Grooming The Shetland Sheepdog
Tools and Equipment:
Slicker brush. Large pin brush. Pure boar bristle brush. Steel comb
(fine/medium). Long hair molting comb. Wood utility comb.
Scissor. Thinning shear. #10 blade. Ear cleaner. Medicated ear
powder. Protein coat conditioner. High velocity dryer. Nail clipper.
Tearless protein shampoo. Cotton balls. Oster A-5 clipper.
Grooming Procedure
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Spray the entire coat with protein coat conditioner. This adds body
to the coat and helps repair split ends. Brush through the entire
coat with a large pin brush, alternating with a slicker brush in
matted areas and a molting comb as needed. Work layer by layer,
alternating brush and comb to remove mats and loose undercoat.
Lift the coat up with your hand, working on thin layers at a time.
Brush down and out until all mats and loose hair are removed.
Work deeply into the coat, but do not brush to the skin; otherwise,
you will cause abrasion. Start at the rear of the dog, at the bottom
of the skirt area. Work through the entire coat until the outer coat
is separated well and combs smoothly. Work vigorously. The more
hair you remove now, the less hair you need to wash and dry.
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Comb through the entire coat with a wide-tooth utility comb. Use a
fine-tooth steel comb on the soft hair behind the ears. With your
fingers, strip out dead hair behind the ears.
Swab the ears with a cotton ball that has been moistened with ear
cleaner. This will remove dirt and control ear odor. Follow with a
dry cotton ball and dust the ears with medicated ear powder.
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Cut the nails with a guillotine-type nail trimmer. Nails should be cut
monthly.
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Check between the foot pads and under the feet for burrs, tar, etc.
Scissor the hair under the feet even with the pads. Trim any hair
around the paw that touches the ground and neaten the entire foot.
With thinning shears, trim the hair growing between the toes, which
should lie close like a cat's foot.
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Bathe the dog with a tearless protein shampoo that is pH-alkaline.
This will add fullness and body to the coat and restructure
damaged hair.
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Use a high velocity dryer to blow excess water off the dog while the
dog is still in the tub. This will speed up the drying time and help
prevent the coat from becoming overly dry. Cage dry the dog until
the hair is damp. Then finish drying on the table, using a blow dryer
and a pin brush to separate all the hair and remove all of the loose
coat
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Brush the entire coat and be sure to brush to the skin, using the
dryer to style and separate the hair. Follow by combing the entire
coat
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The whiskers may be removed with scissors to improve the
expression, although this is optional.
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Use a fine comb to finish the head and the ears. Excess hair behind
the ears may be thinned with a thinning shear.
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Comb out leg feathering. Trim excess hair on the feet and hocks.
The hind legs are to be smooth below the hock joint with a
perpendicular line from hock to ground. Leave full the feathering
on the forelegs but trim it so that it naturally meets the pastern and
does not touch the ground.
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Scissor any long hair under the tail that hangs over the a-nus. Be
sure the a-nus is clear, and then use a #10 blade to blend down
under the tail area so that it does not collect fecal matter.
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Lightly mist the coat with protein coat conditioner to add brilliance
and fragrance. Back brush the coat with the pin brush so the coat
stands out, away from the body.
