A dog that sheds vs. a dog that needs regular grooming trips

[jenn-]

We are on the hunt for a new dog. I told DH that after the first of the year, my looking turns serious (I promised I would wait until the holidays were over :glare: ). The only breed he hasn't turned his nose up at has been the schnauzer. I was thinking I was okay with that until we went camping with my FIL and his schnauzer. Man that dog's leg hairs brought in a lot of stuff hanging on it. I also know that grooming would get expensive. Are there any nonshedding/low shedding dogs that don't need grooming trips, or at least have a cut that gets the leg hairs too?

 

Are there any short haired breeds that don't shed as much? The dog will have to be a small/medium dog as DH doesn't like big dogs. We have a Jack Russell Terrier with a broken coat and she sheds big time. Turns out I think she should be getting stripped twice a year according to the sites I have been reading.

 

I don't know why we are concerned about shedding. Between the forever shedding JRT and the very large long haired cat, there will always be fur around the house.

[TravelingChris]

Yes, my poodle's hair does bring in some spurs occasionally. Certainly not so many that I would take a shedding dog. And I have a medium haired large cat that sheds and sheds and sheds. But we rescued him, not deliberately chose him. I know I wouldn't choose such a shedding cat voluntarily. My kitty we will be getting after Christmas is going to be short haired, hopefully a Siamese.

 

I don't have a problem taking the dog into be groomed. But the price of grooming is very variable depending on area. Here, I am paying 40 and in Northern VA, it was 60.

[Lovin Learnin]

I grew up with a poodle so never really knew about the issues with a shedding dog until I was an adult. Recently my family has gone from a beagle that shed very little, to a lab that has OMGoodness goo gads of hair all over the place. I love my lab to pieces, but knowing what I know now I can totally see us going to a non-shedding dog in the future.

[astrid]

We are on the hunt for a new dog. I told DH that after the first of the year, my looking turns serious (I promised I would wait until the holidays were over :glare: ). The only breed he hasn't turned his nose up at has been the schnauzer. I was thinking I was okay with that until we went camping with my FIL and his schnauzer. Man that dog's leg hairs brought in a lot of stuff hanging on it. I also know that grooming would get expensive. Are there any nonshedding/low shedding dogs that don't need grooming trips, or at least have a cut that gets the leg hairs too?

 

Are there any short haired breeds that don't shed as much? The dog will have to be a small/medium dog as DH doesn't like big dogs. We have a Jack Russell Terrier with a broken coat and she sheds big time. Turns out I think she should be getting stripped twice a year according to the sites I have been reading.

 

I don't know why we are concerned about shedding. Between the forever shedding JRT and the very large long haired cat, there will always be fur around the house.

 

Unless you're talking about a dog with true hair (poodle, Bichon, etc.) any short haired dog is going to shed like crazy. What's worse, those short hairs get stuck in fabric and carpet and are tough to get out. The coats of longer-coated or double-coated breeds tend to ball up and form dust bunnies, easier IMHO to deal with. I speak from experience-- I live with two giant double-coated breeds and a Pembroke Welsh Corgi with short hair. I'd take ten shedding Leos over the shedding Corgi any day.

 

astrid

[Amy in NH]

I have a labradoodle who doesn't shed. I have never brought him to the groomer, because I groom him myself.

[Ellie]

My French bulldog doesn't shed much...unless someone scatches him all over, and then you can see the fur fly, as it were. :D Also, when I bathe him (not very regularly, as he is an inside dog and doesn't need it), I use a dog brush and brush him as I blow him dry. Then there's black hair all over the bathroom floor. But otherwise, on a daily basis, I don't notice it.

 

Greyhounds hardly shed at all, so I would guess that whippets and Italian greyhounds don't, either. My friend's miniature pinscher doesn't seem to shed much.

[DarlaS]

Unless you're talking about a dog with true hair (poodle, Bichon, etc.) any short haired dog is going to shed like crazy. What's worse, those short hairs get stuck in fabric and carpet and are tough to get out. The coats of longer-coated or double-coated breeds tend to ball up and form dust bunnies, easier IMHO to deal with. I speak from experience-- I live with two giant double-coated breeds and a Pembroke Welsh Corgi with short hair. I'd take ten shedding Leos over the shedding Corgi any day.

 

astrid

 

You're actually making me relieved that we added a German Shepherd to the family rather than a beagle.

 

Our husky has really slick leg hairs and makes lovely dust bunnies with her soft white undercoat. (But let's not talk about the 2x a year coat blowing which also leaves the guard hairs all over. The long and prickly guard hairs. :tongue_smilie:)

[Splash]

We now have a Portuguese Water Dog and a miniature Poodle and I love that they don't shed. The do have things stick to their legs/feet but I still think it's easier to deal with than all the shedding. Before kids we had labs and boxers. The labs shedding was amazing. I do not miss that at all. We wash and brush them about once a week unless we do something really messy. I'm not sure it is necessary for everyone to do it so often but that was the allergist request to keep allergens down.

[bettyandbob]

I have a poodle/bichon mix. He's a rescue. We've never gone to a groomer. We have clippers and scissors. We would never make it past the first round of "Groomer Has It" (an animal planet reality show), but he looks fine. It's not hard to groom him.

 

I would be in a lot of trouble if I had a dog that shed. That won't happen because 40% of this household is allergic to shedding breeds.

[C_l_e_0..Q_c]

I have a Shih Tzu. Grooming very necessary, but almost no lost hair around the house.

However, with any dog, you can ask for the cut that *you* want, not the one currently in fashion. If you want the legs trimmed, just ask, it's the same price.

Our Shih Tzu is kept short haired all over. He's rather cute too, with short hair.

[jenn-]

Thank you for the replies so far. I will say that my short haired JRT mix had hair that was nearly impossible to get off of clothing. Right now I am leaning towards a rat terrier puppy or a schnauzer puppy. Now to see what I can convince DH we need.

 

I have a Shih Tzu. Grooming very necessary, but almost no lost hair around the house.

However, with any dog, you can ask for the cut that *you* want, not the one currently in fashion. If you want the legs trimmed, just ask, it's the same price.

Our Shih Tzu is kept short haired all over. He's rather cute too, with short hair.

 

But he might get laughed at on the puppy playground.

[StaceyinLA]

when I get MY next dog (after my elderly chihuahuas pass), I am planning to get a standard poodle. I refuse to have any more shedding animals in my house. Also, as much as I LOVE to rescue, I am not rescuing a large breed adult dog again. There are just too many ill-bred big dogs in our area to risk it. We had to rehome two this year due to them killing a kitten we rescued (and yes, the vet helped us find single dog families for them).

 

I think planning for the expense of grooming will be preferable for me (and I think for a single dog it won't be too bad - about $40 where we live). At least I know the dog will get bathed, groomed and nails done every 4-6 weeks. I'll do flea/tick/heartworm treatment at the same time and won't have to think about any of it til the next grooming time comes.

 

Yeah, I think I'll like that just fine...

[Laura Corin]

We have a non-shedding dog, but I clip her myself. The clippers are easy to use and paid for themselves in two clippings. They are similar to this.

 

Best wishes

 

Laura

[jenn-]

For those that cut their own, do you manage to give them the traditional cut of the breed or do you just do a shave down?

[Laura Corin]

For those that cut their own, do you manage to give them the traditional cut of the breed or do you just do a shave down?

 

Mine's a labradoodle, so the 'traditional' cut is not very extreme. I cut the body on a long guide following contours, use the same guide to cut straight down the legs, then use scissors to cut around the feet, sensitive areas, and to cut into the head fur to make it fluffy. It looks roughly like Berti on this page.

 

Laura

[livingnlearning]

My parent's Boston terrier doesn't shed at all-short haired and slick!

 

A schnauzer is a real nice dog! I would just clip them yourself, get an pair of aldi's and just trim, no special look.

[keptwoman]

Our boxer hrdlyshedsatall.

[5LittleMonkeys]

I've had Schnauzers for years (3 of them) Sometimes I would take them to the groomers but most often I would groom them myself. I would often shave them into their standard look...fringe around the bottom of their body but it was just easier to shave them all one length.

 

Two things I wanted to mention though:

 

My mom has a Rat Terrier and it sheds HORRIBLY and you can not get that hair out of clothing or furniture.

 

My niece has a longhair Chihuahua and it, so far, doesn't shed at all. I even tried to pull some hair out one night and couldn't even pull it out. I don't know if that's typical but thought I'd mention it.

 

Happy puppy hunting! Make sure to post pics when you get one.:D

[jenn-]

I've had Schnauzers for years (3 of them) Sometimes I would take them to the groomers but most often I would groom them myself. I would often shave them into their standard look...fringe around the bottom of their body but it was just easier to shave them all one length.

 

Two things I wanted to mention though:

 

My mom has a Rat Terrier and it sheds HORRIBLY and you can not get that hair out of clothing or furniture.

 

My niece has a longhair Chihuahua and it, so far, doesn't shed at all. I even tried to pull some hair out one night and couldn't even pull it out. I don't know if that's typical but thought I'd mention it.

 

Happy puppy hunting! Make sure to post pics when you get one.:D

 

Thank you for letting me know. It really made little sense to me that they would be low shedders, but I read it on some website. I have never know a short haired breed that doesn't shed frequently.