

@Phaz23 are you showing Tekno? I might be showing my little black girl (FCI shows) and I have some questions about maintaining a show coat.

Yesss, I am but not AKC this year so I'm being pretty lax with coat upkeep. Our routine is pretty simple, thorough bath every weekend I use CC Spectrum 1 shampoo followed by Day to Day conditioner. The Spectrum 1 is great for body but it does no favors when it comes to brushing so I actually keep his coat pretty soft and pliable for the most part. At an actual show day I probably would not use any softeners like Day to Day is. About every other week I also do a protein treatment with Artero Protein Vital. After the bath, he gets his blow out and brush, and I band or wrap his hair from top knot to bottom of neck. His worse areas of breakage are right over his eye and his pom poms take a beating but like I said we're just showing for fun so I'm not going to limit his activity or put him through too much boring grooming to grow more coat 😅

 

[Piper 2020]

Bode's hair is still straight and silky but I would love to clip him because it's so hot. Asked the groomer to clip him if she could but he was too antsy. It's going to take a few grooming visits to get him fully clipped. On the plus side, he doesn't care if I pull hair from the inside of his ears and he's ok with me giving him a bath a blow dry.

 

[Basil_the_Spoo]

It happens when you get tired of brushing long hair so you shave them down. They break you down before they build you up.