The one Poodle style that people tend to think of most is the one where the poodle has fluffy poms (pompoms) around the feet, hair around the mane area and a closely shaved body. But this is just 1 of many poodle styles. If you are considering a dog grooming career you most likely have already wondered how you would manage all the different poodle clips. Generally speaking, you will find that the various styles come under 2 broad categories: either clips for showing or pet clips requested by non-competing poodle owners.

Legend has it that the poodle was originally used as a retriever. It is thought that the show trim, that we so readily recognize, actually had a purpose back then. It is speculated that the puffs or poms (the round shaped balls of hair) around the feet, for example, were designed to keep the poodle's joints warm as it swam in different water temperatures. The long mane was in the same way intended to keep vital areas of the body nice and warm while the Poodle paddled through wintry water. Believe it or not the puff on the tail likewise had a function and that was to heighten the Poodle's visibility when swimming. The close shave of the remainder of the body was to make it easier for the Poodle to skim through the water without risk of entrapment in branches, or so the story goes.

The poodle coat is considered to be very resilient which lends itself to a number of different grooming styles. So what are some of the styles that a groomer might be asked to produce? Two that you might have come across are:

1. The Puppy Clip
   This is of course a clip for pups up to the age of 12 months. Here, the face, feet and base of the tail are clipped close to the skin. The body coat is left to grow as long as preferred. The front part of the coat, known as the pack, can be shaped up into a topknot.


2. Continental Clip
   This is the style that we are so used to and one that you see in the show ring. In this clip, the face, the back quarters down to the poms, the front legs between the poms are shaved close to the skin, giving a nice smooth appearance. The long pack area is trimmed into shape and capped of with a topknot. The tail is also clipped into a pom at the end. The round-shaped leg poms stop just above the feet.

When it comes to poodle grooming, the most important point to remember is to listen to your customer's request so that you can style in accordance with their wishes. This will differ according to whether the poodle owner wants a show clip or a pet clip instead. If the latter is requested, then you can be quite creative without being hampered by whether or not the clip meets with poodle style standards. If the former, then you will be clipping according to a preset style in which case you will find one of the online dog grooming courses even more helpful.