Dog grooming is an important part of living with a fur baby. The beautiful coat that your dog has can be well groomed with a nice cut. While going to a professional for your dog’s haircut is always an option, it can be a bit expensive. Moreover, a dog haircut at home is your opportunity to spend some more time with the pet.

It may be a little difficult at the outset to give your dog a haircut, especially if the dog has a thick and long coat. It is a good idea to achieve the requisite know-how well in advance in order to make the task easier.

Be ready for some funny cuts at the beginning but remember, hair grows and you would get a lot better with time.

Things required:

Here is all you need for your dog’s haircut. It is a good idea to keep it all well in advance, so there is no last-minute running for the equipment.

Clippers:

The market shelves are full of specialized dog clippers that you can buy or you can use the regular clippers. The blades on the clippers must be sharp in order to avoid unnecessary hair pulls.

Clipper Blades:

Dog coats vary greatly in strength, volume and smoothness. You can buy specialized blades to suit your dog’s coat. 

Snap-on Guide Combs:

These snap-on guide combs are amazing for a uniform cut and save your dog from a bad hair day or month.

Scissors:

While clippers do most of the job, several areas need sharp scissors to cut properly

Optionally you can invest in a clipper coolant or lubricant to avoid it from getting too hot and burning the dog.

The pre-haircut routine:

Here are some steps that you can follow in the lead-up to your dog’s haircut session:

Give the dog a bath and dry properly:

Before you give a haircut to the dog, give it a shampoo bath and towel dry. Follow it up with air drying but positioning the dog on a table. Look at some of the best dog hair dryer here.

Comb The Coat:

Once dry, lightly comb hair in order to remove any tangles from the hair.

Find your spot:

Selecting a spot to give a nice haircut to your dog is critical. Make sure there are no distractions and loud noises. This will help you focus better and the dog will also move minimally. Choose a spot that can be cleaned easily as the hair will end up all over the place. Doing it on a raised table can be comfortable for you and you can also line the table with a mat in order to collect the hair.

Tip: Have someone hold the dog in place at the beginning of the haircut session.

Steps involved in your dog’s haircut:

1)     Make a rough try first: Start moving the clippers in the less visible areas of the dog’s coat to gain maximum control and judge if you are doing it right or you need to change a bit. If the amount of hair is lesser or greater than the required amount, you can switch to another blade. Choosing the right blade size for your dog is very important. A higher number blade will give a shorter and finer cut.

2)     Start at the head: It is a good idea to start the haircut session with the head as it is a sensitive area and requires utmost attention. You can then move to shave the nose and sides of the face. Use quick and uniform strokes. Use blunt scissors near the eyes to cut any hair that may obstruct vision. A curved pair of scissors is ideal if your pet moves a lot.

3)     Trim the hair over the ears: Hold the ears gently in your hand and trim slowly using clippers. This is the time when your pet may be most fidgety, it may be wise to give them some pet treats to keep them engaged.

4)     Move to clip the body hair: Use quick and uniform strokes to clip the body hair after the head and neck joint of the dog. Follow it with the hair over backbone area and then move to side body hair towards the tail. The next is to clip belly hair.

5)     Do the legs at the end: Start clipping at the top of the legs and finish at the paws. Brush against the normal direction of hair growth at the paws and push up the hair between the toes, hold properly and trim with a sharp pair of scissors. Clip the other hair. The underside of the feet can use clippers for hair removal.

Good to know tips and warning about clipping dog hair:

• Do not use clippers directly on a matted dog as it can be quite painful. Use a De-Matting comb to first remove the mats by moving it carefully through the mat. Avoid pulling the mat as it may cause pain. Don’t use a scissor for De-Matting as it may cut the skin.

If the mats are a little away from the skin, use the clippers in the shortest setting for removal.

For extremely matted dogs, shaving or professional grooming is ideal.

• How often to groom your dog: For dogs with quick hair growth, clipping every 6-8 weeks is a good idea.
• The dog may feel very hot. You must then lay the dog on the floor and clip around the belly.
• Avoid matting by regularly brushing your dog’s hair.
• Start clipping dog hair early in life to train easily
• If the dog may get nervous with the sound of the clipper, get them used to it prior to starting the clipping session
• It is a good idea to choose a clipper with low noise
• Clip in the direction that hair grows and not against it.
• You can also get one professional clipping session to observe how a groomer deals with it or take advice from a professional

In the end, do not worry about the haircut doesn’t meet your expectations, you will soon get better at it.