Handstripping. It’s something that
most pet owners know little about. This is primarily because it is a
dying art in the grooming world and most groomers don’t offer it.
So, to help in the education process, I figured I would answer the
most common questions I receive on a day to day basis.
- You do WHAT to the dog!?!? Doesn’t it hurt the dog?
Yes, handstripping
can seem intimidating upon first hearing the process, but I can’t
stress how it’s so important! Handstripping in and of itself is
literally the process of pulling out dead hair. So, for example, the
‘Furminator’ tool that everyone loves and swears by is a type of
handstripping which is called carding. There isn’t a test at the
end of this so the terminology isn’t important, but this example
helps in showing that NO it doesn’t hurt the animal. Believe me,
they will let you know if they don’t like something. If you have a
furbaby that doesn’t like certain things then you know exactly what
I’m talking about. Most dogs are not shy when it comes to telling
you that they don’t want to do something. The difference between
what I do and what the furminator tool does it that I do a more hands
on and thorough approach to removing the dead undercoat that is on
your dog.
- So if it’s like the furminator, can you handstrip my husky? He has so much hair!
No, you can’t
handstrip every dog. This process is meant for dog that genetically
don’t shed their hair like most dogs do. The easiest way to call
this group is the ‘hard coated dogs.’ This group are going to be
breeds like the Airedale terriers, schnauzers, cockers, cairn
terriers, and Irish terriers to name just a few. The reason that
these dogs need to have their coats handstripped is because as I
before mentioned they do not shed their undercoat like most other
dogs do. Most dogs like your huskies and German shepherds shed their
coats almost in the shape of a straight line. When a new layer of
growth comes in it pushes out the old layer of growth making only one
hair in one hair follicle. On the hard coated dogs their hair does
not do this. When their new layer of coat comes in the old layer does
not get pushed out, the new layers just comes in beside it in the
same hair follicle. This can happen for upwards of 15-30 hairs in one
hair follicle which would make almost the shape of a firework. As you
can imagine this creates multiple issues for the dog if the undercoat
is never removed.
- Why does this cost so much? Why would I choose this over just having my dog clipped down?
As I mentioned
previously this is a very hands on process. I do not have a machine
that I can use to quickly do this. I literally am taking my hands and
removing the undercoat out with a pulling motion. Unfortunately,
there has not been a machine created that replaces good old fashioned
elbow grease. Because it physically takes more time to do this we
charge for the extra time that it takes just like your local mechanic
would. Just like you do when choosing your local mechanic because you
want your car to be in proper working order, with your dog you have
to invest in its well-being so that it will be in its proper working
order. The reason for choosing this method is because the dog can
have skin conditions since the skin can’t breathe properly, the
dog’s coat would be effected causing the texture, color, and over
all appearance would be depleted as well. All of these can be taken
care of by having you dog handstripped versus having them just
clipped down. Having them clipped down just cuts down the length of
the hairs themselves never removing the actual hairs. In some dogs
the skin actually grows over the clogged pores if you cut them too
short creating such issues such as schnauzer bumps and things of that
nature. Handstripping is an all around healthier alternative to
properly maintain your pet.
- Ok, I’m interested. This does seem to be really important but what type of commitment is this? Would this be like a clipping schedule where I come in every four to six weeks?
This is going to be
on how well you want to maintain your pet. The very minimal amount
that you would want to have you pet brought in is exactly like how
you do with your clipping schedule, every 4-6 weeks. This would just
ensure that your pet’s hair follicles were never clogged and that
they are constantly in a state of healthy skin. Some owners however
prefer to have their dogs look closer to what the AKC standards are
or want their pets to look like the dogs they saw on t.v. at the
Westminster competition. This look takes a lot more commitment. Those
dogs have what is called a ‘rolled coat’ which in essence means
that they have many different layers to their coat giving them more
texture. To achieve a rolled coat means a weekly to every other week
schedule. The reason for this is because when you come in once a
month I have a month’s worth of growth to pull out meaning that
almost every time I’m starting from square one. By coming in every
week I only have a week’s worth of growth to take out which means
that I can work on layering your dog’s coat and give it better
texture which would be closer to the breed standard. So, it is
honestly how you want your dog to look.
There are
definitely many more questions that I’ve had on this subject
matter, but these are the main concensus of what most people are
concerned about. If your questions on this subject matter wasn’t
answered or if you have another question on a different subject
matter feel free to leave a message and I’d be more than happy to
feature it in the next month’s issue! Until next time, Becca.
