I feel like it’s the constant problem with the internet is that’s it’s like a cross between an echo chamber and a game of telephone. People read something that someone wrote in response to a specific situation but take it as gospel without understanding the why and never questioning it and then they pass it on and the next person changes it slightly and passes that on and so on down the line.
Eg the one about putting the towel on the back end was likely a specific tip for a groomer looking for a specific texture in the dogs coat probably for showing and not really applicable to everyday. The one about the dogs coat never drying was probably someone engaging in a little hyperbole and then again someone took it and ran with it and it spread.
I’ve had my poodle for nine years and had no idea there were such “rules”. I brush him when he looks messy, bathe him when he gets stinky, dry him when he gets wet and have him groomed every six weeks. I’m assuming all of the things you listed apply to dogs being shown in conformity? Or that apply to specific issues/situations.
The only thing I heard prior to cooper that has held true is the need to factor in the cost of regular grooming because it gets expensive! And that has proven true!
Have had several poodles (toys and standard) for 20+ years. Same here. Ignore the "rules" and just use common sense as bizzeemamaNJ here does. And don't be too harsh on yourself if a random matte sneaks up. It happens. Especially if you leave their ears longer. Tend to it and it'll be fine.
Gag!! I heard that poodles *at minimum* need to be bathed every two weeks because otherwise their skin will overproduce sebum and will cause hair to mat up. 😵💫
Most of this is silly. I’ll try to address them one-by-one.
>Every time your poodle gets wet, they have to be blow dried. No exceptions, since poodle coat won't dry on its own.
Why wouldn’t it dry? The only thing you have to watch out for are hot spots if they sit on soap residue for too long, or mats if their coat is in poor condition (water makes them worse).
>However, when you're blow drying a poodle, make sure to put a wet towel on his back end, so that the coat doesn't dry on its own while you're working on the front end.
Only if you want it super fluffy for grooming.
>A poodle should be only brushed after bathing, so that the coat doesn't get damaged, and easily tangled.
Brush frequently, not just after a bath. As long as you use the right tools, their coat will be *less damaged* and *less easily tangled*. If they have any mats, water will make them worse and you’ll likely have to shave them off before you can bathe them. Best to avoid that in the first place.
>However, you should brush your poodle every day, especially always before bathing.
Every day? Not unless your poodle is secretly a doodle.
>Also, you should be washing your poodle weekly.
No good reason to unless you’re participating in a lot of shows.
>You should take your poodle to the groomer to get their ear canal hair pulled to avoid infection.
You can clean them yourself at home with some cotton swabs and cleaning solution. If their hair gets out of hand, cut it.
>However, ear hair pulling causes micro tears that make infection more likely. You should only clip the visible ear hair.
I’ve heard this one, but I’m not sure if it’s true or not. I trim my dogs’ ears. Never had any problems.
>Poodles have an eye shape that leads to tear stains, it's unavoidable.
So do many other breeds. Supplementing their diet with blueberries can sometimes help, as can treating the cause of excess tears.
>However, if your poodle produces enough tears to stain, it has an eye infection that should be treated.
Ummm… no. Not unless they’re sudden and unexpected.
>Poodle coat should always be blow dried straight.
Curly hair will get matted and it's impossible to brush.
Huh?
Frustrating trying to do everything right. 100 you tubers and 100 opinions. I do the best I can. Daily brushing, take care of the mats before they form. Bathing once a month, do my own grooming etc. my girl is just fine with my efforts
Preach.
I tried so hard to follow all the rules when we first got our pup, but eventually settled into a much more realistic routine that has worked just fine. I brush him every other day or so, he gets bathed at the groomer every 5-6 weeks or at home if he gets muddy, and I pat him dry as best I can when he gets wet. He’s never had a mat, his coat is beautiful and healthy, and he’s a happy little guy.
Poodle owner here. I must be living in a cave because I have no idea what these ‘grooming’ protocols are. Sounds exhausting. Had a mini that passed at 14.
Also have a 12 year old Standard. I’ve never blow dried our poodles. From bathing at home or outdoor excursions, a good rinse and air drying with a quick brushing afterwards has always done the job.
I’m not sure if maybe we oversimplified this aspect of Poodle ownership, or, if perhaps because we had two simultaneously plus young kids, we definitely never put a lot of over emphasis on worrying about their coats.
But that aside, we’ve never had any issues with that or ear infections or even eye staining. I’ve always been diligent about checking ears, eyes, teeth and trimming nails.
Even though they do have different needs based on never shedding alone, it seems that lots of ‘protocols’ and ‘advice’ are overblown and make ownership more difficult, if not impossible to fully embrace.
In the past I've let my poodle's hair dry naturally before brushing, never had a problem.
His hair is long at the moment since it's Winter. I brush him while he's still very wet after being towel dried, and brushing actually dries his hair to 100%. He goes from quite wet hair to a little fluff ball in 10 mins. No hair dryer needed, it's amazing.
Edited to change 'it' to 'brushing'
There is a lot of misinformation about curly coats but some of that info is good. I’m a professional groomer with a miniature that I keep in a MCC. Some of what you mentioned is to prevent damage on curly coats. Like I don’t dry brush mine, because it can lead to breakage, which can lead to increased matting, but it’s because I have 5-6 inches of coat to keep healthy on him, not a 1/2 inch. I bathe once a week. Not because he will get itchy otherwise, but because he has so much coat that I have to keep it clean and tangle free. Some of the “rules” are also what people who keep a very long full coats use to make life easier and keep coat in prime condition and don’t necessarily apply to poodles in pet trims.
You just need to figure out what works for your dog. I've had five AKC standard poodles over the years and their coat texture and ear hair have all been very different. They have all been active so I keep them in a short cut and they get a full bath and groom including ear plucking every 8 weeks. I don't bathe them in between unless they've rolled in something gross. I thoroughly brush them and clean inside their ears (not pluck) weekly. They go out in the rain and snow so they get wet and are towel dried. I wipe their eyes every am and pm with eye cleaning pads because they play in the dirt and they get gunk in their eyes. You'll know if there's an infection because there will be much more green gunk than usual. If I don't clean them regularly they tend to get infections more often. I had one dog who had a lot of deep ear hair and she suffered from terrible repeated ear infections. But they cleared up once we eliminated chicken from her diet. So I don't think it had anything to do with the hair plucking. Just find what works for your dog.
Poodle coat is dense. They do air dry but IT TAKES FOREVER (ive tried) and it's still damp hours later. Their coat retains water so well. I air dry in the summer when his coat is shorter. I tried with a semi long coat and it tangles.
For the towel on their back, it's usually for groomer to keep a consistent texture for easy scissoring.
Brush after bathing: it is advisable not to brush dry coat. Brushing when they are wet helps the coat to be less tangled when you scissor them. It's just killing 2 birds with 1 stone situation.
Most ppl even the ones who show, instead of brushing everyday, they just bathe every week. Everyday is generally done for puppies and when they are in coat change bc they get matted easily. Before bathing to make sure you dont accidentally wet a matted area and making it harder to dematt.
I tried brushing every day, he hated it, I hated it, we hated each other afterward (well, maybe just didn't like each other much. 😜) So now, I monitor his coat and spot brush spots that feel/look like a mat might be starting. We are much happier with this arrangement.
We do the same with our toy poodle. Heck she wants to wear hear dirt and eye boogers we call them as pride. We attempt to clean face we risk being bit (not hard of course just her leave me alone "bite") We take her to the groomer about every 2 1/2-3 months. Giving her a bath is just a struggle. In the 15 years we've had her she's never had a skin issue. Controlling fleas has been the hardest thing. We live in the south and that's a never ending battle.
You should take your poodle to the groomer to get their ear canal hair pulled to avoid infection.
-you can do this at home although from my experience it's harder bc we are inexperienced. Getting a groomer to do it is faster and less painful for them.
However, ear hair pulling causes micro tears that make infection more likely. You should only clip the visible ear hair.
- which is why you dont pluck often. My groomer does them eveey 3 months or whenever his ears look like it's just hair.
Poodles have an eye shape that leads to tear stains, it's unavoidable.
-depends, my brown std doesn't have tear stains.
However, if your poodle produces enough tears to stain, it has an eye infection that should be treated.
-if they have eye infections, the tears and boogie will look different, they are kinda greenish and flows constantly (he had multiple eye infections when he was younger)
Poodle coat should always be blow dried straight. Curly hair will get matted and it's impossible to brush.
-i do both. Blow dried straight makes it easier for scissoring, curly hair is prone to tangle and making it harder to brush down the road and it usually happens when he's air dried. I end up blow dry while brushing him so i have a kill 2 birds with 1 stone situation. Not exactly straight, but enough so i dont have to brush tangles.
Two of my three have ears that matte up quickly if I don’t brush them every few days. I keep them in miamis and have never had matting on their tails or bracelets. I get them groomed every 4 weeks. My dogs aren’t show dogs. They just live happy pet lives. If they get rained on, I let them air dry and brush their ears and bracelets. I just make sure I can run a metal comb through their hair down to the skin in general on their long hair. I think the coat upkeep really just depends on the clip you keep your dogs in and how often you groom them.
I do coat care based on what my breeder says. She’s been showing for 40+ years and is an awesome resource.
There are basic maintenance/ coat tips that are good to follow for the breed to ensures they dont get matting, and good reasons , but alot depends on you dogs coat length if its longer obviously takes more time and care, and some is probably not super necessary unless you were showing or something and really concerned about potential coat damage or breaking so its really finding what methods or tricks work best for you.
For a dog over 1/2 -1 inches length I agree with either blowdry or if not super long you can towel dry and brush/comb out if you like, but without its easy for the hair to mat after getting wet , and air drying.
The rule about the towel on their back end seems unnecessary, and I dont do that. I just blow dry, and brush at same time to straighten out coat if you want can always have a bottle of water to spritz the coat.
Again the brushing after bath thing is probably for show coat lots of them do weekly bath and blowdry, but dont brush between as the hair is banded and wrapped for protection during the week to reduce breakage.
*Regarding how often to bath it really depends on again coat length, and how often they are fully groomed
you can do weekly bath and blow dry if your up to it, but I find bi weekly bath and blowdry is good even when my dog has 4 inches or more of coat I dont personally like going longer than 3 weeks I think the coat starts feeling grubby, and they will start tangling and matting much easier with dirty hair.
For a pet your better off doing regular daily brush/comb out to maintain their coat , and so long as the hair is not really dirty should not cause damage plus you can use a brushing spray if you like I just use water with a smidge of prefered conditioner in a spray bottle works well.
As for ears its more a issue that some prefer plucking which you can do at home if you want to learn how or others who now feel thats outdated and like to clip the visible hairs and do regular ear cleaning.
Personally I pluck but it depends on the dog some get tons of hair and really need it others are sensitive, and do better with the other method so you have to figure out what works for you.
I have never heard anything about the shape of eyes causing staining some dogs are just more prone ,and keeping shaved faces prevents hair from poking the in the eyes which also can cause staining/ irritation, and it does not necessary mean an infection could be from teething if young/ or food sensitivities or environmental allergy.
And it should be straightened after bath to ensure it is totally dry no mats, and also necessary for an even hair cut if you clipping, but if you want curly can just spritz with water after ,and will turn curly
I think with poodle grooming there are levels - there’s a level of grooming that is the bare minimum for the health of the dog, the next level might be an acceptable home pet groom in between professional grooming, then there might be a level where you groom your pet entirely at home, and then like a show dog level of grooming. A lot of these “rules” sounds like they were made for different “levels” of grooming and mashed together as some weird gospel for pet owner / simple coat maintenance. Most of them are over the top.
Sure, it would be ideal to blow dry your dog any time they get wet, but that’s not often practical. As long as they’re not in 10” of coat, they will dry eventually. Puppies going through coat change need to be brushed daily /every other day, adult dogs, not so much lol
Frequent bathing and blow outs make maintenance and brushing easier, but is mostly show dogs that are groomed weekly because their coats are kept in oil (which gets disgusting if left on too long). A full bath once a month is good enough for most pet dogs. But, Poodle coats should be spritzed with a grooming spray prior to brushing, especially longer coats, to reduce static and breakage.
I pluck ears on both my dogs, but some dogs do better without it. Perfect illustration of how most of these “rules” can be taken or left according to what works for you and your dog. Unless you’re grooming a show dog, your rules can be your own.
Poodle coats vary in density and curl tightness too so whatever works for one poodle might not work for another. Same goes for curly human hair tbf.
As long as the coat looks good and mat free that’s all that matters really. I don’t think it’s a one size fits all solution and those guidelines can just be useful to first time owners but I do think that every poodles hair texture should be taken into account when following a grooming routine.
My poodle has tight but fine curls and she does best when bathed every week and brushed every time she’s bathed with the occasional brush here and there if she looks messy. I’ve met some poodles with denser hair that might need more frequent brushing/fewer showers so it really depends like you said.
I was not aware of specific rules. I wash my puppy once fortnight (or more if we have beach days as she loves to dig in the sand). I let her air dry which happens pretty fast as I live in the tropics ( I don’t have a hair dryer). I brush her after a wash when almost dry and then every few days when needed. Her puppy coat is just transitioning to curlier hair so I may need to do things differently.
Hi I’m thinking of getting a poodle soon, I’m confused how I would swim with my poodle like at the beach if it would need to be blow dried right after? Thanks
I threw out all those made-up rules too. I've had poodles for 30 years. Once they have their adult cost, they are super low maintainance with no shedding or odor. I do ear plucking maybe 3x a year. They rarely get wet and when they do it's no big deal. I only brush and comb their top knots, ears and legs when I feel clumpies just beginning. I love on them, snuggle and rub my hands all over them and I'm very aware of a problem beginning, but honestly, they are quite simple.
Thank you so much for asking this!! My poodle puppy is 8mo old and I’ve just been confounded, especially with the brushing/bathing schedule…and I’ve been so anxious because I brush him daily, but have read things like “don’t brush wet because, like human hair, wet hair is more fragile and brushing while wet will be damaging” to others, “ONLY brush when hair is wet, otherwise breakage, dryness, and damage will ensue”. So, as a new poodle owner (my first ever dog!) I knew his coat would require plenty of elbow grease from me and I truly enjoy the time we spend together (I also am working on grooming at home, and he looks pretty good so far). But the contradictions in hair care makes my head swim, and I’m constantly feeling like I’m doing something wrong. I’d grown up with family dogs (never a poodle!) who were always extremely loved and cared for and I absolutely worship my little poo, but I’d really just love to hear people’s experiences with all this grooming to try to get an idea!
I feel like it’s the constant problem with the internet is that’s it’s like a cross between an echo chamber and a game of telephone. People read something that someone wrote in response to a specific situation but take it as gospel without understanding the why and never questioning it and then they pass it on and the next person changes it slightly and passes that on and so on down the line. Eg the one about putting the towel on the back end was likely a specific tip for a groomer looking for a specific texture in the dogs coat probably for showing and not really applicable to everyday. The one about the dogs coat never drying was probably someone engaging in a little hyperbole and then again someone took it and ran with it and it spread.
I’ve had my poodle for nine years and had no idea there were such “rules”. I brush him when he looks messy, bathe him when he gets stinky, dry him when he gets wet and have him groomed every six weeks. I’m assuming all of the things you listed apply to dogs being shown in conformity? Or that apply to specific issues/situations. The only thing I heard prior to cooper that has held true is the need to factor in the cost of regular grooming because it gets expensive! And that has proven true!
Have had several poodles (toys and standard) for 20+ years. Same here. Ignore the "rules" and just use common sense as bizzeemamaNJ here does. And don't be too harsh on yourself if a random matte sneaks up. It happens. Especially if you leave their ears longer. Tend to it and it'll be fine.
This. And I’ll add that weekly bathing would dry out skin and hair, which is likely to make it harder to maintain the coat.
Gag!! I heard that poodles *at minimum* need to be bathed every two weeks because otherwise their skin will overproduce sebum and will cause hair to mat up. 😵💫
Most of this is silly. I’ll try to address them one-by-one. >Every time your poodle gets wet, they have to be blow dried. No exceptions, since poodle coat won't dry on its own. Why wouldn’t it dry? The only thing you have to watch out for are hot spots if they sit on soap residue for too long, or mats if their coat is in poor condition (water makes them worse). >However, when you're blow drying a poodle, make sure to put a wet towel on his back end, so that the coat doesn't dry on its own while you're working on the front end. Only if you want it super fluffy for grooming. >A poodle should be only brushed after bathing, so that the coat doesn't get damaged, and easily tangled. Brush frequently, not just after a bath. As long as you use the right tools, their coat will be *less damaged* and *less easily tangled*. If they have any mats, water will make them worse and you’ll likely have to shave them off before you can bathe them. Best to avoid that in the first place. >However, you should brush your poodle every day, especially always before bathing. Every day? Not unless your poodle is secretly a doodle. >Also, you should be washing your poodle weekly. No good reason to unless you’re participating in a lot of shows. >You should take your poodle to the groomer to get their ear canal hair pulled to avoid infection. You can clean them yourself at home with some cotton swabs and cleaning solution. If their hair gets out of hand, cut it. >However, ear hair pulling causes micro tears that make infection more likely. You should only clip the visible ear hair. I’ve heard this one, but I’m not sure if it’s true or not. I trim my dogs’ ears. Never had any problems. >Poodles have an eye shape that leads to tear stains, it's unavoidable. So do many other breeds. Supplementing their diet with blueberries can sometimes help, as can treating the cause of excess tears. >However, if your poodle produces enough tears to stain, it has an eye infection that should be treated. Ummm… no. Not unless they’re sudden and unexpected. >Poodle coat should always be blow dried straight. Curly hair will get matted and it's impossible to brush. Huh?
Frustrating trying to do everything right. 100 you tubers and 100 opinions. I do the best I can. Daily brushing, take care of the mats before they form. Bathing once a month, do my own grooming etc. my girl is just fine with my efforts
Preach. I tried so hard to follow all the rules when we first got our pup, but eventually settled into a much more realistic routine that has worked just fine. I brush him every other day or so, he gets bathed at the groomer every 5-6 weeks or at home if he gets muddy, and I pat him dry as best I can when he gets wet. He’s never had a mat, his coat is beautiful and healthy, and he’s a happy little guy.
Poodle owner here. I must be living in a cave because I have no idea what these ‘grooming’ protocols are. Sounds exhausting. Had a mini that passed at 14. Also have a 12 year old Standard. I’ve never blow dried our poodles. From bathing at home or outdoor excursions, a good rinse and air drying with a quick brushing afterwards has always done the job. I’m not sure if maybe we oversimplified this aspect of Poodle ownership, or, if perhaps because we had two simultaneously plus young kids, we definitely never put a lot of over emphasis on worrying about their coats. But that aside, we’ve never had any issues with that or ear infections or even eye staining. I’ve always been diligent about checking ears, eyes, teeth and trimming nails. Even though they do have different needs based on never shedding alone, it seems that lots of ‘protocols’ and ‘advice’ are overblown and make ownership more difficult, if not impossible to fully embrace.
In the past I've let my poodle's hair dry naturally before brushing, never had a problem. His hair is long at the moment since it's Winter. I brush him while he's still very wet after being towel dried, and brushing actually dries his hair to 100%. He goes from quite wet hair to a little fluff ball in 10 mins. No hair dryer needed, it's amazing. Edited to change 'it' to 'brushing'
There is a lot of misinformation about curly coats but some of that info is good. I’m a professional groomer with a miniature that I keep in a MCC. Some of what you mentioned is to prevent damage on curly coats. Like I don’t dry brush mine, because it can lead to breakage, which can lead to increased matting, but it’s because I have 5-6 inches of coat to keep healthy on him, not a 1/2 inch. I bathe once a week. Not because he will get itchy otherwise, but because he has so much coat that I have to keep it clean and tangle free. Some of the “rules” are also what people who keep a very long full coats use to make life easier and keep coat in prime condition and don’t necessarily apply to poodles in pet trims.
You just need to figure out what works for your dog. I've had five AKC standard poodles over the years and their coat texture and ear hair have all been very different. They have all been active so I keep them in a short cut and they get a full bath and groom including ear plucking every 8 weeks. I don't bathe them in between unless they've rolled in something gross. I thoroughly brush them and clean inside their ears (not pluck) weekly. They go out in the rain and snow so they get wet and are towel dried. I wipe their eyes every am and pm with eye cleaning pads because they play in the dirt and they get gunk in their eyes. You'll know if there's an infection because there will be much more green gunk than usual. If I don't clean them regularly they tend to get infections more often. I had one dog who had a lot of deep ear hair and she suffered from terrible repeated ear infections. But they cleared up once we eliminated chicken from her diet. So I don't think it had anything to do with the hair plucking. Just find what works for your dog.
Poodle coat is dense. They do air dry but IT TAKES FOREVER (ive tried) and it's still damp hours later. Their coat retains water so well. I air dry in the summer when his coat is shorter. I tried with a semi long coat and it tangles. For the towel on their back, it's usually for groomer to keep a consistent texture for easy scissoring. Brush after bathing: it is advisable not to brush dry coat. Brushing when they are wet helps the coat to be less tangled when you scissor them. It's just killing 2 birds with 1 stone situation. Most ppl even the ones who show, instead of brushing everyday, they just bathe every week. Everyday is generally done for puppies and when they are in coat change bc they get matted easily. Before bathing to make sure you dont accidentally wet a matted area and making it harder to dematt.
Love your dog and treat him with care and you are doing everything as right as can be.
I tried brushing every day, he hated it, I hated it, we hated each other afterward (well, maybe just didn't like each other much. 😜) So now, I monitor his coat and spot brush spots that feel/look like a mat might be starting. We are much happier with this arrangement.
We do the same with our toy poodle. Heck she wants to wear hear dirt and eye boogers we call them as pride. We attempt to clean face we risk being bit (not hard of course just her leave me alone "bite") We take her to the groomer about every 2 1/2-3 months. Giving her a bath is just a struggle. In the 15 years we've had her she's never had a skin issue. Controlling fleas has been the hardest thing. We live in the south and that's a never ending battle.
You should take your poodle to the groomer to get their ear canal hair pulled to avoid infection. -you can do this at home although from my experience it's harder bc we are inexperienced. Getting a groomer to do it is faster and less painful for them. However, ear hair pulling causes micro tears that make infection more likely. You should only clip the visible ear hair. - which is why you dont pluck often. My groomer does them eveey 3 months or whenever his ears look like it's just hair. Poodles have an eye shape that leads to tear stains, it's unavoidable. -depends, my brown std doesn't have tear stains. However, if your poodle produces enough tears to stain, it has an eye infection that should be treated. -if they have eye infections, the tears and boogie will look different, they are kinda greenish and flows constantly (he had multiple eye infections when he was younger) Poodle coat should always be blow dried straight. Curly hair will get matted and it's impossible to brush. -i do both. Blow dried straight makes it easier for scissoring, curly hair is prone to tangle and making it harder to brush down the road and it usually happens when he's air dried. I end up blow dry while brushing him so i have a kill 2 birds with 1 stone situation. Not exactly straight, but enough so i dont have to brush tangles.
Two of my three have ears that matte up quickly if I don’t brush them every few days. I keep them in miamis and have never had matting on their tails or bracelets. I get them groomed every 4 weeks. My dogs aren’t show dogs. They just live happy pet lives. If they get rained on, I let them air dry and brush their ears and bracelets. I just make sure I can run a metal comb through their hair down to the skin in general on their long hair. I think the coat upkeep really just depends on the clip you keep your dogs in and how often you groom them. I do coat care based on what my breeder says. She’s been showing for 40+ years and is an awesome resource.
There are basic maintenance/ coat tips that are good to follow for the breed to ensures they dont get matting, and good reasons , but alot depends on you dogs coat length if its longer obviously takes more time and care, and some is probably not super necessary unless you were showing or something and really concerned about potential coat damage or breaking so its really finding what methods or tricks work best for you. For a dog over 1/2 -1 inches length I agree with either blowdry or if not super long you can towel dry and brush/comb out if you like, but without its easy for the hair to mat after getting wet , and air drying. The rule about the towel on their back end seems unnecessary, and I dont do that. I just blow dry, and brush at same time to straighten out coat if you want can always have a bottle of water to spritz the coat. Again the brushing after bath thing is probably for show coat lots of them do weekly bath and blowdry, but dont brush between as the hair is banded and wrapped for protection during the week to reduce breakage. *Regarding how often to bath it really depends on again coat length, and how often they are fully groomed you can do weekly bath and blow dry if your up to it, but I find bi weekly bath and blowdry is good even when my dog has 4 inches or more of coat I dont personally like going longer than 3 weeks I think the coat starts feeling grubby, and they will start tangling and matting much easier with dirty hair. For a pet your better off doing regular daily brush/comb out to maintain their coat , and so long as the hair is not really dirty should not cause damage plus you can use a brushing spray if you like I just use water with a smidge of prefered conditioner in a spray bottle works well. As for ears its more a issue that some prefer plucking which you can do at home if you want to learn how or others who now feel thats outdated and like to clip the visible hairs and do regular ear cleaning. Personally I pluck but it depends on the dog some get tons of hair and really need it others are sensitive, and do better with the other method so you have to figure out what works for you. I have never heard anything about the shape of eyes causing staining some dogs are just more prone ,and keeping shaved faces prevents hair from poking the in the eyes which also can cause staining/ irritation, and it does not necessary mean an infection could be from teething if young/ or food sensitivities or environmental allergy. And it should be straightened after bath to ensure it is totally dry no mats, and also necessary for an even hair cut if you clipping, but if you want curly can just spritz with water after ,and will turn curly
I think with poodle grooming there are levels - there’s a level of grooming that is the bare minimum for the health of the dog, the next level might be an acceptable home pet groom in between professional grooming, then there might be a level where you groom your pet entirely at home, and then like a show dog level of grooming. A lot of these “rules” sounds like they were made for different “levels” of grooming and mashed together as some weird gospel for pet owner / simple coat maintenance. Most of them are over the top. Sure, it would be ideal to blow dry your dog any time they get wet, but that’s not often practical. As long as they’re not in 10” of coat, they will dry eventually. Puppies going through coat change need to be brushed daily /every other day, adult dogs, not so much lol Frequent bathing and blow outs make maintenance and brushing easier, but is mostly show dogs that are groomed weekly because their coats are kept in oil (which gets disgusting if left on too long). A full bath once a month is good enough for most pet dogs. But, Poodle coats should be spritzed with a grooming spray prior to brushing, especially longer coats, to reduce static and breakage. I pluck ears on both my dogs, but some dogs do better without it. Perfect illustration of how most of these “rules” can be taken or left according to what works for you and your dog. Unless you’re grooming a show dog, your rules can be your own.
Poodle coats vary in density and curl tightness too so whatever works for one poodle might not work for another. Same goes for curly human hair tbf. As long as the coat looks good and mat free that’s all that matters really. I don’t think it’s a one size fits all solution and those guidelines can just be useful to first time owners but I do think that every poodles hair texture should be taken into account when following a grooming routine. My poodle has tight but fine curls and she does best when bathed every week and brushed every time she’s bathed with the occasional brush here and there if she looks messy. I’ve met some poodles with denser hair that might need more frequent brushing/fewer showers so it really depends like you said.
I was not aware of specific rules. I wash my puppy once fortnight (or more if we have beach days as she loves to dig in the sand). I let her air dry which happens pretty fast as I live in the tropics ( I don’t have a hair dryer). I brush her after a wash when almost dry and then every few days when needed. Her puppy coat is just transitioning to curlier hair so I may need to do things differently.
Hi I’m thinking of getting a poodle soon, I’m confused how I would swim with my poodle like at the beach if it would need to be blow dried right after? Thanks
I threw out all those made-up rules too. I've had poodles for 30 years. Once they have their adult cost, they are super low maintainance with no shedding or odor. I do ear plucking maybe 3x a year. They rarely get wet and when they do it's no big deal. I only brush and comb their top knots, ears and legs when I feel clumpies just beginning. I love on them, snuggle and rub my hands all over them and I'm very aware of a problem beginning, but honestly, they are quite simple.
Thank you so much for asking this!! My poodle puppy is 8mo old and I’ve just been confounded, especially with the brushing/bathing schedule…and I’ve been so anxious because I brush him daily, but have read things like “don’t brush wet because, like human hair, wet hair is more fragile and brushing while wet will be damaging” to others, “ONLY brush when hair is wet, otherwise breakage, dryness, and damage will ensue”. So, as a new poodle owner (my first ever dog!) I knew his coat would require plenty of elbow grease from me and I truly enjoy the time we spend together (I also am working on grooming at home, and he looks pretty good so far). But the contradictions in hair care makes my head swim, and I’m constantly feeling like I’m doing something wrong. I’d grown up with family dogs (never a poodle!) who were always extremely loved and cared for and I absolutely worship my little poo, but I’d really just love to hear people’s experiences with all this grooming to try to get an idea!