Calming Canines

Does clipping a double-coated dog ruin the coat?

Note that when the word “clip” is used, I’m referring to shortening the coat but still leaving enough coverage to protect the skin from UV and mechanical damage. Shaving refers to cutting close to the skin, as for vet procedures or for heavily matted dogs.

The short answer is: it depends!

It depends on multiple factors, including the length of the clip, the health of the dog, and whether the dog is intact or neutered/spayed. The good news is that it is almost always temporary, even if it takes 1-2 years to regrow (such as with post-clipping alopecia). There is only one sure fire way to damage the coat permanently and that is by physically damaging the hair follicles. The follicles that the hair grows from is the only part of a dog’s coat which is “alive”, the hairs themselves are not.

If that’s the case, why is it such a common belief that clipping a double coated dog for summer will ruin the coat? The key is that the coat is designed to shed and renew in layers, so a very short clip can disrupt how those layers re-align as they grow. It just takes time in an otherwise healthy dog for them to return to their correct alignment. The area of the body matters too, with trunk areas often slower to regrow than on the legs. Coat care following clipping is an important factor, as leaving the coat to grow without brushing will quickly cause matting.

One important thing to note is that poor hair regrowth over several months or change in texture following clipping is always a sign to visit your vet. If poor hair regrowth is accompanied by other physical or behavioural changes, visit your vet sooner. Several endocrine disorders can cause coat changes such as Hypothyroidism or Hyperadrenocorticism (Cushing’s) so ruling these out is important. As clips are more commonly carried out on older dogs, a health condition is the most likely culprit for lack of regrowth.

Post clipping alopecia is something that is often talked about when discussions about clipping double coated dogs come up. It's important to note that this is most commonly associated with shaving, which is much closer to the skin than clipping.

The cause of post clipping alopecia is unknown, but it is speculated that skin temperature changes after shaving may cause the majority of hair follicles at the shaved area to enter telogen (the rest phase). Again, post clipping alopecia is not permanent!

The photos below are of my youngest back in January following shaving for an ultrasound. The following month he was diagnosed with hypothyroidism. His coat has regrown well as he is now medicated and his hypothyroidism is under control. His only symptom was a coarser coat and he was only diagnosed following bloodwork for his Irritable Bowel Disease.

Sources:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14989702/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16412119/

Well, hello again! Yes, I still exist (I aten't dead!) but I have been hibernating or whatever similar act is done to escape ridiculous heat! I also took a bit of a FB break.

I'm a little closer to actually working again (yay) but still have a few bits to sort out.

No doubt this will reach approximately 3 people as I've been inactive, so if you see it, hit like or some random emoji 😘

I was just about to post a vaguely sun/heat related post, but looked at the weather forecast for the weekend. Maybe I'd better think of an umbrella related post instead!

Never mind, that was probably all the summer we're going to get!

Wren says "no thank you" to the sun this morning!

Down in the South of England, we're in for some nice weather over the next few days (yay!) but because this is England and nice weather is not the norm, we haven't had chance to acclimate to the rise in temperature yet. Thermoregulation has become an issue for me over the last few years, and Wren reminded me this afternoon that some dogs are the same.

Ever since she was a puppy, she has struggled with hot weather much more than any of my other dogs; seeking shade much sooner than them and at a much lower temperature when the sun comes out. Every dog is an individual and some can tolerate a sudden rise in temperature better than others.

They typical categories of dog who are at a higher risk of heat related illness (HRI) are:

Brachycephalic or flat-faced breeds such as Pugs and French Bulldogs
Older dogs
Puppies
Overweight dogs or those with low fitness levels
Dogs with underlying health conditions or respiratory or heart diseases
Larger breeds
Dogs not used to warm weather (such as UK dogs in spring).

Though, as Wren shows us, any dog of any breed can find it tough when the temperatures suddenly rise. Heat tolerance isn't a one-size-fits-all thing; what is safe and comfortable for one dog is unpleasantly hot for another.

Sudden warm weather like we're due to get this week is a timely reminder to reacquaint ourselves with the early signs of HRI:

Panting (your dog might appear to be ‘smiling’ due to pulling up the corners of their mouth to pant harder, this might progress to more distressed breathing)
Low energy or tiredness
Shade seeking
Drooling
Foaming at the mouth
Bright red gums (or sometimes they can appear very pale)
Vomiting or diarrhoea (possibly containing blood).

This isn't intended as a scare-mongering post, enjoy the sunny weather with your dogs, just don't forget that they might be less able to tolerate it than you are, especially if they're exercising! If they're playing and having fun in the sun just be sensible, know what to look out for, take precautions (water and accessible shade) and know when to stop them and let them cool down as they don't always know when to do that themselves!