grooming a collie

Discussion of grooming tips and questions.

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nettyjen
Posts: 12
Joined: Mon May 09, 2016 4:14 pm

grooming a collie

Post by nettyjen »

i am about to foster with a view to adopting 2 dogs that have been abused and neglected. one is a little collie with lots of fur, its not been looked after so is knotted. the rescue centre are sending him to the groomers but i cant afford to keep doing that. i have only ever had short hair dogs.
i would appreciate any advice on grooming a long hair dog, i dont know what brush or comb or how often.
so many brushes out there.
Erica
Posts: 2697
Joined: Fri Aug 05, 2011 9:35 pm
Location: North Carolina

Re: grooming a collie

Post by Erica »

For a collie, I'd want an undercoat rake or a comb type brush (like a Greyhound comb). I love this blog for information on grooming - this post in particular has good illustrations of how you have to brush all the way to the skin to keep mats from forming. With really thick coated dogs, you may have to push some fur back so that you can get to the root of the hair. If the rescue is sending him to the groomers, could you ask if the groomer could show you how to brush? That way you can see them in person and ask questions as needed. I'll try to explain as best I can though!

This video shows how you can do this - though you can do it on a smaller scale than going up and down the entire body at a time! With the heavy-coated Malamute that I brush, I just do about a square foot at a time, as that's as much as he can handle at a time. I don't think you'd have to use a mister - that's more for saving hair in a show dog. For a pet dog, just using the brushing technique should do well. This video shows how that line-brushing technique might be used for a rough collie.

How often to brush will depend on the dog's coat - you want to brush often enough that you don't get knots that you can't brush out. For some dogs, this would mean a full brush daily. For others, once a week or longer. I tend to brush my dog daily, but only a part of him at a time - eg on Monday I brush his head and neck; Tuesday, I do his front left leg and shoulder; Wednesday, the front right leg and shoulder; Thursday, his body; Friday, his back left leg; Saturday, his back right leg; Sunday, his tail. When his coat gets longer, I stick to the same schedule, but also do a light, quick brush all-over after the thorough brushing of the focus area. He is a poodle, though, and their coats mat very easily. A collie might not need as constant grooming, or they very well might. I wish I could give you a solid answer, but it really does depend!
Delta, standard poodle, born 6/30/14
nettyjen
Posts: 12
Joined: Mon May 09, 2016 4:14 pm

Re: grooming a collie

Post by nettyjen »

thank you the videos and blog were very helpful. the blog from the groomer was really good because the dogs i am having have been hit by their owner as well as neglected and flinch if you move too fast. i now have some tips on helping him through the grooming process.
now i just need to get the brushes.
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