# How old should the puppy be for her 1st trim?



## Ginabeena

I have an 8 week old puppy and she looks like a little teddy bear! We love it. When will she need her first trim and does the face have to be shaved? How can I keep that teddy bear face??


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## Silverbs

Get your puppy to a groomer as soon as you can! Even if you don't want her haircut right away! She needs to get used to being bathed dried brushed and having her nails trimmed and ears plucked! The salon I work at gives deals for puppy grooms up until 4 months of age 25$ for just a bath and brush out with a little bit of neatening and 35$ for the full haircut! She needs to get used to it since she is a poodle and will need grooming often! I personally love a shaved face and every time my boy gets even the tiniest bit fuzzy I buzz it all back down to almost naked  but the great thing about poodles is you can do whatever you want with their hair! Leave her face fuzzy or make it naked or just leave a mustache! My favorite part about the shaved poodle parts is that You never have a crusty drippy yucky muzzle, with shaved feet you never have toe mats and They don't Drag extra stuff in from Your yard and the band Shaved around the tail keeps away butt matts from crazy tail wiggles and cuts back on potty stowaways! Just remember their hair always grows back so you can try all sorts of things with it! Have fun with your new pup!


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## Mom-n-Reiki

When I brought Reiki home at eight weeks, we groomed him the next day. I loved the teddy bear look, and planned to wait a little longer, but the fluff around his face and feet got messy quick and I got really tired really fast of people insisting I just bought a doodle (lol). I asked the breeder to wait on shaving his face and feet (I wanted to have my mentor do it) so I visited constantly with my clippers and turned them on and put the side on his face and feet while cuddling him to get him used to the feel of it. This helped tons!!! The breeder gave him two baths before he came home. I groomed him weekly after that, and handled and brushed him every day, and within a month or so he was sleeping through his groom. (He would get mad at me when I had to wake him up to do the other side!)

While you don't need to groom her weekly, I would take her to the groomers as soon as possible so you can get her used to the experience. It is a common misconception to wait, but the longer you wait to expose them to things, the harder it is to get them used to it (and feel more amiable towards it) in the future. You can ask them not to shave her face/feet/tail/whatever though the sooner you do, the better she'll be...sooner (and the easier it is on your groomer!). When the hair gets a little longer and a bit more unruly, if you still want to wait, you can ask them just to trim it or shape it a little. At home, you can use the side of an electric razor (not the blade, the plastic part) and rub it on her face to get her used to the feel if you plan on shaving her face later, but want to leave the teddy bear look for now (and on a Toy....oooh! I bet she is precious!!!). You should definitely ask for at least a sanitary trim (so she stays clean when she potties!). The more you handle her face/feet/tail/ears/everything now, the easier it will be on everyone later, as well as the experience will become much less stressful. 

Hope this helps!


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## rikkia

You can choose whatever clip you like, be warned once you do a shaved face you'll most likely fall in love with it and never go back to a teddy look.

Ask around the local dog walking areas where people go for grooming to get a measure of where people think is good in the area.

A few tips for pups before you even book a visit to a groomer would be...

If you have some human clippers start acclimating your pup to them. Rub them against your pup switched off, then switch them on but not touching the pup, gradually get closer and closer until they are touching the pup and running. All that over a few weeks.

Poke and prod every part of your pups body including grabbing legs and fondling paws/nails with your fingers.. Stick your finger inside of the pads run it around. Make it all a game filled with kind words treats and kisses/hugs.

Edit: pipped to the post by Mom-n-Reiki by a few short minutes on almost everything


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## SableTMC

*Face shave demo*

Our puppy has been getting brushed since he was just a few weeks old at the breeders, and the litter first got used to the clippers at 5 wks. I'm partial to the shaved/trimmed look since it seems like the puppy's expression and demeanor is easier to recognize, and shaving the tummy area will mean keeping him cleaner during potty time. Check out the videos for a great demo we got at Princetin Poodles a few days ago.


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## Carley's Mom

I would go right away and get the puppy used to grooming. They don't have to shave the face.


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## Poodlebeguiled

Such good advice already. I just had my show boy done for the first time at a professional groomers because he was starting to look like a yak at almost 6 months old. But I have been bathing, combing, drying and shaving his face, feet, and bum since I got him at 8 weeks. (thanks to You tube) Well, about a week or so later because he came freshly done from the breeder. When I took Matisse to the groomer, he was better behaved for her than for me as far as wiggling or moving on the table. lol. Maurice, my little black boy too, has been done by me many times, including scissoring his whole body. I don't need him to have a show coat so he's clipped pretty short by me. My butcher job probably would horrify a real groomer, but I don't care right now. I also love the shaved face because I can make out their beautiful, longish muzzles and head shape. But like it was said, you can do however you want since it all grows back fast. But it wouldn't be a bad idea to shave for a while so your pup gets use to it. Soooo much easier when they're young.


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## Lou

I agree with everyone, it's great to get the puppy used to being groomed early, but I do love the teddy bear look 

And if you keep the hair around their lips short, there's no mess no yuckiness , my babies have perfectly fresh breath 

Ps. I recommend brushing every day , my poodles have zero mats and are always soft and they are so used to it that they just stand there the entire time I'm brushing them  they get a great treat afterwards that's why they behave so well while being brushed hehehehe 









Sent from Petguide.com Free App


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## 3dogs

Start as soon as your pup arrives. Nothing major just rubbing feet, ears, muzzle is a great start. If your breeder is any good then the acclimation process should have already started. My 2 pups that are of my breeding started nail trims at 3 weeks & the nails are done 2 x a week. Sank was clipped at 4 wks. Face & feet shaved at 5 weeks. Now I put them on the grooming table daily sometimes just to stack them or brush them. Clippers are turned on so they get used to the vibrations. Started weekly baths at 5 wks. If you like the fuzzy face just tell your groomer that. Asian Fusion is my thing right now so I like hair on my Louisa's face, it is the ears I play around with. It is NEVER to early to start training your pup.


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## Ginabeena

*Thank You*

Thanks for all your great advice. I will be posting another thread today about potty training so your input would be greatly appreciated. I forgot how to log on here thus my long absence.


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