Tuesday’s lineup was two brothers who are both doodles, plus one schnauzer who knows exactly what he wants. Three dogs, one very sneaky name, and an enormous amount of conditioner. Here is how the day went.
Here is today’s pack:
Rip
Rip was first up, and yes — his name really is Rip. I spelled it out loud for chat today, because it is one of those names that makes you do a double take. He is very much alive and very much a good boy. He is a black and white doodle, and he walks in here like a noodle.
Rip came in with burrs in his coat, which is the classic autumn problem. Burrs grab and tangle whatever they touch, so they come out before anything else happens. Leave them in and the clipper drags them through the rest of the coat and makes a mess of everything. Autumn walks are wonderful. Autumn burrs are not.
His haircut was a 5/8 comb over the body, 3/8 on the head and the top of his ears, everything else left natural, a lot of scissor work on that face, and a 7 on the sanitary area. That is a lot of detail for one doodle, and it took a serious amount of conditioner to get him into that shape.
Cooper
Cooper is Rip’s brother, and he is the one who taught me something today.
Cooper did not get a pre-brush before his bath. Not a single pass. And he still came out beautifully, because I changed up the products on him. A 2-in-1 shampoo and conditioner to start, then a leave-in hydrating butter that I rinsed back out because it would have been too much on his coat, and then a 10-in-1 spray to finish.
Here is the part I actually want you to take away, because it is the question every doodle owner eventually asks me: why does my doodle cost so much to groom? It is not arbitrary. Doodle coats drink product, they take far more drying and brushing time than a short coat, and they mat if they are not maintained. That is the honest answer, product and labor and time.
Which means if you have a doodle and you cannot realistically brush every single day, the right shampoo and conditioner combination is not a luxury. It is the difference between a coat that stays healthy and a coat that mats into felt. Cooper is the proof. No pre-brush, and he still came out perfect.
Cooper also firmly believes that everything is nap time. He is not wrong about much.
Cole
Cole is the schnauzer of the group, and he is a character. Wiry coat, proper beard, eyebrows doing their thing.
Schnauzer coats work completely differently from doodle coats. That coat is wiry and it does not shed the way a doodle does, so it needs to be clipped or stripped on a schedule instead of brushed out. Different coat, different rules.
Cole also has that thing where oils build up around the hair follicles, and he gets little blackhead-type bumps along his back. A good exfoliating scrub during the bath helps a great deal with that, and you can absolutely tell when you hit the spot that needed it. If your dog has a coat like this and you have noticed similar bumps, mention it at your appointment. It is a normal coat-management issue, not a mystery. Be sure to follow up with your vet!
Cole would also like it on the record that he deserves ALL of the snackies. Not some of them. All of them. He made that extremely clear, and then rubbed his entire face on me, which I chose to interpret as a successful negotiation.
Until next time, my furry friends! Thank you to all the wonderful pet parents who trust me with their best friends. I can’t wait to see who hops onto the grooming table next!
Catch the Action Live! Want to see these grooming transformations happen in real-time? Tune into the solo live stream over on Twitch at DogGroomerNicole. Whether we are tackling tricky coat conditions, working with different breeds and weight classes, or just enjoying some puppy cuddles, you can watch it all unfold straight from the van.
While you are watching from your laptop or desktop, please take a moment to click the link below the stream to learn more about Folds of Honor, a phenomenal charity we are incredibly proud to support.
See you all on the road!
About the Author
Nicole is the owner and certified groomer behind Vroom Grooms LLC, a mobile dog grooming service serving Northwest Ohio. She has been certified since 2020 after completing 640 hours of hands-on training.
This post was drafted with help from Nagini 🐍, her digital assistant, who keeps the blog running, handles the tech side of the website, and makes sure Nicole spends more time with dogs and less time wrestling with WordPress.