Clipping 2 King Charles Spaniels

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armywag

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Hi Im going to sttempt to clip my two king charles this weekend...any tips appriciated!

Where to start..!?

Thanks
 
I did this with my springer, she looked OK after, just go the way the hair goes instead of the oposite way if you were clipping a horse. Its a bit harder than I thought but got there in the end, did it over a few days.

Next year I think I'm going to get it done properly beginning of june then I can keep it tidy myself.

Somone posted pics of their springer a few days back it was very smart, have a look back through the threads.
 
Puccini gives much better instruction but incase she is not around, you need to brush them out first, and shave their tummies and give them a good scrub in the tub:D, then dry them thoroughly and comb them out, dirty totty hair will make the job ten times worse and you will never get the finish you will get if the dog is not groomed through and bathed first.
Choose your blade, start at the top (head) and go with the hair all the way to the base of the tail, then work your way down the sides and legs last, lift dog up so they are standing on back legs and hold front paws in your hand and use the other to clip the stomach, if you are keeping tails on and ears then try to blend nicely when you are nearing those areas, otherwsie hsave them off, but you will then need to tidy the ears with the scissors.
clip nails before attempting pads and feet so you can get a neater closer cut.
What size blade are you using?
 
Thanks for the tips NOISYGIRL & CAYLA! Much Appreciated!

FAITHKAT - as I am not into dog showing I am not concerned about keeping their coats to a showing standard but are clipping them for more practical reasons.

They are both very old now and get very hot in the heat, clipping their coats will keep them cooler and it will be more hygienic for them as they are not as good as cleaning themselves as they used to be.

Also in the summer months they normally get a few ticks so clipping will help keep them off!
 
oh yeah she looks lovely!

I got my blades delivered today and just tried them on one of my KC's at lunch - just a test patch. They cut through her hair really easily and it’s a nice length too so I’m really pleased....bath and good groom for both dogs tonight and clipping in the morning! My border collie maybe a bit jealous of all the attention they will get....NOT! He hates baths and is scared of the clippers!!!
 
NOISYGIRL said:
http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=384933

Here's the thread with the pics I was on about, she looks absolutely gorgeous, I'd love to know what clippers they used
Click to expand...

Judging from the photos, my guess would be either a 7F or a 5F (3mm or 6mm) blade. THat's what I'd use to get a similar finish. What Cayla posted above sounds pretty much what I do. If you were wanting to keep feathering there's a whole other set of instructions, but would require some scissor work - but for just easy to maintain and keep, I'd remove the feathers. Don't think I'd want to see the tails clipped close tho! That's just my personal preference.

One little tip I'd maybe offer is that if you have a slicker brush (metal teeth), while you're clipping--- and always WITH the grain, not against, take the brush and brush the hair up (against the growth) and then run the clipper with the grain over the bit you just brushed. Pay close attention to the way the hair is growing or you'll end up with clipper marks. By back brushing you're ensuring a nice even finish.

Very very rarely do I ever get a cavalier owner that wants to keep him/her in full coat. I used to do one ages ago and it was a joy to do it this way. HOwever, that's one dog out of hundreds that we do in our shop. Most owners prefer them to be kept neat and tidy.

PnP :D
 
Thanks PucciNPoni for the advise!

I will keep you updated on the outcome of the clips, im quite confident with clippers themselves as have done lots of horses although I know dogs hair is alot different and will have a lot more Fiddly bits as they are so small and low to the ground!

Just out of interest.... do you bath all the dogs that come into your shop before you clip them? I would imagine this is quite time consuming to get them washed, dryed, groomed and clipped? and would imagine (depending on what you charge) that you would need to do quite a few dogs a day to make a living?

Sorry for all the questions!!! im looking into doing a groomers course myself so am interested to see how busineses work! :o)

Thanks as ever
 
It depends on whether the dogs have a really heavy dirty coat or not. For example, if a dog hasn't been groomed in say six months or so - the coat a matted mingin mess, I'll shave it off first. However, if I'm doing regular grooming (eg six to eight weeks) and the coat is half decent to very good, I will always bath and dry first. The finish is much much better, and it's easier on my blades. I tend to keep a set of blades exclusively for dirty strip offs (that sounds kinda kinky....).

Most groomers need to do a minimum of 4 or 5 grooms per day to stay afloat, and it depends on greatly what the overheads are, how much they charge etc. I wrote an article on this in April's "Pro Groomer" magazine -- setting prices and determining how many dogs to do etc. It's produced by Dog World magazine, so see if you can get that back issue if you want to read it. It's a really good new magazine that will be geared to groomers and grooming businesses.

Are you looking to work for a groomer or set up on your own?
 
yeah ill have to try and get a copy. eventually on my own but will probably try and get some work experience first..there are not really any shops around my area you could work for, they all work from home.
 
I did clip-offs with my Stablemate horse clippers,just using scissors and the Oster Golden for the feet and inside the ears.Very seldom was the owner who wanted it just groomed out..and even they wanted the feet shaped up.Be careful to scissor out underneath the feet,so many spaniels had horrid matts like blocks of wood under there,very uncomfortable it must be. They all did look so very happy to be in a short back and sides I must say.
 
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