# Guidance on Bathing and Daily Grooming for Standard



## TerraFirma (12 mo ago)

I'm gathering info about the realities of living with a Standard Poodle. I've always had wash and wear dogs with, thankfully, little to no odor (well, unless they roll in some foul death stink....). As I'm skimming through this grooming board, I'm realizing that you all bathe your Poodles _a lot_, some even weekly or more! With blow outs post wash, what kind of time commitment is this? Is the frequent washing because the coat picks up dirt easily? Is it a natural oil issue mucking up the coat (I have experienced this with Airedales...so oily dirt just coats each hair)? Should I prepare myself for weekly wash/blow out? 

Also, let's say your Standard is in a modern cut, what would be the daily time to keep that looking spot on (not show spot on but pet spot on)? I was pondering the daily groom factor this week and realized, this coat will pick up all the leaves and mulch bits and so on. Is that correct? If ears are full, do you put a snood on every day before feeding? 

If there's a good thread on what to expect for the full spectrum of daily, weekly, monthly grooming for a pet standard poodle who has some coat length vs short, please share. I saw in another thread that Poodles are a "hobby" and a "lifestyle" and now I'm kind of understanding why. Am I a bit scared? Yes. lol. Am I turned off? Nope not yet.... 😁


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## PeggyTheParti (Sep 5, 2019)

We don’t all bathe our poodles a lot.

Peggy gets a bath every 4-6 weeks when she goes to the groomer. I don’t remember the last time I bathed her myself. And she actually smells best around the 4th week. Her natural scent is really quite delightful. 

I would consider poodle ownership a hobby because I like doing stuff with Peggy, and she is a very bright, sensitive, _curious_ girl who needs regular challenges, stimulation, and companionship.

As for the coat picking up bits.... For perspective, a friend has to pause our doggy playdates every 20 minutes or so to pluck debris from her collie. We don’t have to do this with Peggy. Just a quick towel on her feet and legs if she’s been playing in mud and wants to lounge on our creamy shag rugs.


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## PeggyTheParti (Sep 5, 2019)

Probably our biggest grooming challenge has been preventing ear and tail mats. I like to keep these parts fluffy, but my brushing technique isn’t the best. Current solution is to just keep them short. In this low maintenance clip, I’ve not had to give her more than a few superficial brushes since her January groom.


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## reraven123 (Jul 21, 2017)

I bathe Zephyr before clipping, and I clip face, feet, tail and sanitary about every 2 to 2.5 weeks. Body gets clipped about every third or fourth time I do the face. He gets daily hikes where he runs through the woods and mud and water. Usually it just brushes out, sometimes in summer I rinse the mud off of his feet and legs when we get home. I brush and comb thoroughly once a week, and also do toenails, clean and pluck ears, and check teeth.

I do not use a dryer after bathing, just let him air dry and comb out while he is still slightly damp. I bathe before clipping because a dirty coat will dull my clipper blades, and also the clip will not be as smooth and even, especially on the body. Not using a dryer gives a slightly rougher clip than I would get with one, but I am happy with the results I get without it.

Not a real big time commitment, about an hour or so once a week to do the brush/comb/toenails/ears and 3-4 hours every few weeks for clipping. In between brushing to get burrs, mud whatever out of the coat is usually fairly quick and easy.


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## TeamHellhound (Feb 5, 2021)

How much grooming you have to do depends on a lot of things. If you are going to get a show prospect, then yes, be prepared to do a lot of grooming, including weekly baths and banding. For a pet is a short coat, you won't need to do as much. That said, I probably don't groom Simon as often as I should. He hasn't had a bath in weeks, and hasn't been clipped (other than his face and feet) in that long either. 

As far as how much time you can expect, it took me about two hours start to finish for his bath and blow dry the last time, since I was using the lower setting on the dryer. Clipping, including setting his body pattern (he's in a Royal Dutch clip at the moment) was another two-ish hours on another day. Yesterday, it took me two hours to brush three days worth of slopping through puddles and mud out of his coat.


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## Liz (Oct 2, 2010)

Peggy looks good! Good enough that I might try a German-ische clip on Mia.


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## X skully X (Nov 21, 2021)

Poodle coats soak up a lot of water. The forced air dryer blows most of the water out of the coat. I can easily soak 2 or 3 towels just squeezing the water out and that’s after I’ve squeezed as much as I can out in the bath, but that was the long shaggy puppy coat at 4 months old. Now that I’ve shaved him down to 1/2 inch I only need 1 towel but he still kinda drips everywhere on the way to the grooming table lol. The fluff dryer to straighten the coat is so you can get an even trim when giving haircuts. That way when they get curly again it won’t look uneven. I don’t think you NEED a fluff dryer unless you are going for that polished look. I found a fairly cheap forced air dryer and use it on all the dogs now. I like the natural curly look of poodles. Most of your time will be spent brushing to keep out mats. Like others said above, a clean coat helps to not dull the blades on your clippers. Plus it’s easier for you and the dog to trim a clean tangle free coat.

having a dark poodle I can see every bit of dust and debris in his coat haha. He is kinda like a duster, I make sure to sweep and vacuum well on the days I give him a bath. I have a white dog that sheds and it’s kinda funny when I have to pick white hair off of my poodle who has black hair 😂
Edited to add: I use a snood to dull the noise of the dryer because my pup is still a bit wary of the dryer. His ear hair is still short but even then they dip into the water bowl, I don’t worry about it though. Even though poodle grooming sound kind of daunting I enjoy the whole process and it’s a great bonding experience beyond other bonding stuff we do together.


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## TerraFirma (12 mo ago)

X skully X said:


> I have a white dog that sheds and it’s kinda funny when I have to pick white hair off of my poodle who has black hair 😂


I never thought of this...I am smitten with the blacks most...and have two shedding white dogs. This future black boy could look like my black winter coats! (I live with hair rollers everywhere, including the car). Whites/cream Poodles just got way more appealing! 🤣


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## Happy'sDad (Jul 4, 2020)

I try to bathe and groom Happy every 2 weeks - 3 weeks at most. After 3 weeks she just seems kinda dusty.


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## TerraFirma (12 mo ago)

PeggyTheParti said:


> Probably our biggest grooming challenge has been preventing ear and tail mats. I like to keep these parts fluffy, but my brushing technique isn’t the best. Current solution is to just keep them short. In this low maintenance clip, I’ve not had to give her more than a few superficial brushes since her January groom.
> 
> View attachment 488520


She's such a beautiful girl (and those "deep thought" eyes 😍)!


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## Starla (Nov 5, 2020)

This is Phoebe’s current cut and you can see she still has puppy fluff. It catches everything from the yard. Sticks and twigs and leaves all hang on for dear life and have to be picked out carefully. That said, I only brush her poms and tail a couple times a week. I do her topknot usually every 2-3 days. Her tail has never had so much as a tangle. Her body doesn’t need any brushing at this length (1/4”). Her last groom took about 3 hours I think to wash, dry, and clip. When she had a fluffy jacket and pants it was 4. I wash her every 2-3 weeks typically for a few reasons: 
1. To get her used to it since she is a pup, when we do it more often, she acts better in the tub, during the blow out. 
2. It’s easier to brush through her poms (her full coat, when it was all long) when she is recently washed. As she gets further from her bath, her hair gets curlier and needs more frequent brushing/more product to get through.
3. I like the way she looks and smells freshly washed. 
She has never had a doggy smell, and poodles are the least greasy dogs I’ve ever had. They don’t have the terrier greasiness I’ve experienced on my jrt mix and bull terrier in the past.









I do plan on shaving her down after her birthday because it’ll be swimming season and I am not going to be rinsing and conditioning and drying her fluff daily.


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## Skylar (Jul 29, 2016)

Are you planning to groom yourself or have a professional groomer?

Many of us here on PF groom our dogs and we can get rather finicky and obsessed with grooming. For myself I have minipoos and I prefer to wash them every two weeks and clip their face, feet and sanitary area at that time. A full body groom may be 4-6 weeks depending on my time and if they are growing something out for a change in style. I find it’s easier to clip a clean face and feet when they’ve only had 2 weeks growth. I’m also very involved in the dog sport world, taking classes, teaching and competing so I always want my poodles to look freshly groomed. I enjoy the compliments I get when people admire my dogs so lots of bathing, high velocity blow drying and groom is my hobby that I share with my dogs. 

However I think most poodle owners send their dog once a month to the groomer and in between they comb and brush their dog. Of course if the dog rolled in something or made and enemy of a skunk they would have to bathe and let the dog air dry.

It’s really up to you how much time and money you want to invest. Sending a dog to the groomers is expensive, but so is your time grooming at home. The plus is you are not vacuuming and cleaning dog hair daily. The time you spend cleaning up after short hair dogs translates into time spend with poodle hair on the dog. Of course you have short hair dogs so you’ll do both.


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## Happy'sDad (Jul 4, 2020)

Skylar said:


> Many of us here on PF groom our dogs and we can get rather finicky and obsessed with grooming.


 Guilty as charged. Maybe we need to form a support group.


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## TerraFirma (12 mo ago)

Skylar said:


> Are you planning to groom yourself or have a professional groomer?
> 
> Many of us here on PF groom our dogs and we can get rather finicky and obsessed with grooming. For myself I have minipoos and I prefer to wash them every two weeks and clip their face, feet and sanitary area at that time. A full body groom may be 4-6 weeks depending on my time and if they are growing something out for a change in style. I find it’s easier to clip a clean face and feet when they’ve only had 2 weeks growth. I’m also very involved in the dog sport world, taking classes, teaching and competing so I always want my poodles to look freshly groomed. I enjoy the compliments I get when people admire my dogs so lots of bathing, high velocity blow drying and groom is my hobby that I share with my dogs.
> 
> ...


I have already found a groomer who does beautiful work (and priced out the annual cost), so initially, my thought is professional grooming with in between tidying by me. I have no issue doing a face/feet trims, maybe graduating to learning other easy cuts, but botched scissor work scares me. I am a bit of nit picker by nature, so I can see myself tidying the dog up daily - it's therapeutic and bonding time for me. I was just really caught off guard when I read about weekly bathing!


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## TerraFirma (12 mo ago)

Starla said:


> This is Phoebe’s current cut and you can see she still has puppy fluff. It catches everything from the yard. Sticks and twigs and leaves all hang on for dear life and have to be picked out carefully. That said, I only brush her poms and tail a couple times a week. I do her topknot usually every 2-3 days. Her tail has never had so much as a tangle. Her body doesn’t need any brushing at this length (1/4”). Her last groom took about 3 hours I think to wash, dry, and clip. When she had a fluffy jacket and pants it was 4. I wash her every 2-3 weeks typically for a few reasons:
> 1. To get her used to it since she is a pup, when we do it more often, she acts better in the tub, during the blow out.
> 2. It’s easier to brush through her poms (her full coat, when it was all long) when she is recently washed. As she gets further from her bath, her hair gets curlier and needs more frequent brushing/more product to get through.
> 3. I like the way she looks and smells freshly washed.
> ...


....I may change my tune someday, but _topknots are everything_!


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## Oonapup (Oct 16, 2020)

Since I started paying for regular grooming, I do a lot less brushing and bathing on my own. She’s been going every 5 weeks or so and only every other is a full groom - in between she does a “fluff and buff” (bath and nails) plus face feet tail clipped. She is going for her “in between” Fluff and buff on Monday and I have not bathed her since her last session - but there has been snow on the ground so no opportunities to get muddy. I have probably brushed her only 2-3 times since her last groom and those were more to keep her in the habit than anything else since she was clipped pretty short. This next stretch between grooms her hair will be longer so once her hair re-curls after being blown out I will probably have to brush her once a week plus attend to trouble spots (ears and tail). If it gets muddy again she will probably get bathed at least once in there, or at least a foot/leg bath. But if it stays snowy and/or frozen I may not have to bathe her. In the spring, summer and fall I bathe her more often because she gets dirtier and also bc it helps our allergies. But still, it’s only about once a month unless she gets filthy. Oona is in a simple short overall clip (maybe 1/4 to 1/2 inch when first clipped) with some length on her ears, top knot and tail. In the fall she had leg bracelets but I had them take them off to avoid snow balls this season. So it’s not too much work if you keep them short or you pay someone else to.


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## curlflooffan (Mar 27, 2020)

I have a small black poodle in a somewhat long coat. I find that she starts matting easily around 1.5 weeks post bath so I am bathing at least every 2 weeks. I also find that she gets a bit dusty. The coat really absorbs everything. 

She is however going through coat change so that might also be a contributing factor to the high maintenance.


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## cowpony (Dec 30, 2009)

My guys go to the groomer every 4-6 weeks. When Galen was at peak coat change I was grooming him daily. Now he gets brushed every 2-3 days. Ritter gets at least some brushing every day: he enjoys the attention and gets jealous if anyone else gets brushed. I don't always do a complete brushing in every session. If one area gives extra trouble I concentrate on that, finish up with some relaxing brushing around the neck and ears (which they enjoy), and then do another brushing session the next day. They most object to getting their legs and tails brushed. I normally do a full session with all four legs plus tail only once a week or so.


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## Sroodle8 (Dec 23, 2021)

I have a poodle mix, so I'm not sure if my experience is typical. I get her professionally groomed every 6 weeks and keep her clipped pretty short. I would like to say that I give her a bath once in between grooms, but that is more of a goal. Sometimes I make it, sometimes not. The short coat means that brushing/combing requirements are minimal. Once or twice a week, mostly focusing on tail, face, and ears which have longer hair.


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## 94Magna_Tom (Feb 23, 2021)

Elroy (Standard Poodle) gets professionally groomed every 6 weeks. Three weeks in, I'll bath him and do a face/feet/sanitary and nails. After toweling him off as much as possible, I let him air dry the rest of the way. No dryer at all. Brushing and combing again after he's dry. This means he gets a bath every 3 weeks. I do wipe his feet and legs clean with a damp cloth when he gets dirty feet to help keep the house clean.


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## Bailey_Whiskey (Jan 18, 2021)

I think it depends on how clean you want your poodle too. 
My family is a little like those neat freak types so we bath all three of our dogs at least once a week (ideally), more if we need to. Reason being we all have allergies and the coats really hold the allergens. Brushing happens on rotation (ie my poodle doesn’t get brushed very often, but always a quick brushing before a bath)
Time wise, Whiskey has a rather thick coat and takes about 30 minutes to fully soak through with a shower head. Another 30 minutes working to get the soap to his skin. Then 1-2 hours on the HV dryer. A quick 15 minutes of fluffing with a hair dryer and tadaa a beautiful poodle. 








But when everyone is busy with work, the dogs get brushed 1 time a week and a bath in 1.5-2weeks 🤣 Oh and not to forget our regime of washing and fluffing the feet after walks.


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## Rose n Poos (Sep 22, 2017)

Tom, I think I remember that you let Elroy air dry on occasion? That's a legit option with a short groom.

The ears full might be less an issue than if they're long. Snoods are an option. I crafted a "headband" after watching a dog show behind the scenes by cutting a section of nylon trouser stockings. 









We'd go from the Gidgety sort of look to an Audrey Hepburn when it was first put on. I still use these on the boys when trying to keep their ears out of my eyes when clipping them.


Mine are miniatures but the concepts apply, smaller scale .

My girls were bathed and blown dry every two weeks by me and I'd do sani and some face/feet trimming as needed. They got professionally groomed at between 2.5-3m, with comb thru's and brush outs usually every other day.

We usually had the body clipped very close, leaving the rest floofier, so they had some room to expand.

After we got our boys, I decided that I'd start doing more, maybe all, the grooming and eventually did. I'm not good at it, even after two years, but it can get a bit addictive .

Definitely burrs and such can be a real pain, but grass just shakes off, mostly.



















Some of this might explain the bath every two weeks, but, yeah, the longer the fur, the more they just don't feel nice to the touch compared to freshly bathed, a bit grungy maybe. Smell hardly enters into it, unless "they roll in foul death stink" .


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## 94Magna_Tom (Feb 23, 2021)

@Rose n Poos 
"Tom, I think I remember that you let Elroy air dry on occasion? That's a legit option with a short groom."
Yes, correct. I edited my post to reflect this.


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## Rose n Poos (Sep 22, 2017)

I forgot to note that the shape and size of the food and water bowls will make a difference too.


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## Apricot mini momma (Dec 22, 2020)

During Beau’s first year, I spent an incredible amount of time brushing and combing, and practicing with the clippers, dremel for toenails, and bath and brushes. At least 5 days a week, I would brush him, and weekly he would get some kind of treatment, either trimming his feet, face, sanitary, and/or body. It always seemed like torture at first, he needed to get used to it, and I needed to learn. He’s much more comfortable with it now. 

Beau is 25 lbs, and it used to take me 2 1/2 hours to go through a brushing, bath, blow dry and nails. Now it takes me just over an hour for all of that. With maybe a little more time for prep and cleanup. 

At about a year old, I finally found a groomer that I could keep a regular schedule with, and that I liked. So he goes to the groomer every six weeks and I bathe him every two weeks in between. I have allergies, so at about two weeks I start to notice whatever it is he has collected. Also, I like him to be soft and fluffy. For both of those reasons, I bathe him every two weeks.


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## EJStevenP (Oct 27, 2021)

Mine go to the groomer every 6 weeks. They get a bath, anal glands, nails clipped, ears plucked, and then what I call the SHAVE EM DOWN. Face and feet cut close and body is slightly longer. I let the groomer do what she wants with the top knot, tail poof, and ears. The best part is seeing how slim and muscular they are really are under their curls. 

Also agree that once the adult coat comes in it is much easier to manager. The puppy coats (JEFFREY) tend to attract every type of twig, burr, and dirt imaginable. Once the tight curls arrive all of that stuff either gets repelled or just shakes off. 

The only time I give a bath at home is if there is something catastrophic. Last week, for example, we had an unexpected warm day and the majority of the snow from the recent snowstorm melted. Jeffrey got through the dog door and apparently rolled in it like a pig because when I got home from work he was unrecognizable. Otherwise I might give a quick brush to get whatever it is off them and wait for the next groomer appointment.


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## cowpony (Dec 30, 2009)

I've also found that environmental conditions make a difference in how long it takes me to brush them. Right after they come home from the groomer their hair is conditioned and blown straight. It's fast and easy to brush them then. That lasts around 2 weeks, unless they get wet. Then the hair starts curling again, and working a brush through the coat takes more effort. We are at that stage right now with Ritter. For some reason he is getting mats on his elbows right now; I need to hit them with detangler and comb them out every single day.


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## TerraFirma (12 mo ago)

Last night I visited my parents for the obligatory Sunday dinner, and I found myself plucking ear fuzz and pulling matted undercoat off my mother's Wire Fox Terrier (heinous little piranha puppy that makes me love my Smooths all the more, but I digress). I realized, ok, I have every option to leave this dog as is, but I'm compelled to pick him up and fuss over his coat every single time I see him. Part of this is my mother's laissez faire attitude about keeping coat and my eye that zeros in on_ everything_ not quite right. But I realized as I was trying to calmly manage the flailing piranha in my lap that I was entering my zen state....fussing is therapeutic for me and productive in terms of the dog learning to be tolerant of handling. It was a good moment for me to digest my potential future life. I should keep my Smooths groomed up, but a tiny bit of neck, rump, and tail fringe just doesn't bother me like unkempt long hair does. 

....I think I can do this.... 🤣


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## reraven123 (Jul 21, 2017)

TerraFirma said:


> ....I think I can do this.... 🤣


You will never look at your poodle without seeing something about their coat that needs to be fixed! I am in awe of professional groomers who do such a good job in one session. I am seeing things that need to be trimmed/evened out/reshaped for days after clipping my dog.


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## calamityangie (Jun 23, 2021)

Ooh big question - honestly it depends on what blend of home grooming v. professional grooming you plan on doing, the difference between the first year or so and how grooming changes after your pup comes through the coat change, and (to be totally transparent) how well you train your pup to handle the various challenges of extensive grooming. The more you train them, the more they will tolerate and the longer you can keep their coat and do more elaborate grooms.

I groom both of my standard poods at home (20 weeks and 1.5 years) - so I will respond at length with that in mind. Much of this stuff you'll still want to do even if you take your pup to the pros, but they will handle the big, full grooms (which are the largest time commitment). Whatever you choose, I recommend not going any longer than 4-6 weeks between haircuts. I've outlined the bathing schedule I recommend below.

So, while your pup is under about 8 months or so and still in his puppy coat, I do recommend weekly bathing and blowout. This is because puppies are gross LOL. They pee and poop on themselves, they roll around in mud and jump in puddles, and for whatever reason, I feel like the texture of the puppy coat holds on to dirt and is greasier than the adult poodle coat (more on this below). Weekly grooming also gets them adapted to as much of the adult process as possible while their little brains are forming and they are most open to learning new things. Good news is that, with the puppy coat, and given the size of your average puppy, the whole bath and blowout takes around an hour. You'll probably spend another hour or so after that shaving face, feet, and sani areas (though you can do that every other week for a pet clip, rather than weekly) and doing a little trim up on the puppy coat with grooming shears. Outside of the weekly groom, you should set aside some time (like 15 mins) a day to do a little brushing and maybe clean his ears and brush his teeth like once a week. He won't necessarily "need" all of this stuff done weekly, but again its all about getting your pup used to each phase of the process.

Now from about 8-10 months to 12-18 months you come to the toughest time as a standard poodle owner. Not only has pup likely reached his adult size (or about 90% of it), but he will start the coat change. Your fluffy, easy puppy coat will transition to the coarse and curly coat of an adult pood. Because poodles don't naturally shed OUT, the puppy coat sheds into the adult coat where it is growing out of the same hair follicle as the old puppy coat. This is what leads to mats basically forming overnight. Or, if your pup has a particularly fine coat (like a lot of light colored poods) mats feel like the form in minutes. During this time you will have to brush and comb your poodle basically daily (look up line-brushing technique on YouTube) and mats will still form in the hot spots (behind the ears, on the neck, in the armpits). Most people elect to shave their dogs down during this time, but if you keep any length on the hair, just make sure you look up how to safely/painlessly comb out mats and be prepared for literal hours of brushing and combing each week. However, during this time you can safely move out your full grooms to bi-weekly. Your pup will be big enough that he should have less trouble with peeing and pooing on himself and his adult coat is better at repelling dirt and resisting grease/oils. The blow dry during this time is ESSENTIAL (I'll direct you to YouTube again to learn the proper drying technique with a force dryer and stand dryer/heat dryer). Not only will it help blow out loose hairs, but getting the hair as straight as possible will help ease your brushing burden and make it harder for the hair to tangle and form mats between blow outs. You can do a full haircut every other bath or so, and you can start using clippers with comb attachments as the hair texture improves, finishing with scissoring. During this time your full bath and blow out will take closer to two hours, and you can add another two hours or so for clipping and scissoring work when you do that. Again, if you keep your pup in a utility cut (kennel clip, miami clip, etc) you can save time by clipping the hair down to one length over the whole body.

After the coat change (you should be in the clear from about 18 months), you can transition to an adult schedule on grooming. We're at about every three weeks with my older dog and we pretty much do the full groom every other cycle (so bath and blowout every 3 weeks over 2 hours and full groom every 6 weeks over about 4 hours) and we do a full brush brush a couple of times a week which takes about 45 mins. I've had him in a modified continental, in a Modern trim, and he's now in a modified German clip/T-clip (since the puppy chewed off all his ear hair lol). It is much quicker/nicer to keep your pup in coat throughout the transition as much as possible rather than try to grow enough hair out for one of these clips from nothing/a shave down. But if you do shave down, you can get back to enough coat for a longer clip in about 4-6 months. If you keep ear and leg hair long, there are some protective things you can do (banding, wrapping, snoods, gaiters, etc). I always banded my older dog's ear hair when it was long since that was the simplest thing and we have a set of gaiters now to protect his long leg hair in the snow.

I'm a bit type-A, so I am always clipping a bit here and scissoring a bit there, but if you get all your prep work right, you don't necessarily have to do everything at once when it comes to keeping a pup looking good in a pet trim. I am also quite slow and do a lot of scissoring work bc I like the look better, so you can undoubtedly shave time off some of my noted averages above by using clippers more. There are so many YouTube videos (my fav series is the Kitty Talks Dogs series from Transgroom, the ones she does with Vuitton and JoJo I have literally watched about 1k times) and there is a great book I always recommend to prospective and current poodle owners (Shirlee Kalstone's "Poodle Clipping and Grooming") that has a ton of info on the grooming process and the various clips. I think the most important thing is having the right equipment if you plan to groom at home: table, force dryer (ideally with stand dryer attachments), good shears, good clippers with plenty of blades and a full set of stainless steal comb attachments, a wand attachment in your shower for bathing (or access to a professional bathing environment), good long pin slicker brush, long pin combs, good grooming spray for brushing and scissoring, and professional quality shampoos and conditioners. The proper equipment will save you time and effort. If you want to see pictures of some of my home grooms or chat further, you can find us on Instagram @gusandbazthepoodles or on Reddit u/calamityangie


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## BennieJets (Oct 10, 2021)

When I first got her in the fall, I bathed my girl once per week. Part of that was due to it being fall and our yard is hardly grass and more a sand pit of weeds 🤪 Plus my partner has allergies so I wasn’t sure how much she’d be contributing to that bringing it all inside. It took some convincing to get her, so I didn’t want to have him regret his decision! Now that it’s winter and we’re more in the swing of things, it’s not a big deal for her to be bathed every two to three weeks. I reckon once she goes through coat change and I likely end up having her in a short clip, 3-4 weeks will be the routine.

For grooming I am operating much on the premise that Apricot Mini Momma mentioned— I’m always doing something, whether it is face, feet, nails, combing... more so I know she’ll get used to it and I’ll get better at it. She really wouldn’t take all that much time to brush through every few days. I like the fact that she’s learning to accept it and we’re working on building that bond. It’ll come in especially handy when coat change hits and daily maintenance is of more (temporary) importance.


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## Audi (Aug 3, 2021)

Liz said:


> Peggy looks good! Good enough that I might try a German-ische clip on Mia.


Aren’t her legs and feet divine? So straight.


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## Audi (Aug 3, 2021)

I brush and comb out her coat everyday. I don’t know if it’s because she’s a puppy but her snarls behind her ears and right before her back legs meet her torso, drive me nuts! I don’t bathe her every week,more like every 2 to 3 weeks. Anymore than that will dry her skin out. Mine is a miniature.


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## TerraFirma (12 mo ago)

calamityangie said:


> Ooh big question - honestly it depends on what blend of home grooming v. professional grooming you plan on doing, the difference between the first year or so and how grooming changes after your pup comes through the coat change, and (to be totally transparent) how well you train your pup to handle the various challenges of extensive grooming. The more you train them, the more they will tolerate and the longer you can keep their coat and do more elaborate grooms.
> 
> I groom both of my standard poods at home (20 weeks and 1.5 years) - so I will respond at length with that in mind. Much of this stuff you'll still want to do even if you take your pup to the pros, but they will handle the big, full grooms (which are the largest time commitment). Whatever you choose, I recommend not going any longer than 4-6 weeks between haircuts. I've outlined the bathing schedule I recommend below.
> 
> ...


Thank you for all your type A detail! I love it - right up my alley. I have realized that if I stay in this house, I may need to get the garage finished and heated and plumbed so that I can have a grooming station. Or, for the second time in my life...I may have to get a house for a dog (my current home was because I couldn't rent with a Doberman, so I hit the market and found us a home).

_I saw the Vuitton groom_ and was  not just at the groomer's skills but how superb that animal is. He's so gracious and dignified. I have a deep weakness for wise old dogs.


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## Jilly SummerSunset (Sep 16, 2020)

Maggie, my 1 yr old SPOO, goes to the groomer on a schedule of about 12 - 16 weeks for a bathe and maintenance clip of poodle face, feet, and tail. I try to keep her about a 1/2" long. A little longer for cold weather. In between, I just slicker brush her, pluck & clean her ears as necessary and clip toenails as necessary. She has long ear leather so she does dip them in the water bowl. She doesn't have excessive hair length on them. My groomer will take her anytime for a quick bath if needed. Maggie's only really issue is she is a lint roller for the "Golden glitter" that I have to chase everyday from my Golden Retriever. I have to brush it off of her. My older SPOO, Pixie, gets the same schedule. She's Apricot so the glitter doesn't show on her. 😄


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## John J (May 14, 2020)

TerraFirma said:


> I'm gathering info about the realities of living with a Standard Poodle. I've always had wash and wear dogs with, thankfully, little to no odor (well, unless they roll in some foul death stink....). As I'm skimming through this grooming board, I'm realizing that you all bathe your Poodles _a lot_, some even weekly or more! With blow outs post wash, what kind of time commitment is this? Is the frequent washing because the coat picks up dirt easily? Is it a natural oil issue mucking up the coat (I have experienced this with Airedales...so oily dirt just coats each hair)? Should I prepare myself for weekly wash/blow out?
> 
> Also, let's say your Standard is in a modern cut, what would be the daily time to keep that looking spot on (not show spot on but pet spot on)? I was pondering the daily groom factor this week and realized, this coat will pick up all the leaves and mulch bits and so on. Is that correct? If ears are full, do you put a snood on every day before feeding?
> 
> If there's a good thread on what to expect for the full spectrum of daily, weekly, monthly grooming for a pet standard poodle who has some coat length vs short, please share. I saw in another thread that Poodles are a "hobby" and a "lifestyle" and now I'm kind of understanding why. Am I a bit scared? Yes. lol. Am I turned off? Nope not yet.... 😁


We all have our own way of dealing with Standard. Some keep them long, some medium and some just strp them altogether. Depending on your taste you can make it look like a Doddle, Poodle or mut, it's your call. Each choice raises the level of care. But it's not just the coat that needs attention, it's their ears, teeth, paws, etc. I've had four Standards. Everyone had some sort of consistant issue with their ears. The bushier the ears, the more the problem. As for the weekly bathing, not neccessary. Every two or three weeks is fine. Unless of course they spend their time out in the fields, streams and wooded property. My girls have all been house pets, so they didn't get dirty very quickly. Poodles are alot of work. Brushing daily if you want them long and triditionarly cut or once a week if you keep them in a simple puppy or beach cut. It's your call, but if this is a problem, a Spoo might not be your best choice. If you don't do this type of thing yourself, with food, grooming and a quick annual check up, could be thousands. 

Good Luck,
John


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## Minie (Oct 4, 2021)

Both our poodles are washed at least twice a week because of my husbands severe allergies. He is allergic to ex. grass wood etc. We take the dogs for walks in the forest and park several times a week, hence the baths. They air dry ( usually in front of the fireplace during winter). They are brushed daily which is approximately 15 minutes each. I believe in preventing matts rather than trying to solve them. Right now are pup I professionally groomed every 4 weeks to get accustomed to it. Our adult dog every six weeks.


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## kuriooo (Feb 17, 2010)

cowpony said:


> I've also found that environmental conditions make a difference in how long it takes me to brush them. Right after they come home from the groomer their hair is conditioned and blown straight. It's fast and easy to brush them then. That lasts around 2 weeks, unless they get wet. Then the hair starts curling again, and working a brush through the coat takes more effort. We are at that stage right now with Ritter. For some reason he is getting mats on his elbows right now; I need to hit them with detangler and comb them out every single day.


So true. Michigan has had crappy weather, and it’s about 2 weeks out from Kali’s last groom. So this weekend I have to do a great job brushing, combing, and an in-between bath & dry at the local pet store. It’s about a 3 hour job, minimum!! Groomers really earn their $$.


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## cowpony (Dec 30, 2009)

kuriooo said:


> So true. Michigan has had crappy weather, and it’s about 2 weeks out from Kali’s last groom. So this weekend I have to do a great job brushing, combing, and an in-between bath & dry at the local pet store. It’s about a 3 hour job, minimum!! Groomers really earn their $$.


Oh gosh, you just reminded me of my worst ever experience at the dog wash. Pogo and Snarky had gone swamp diving, so we went to a big box pet store that had just opened a self service dog wash. For some reason the store insisted on selling tokens at the customer service counter instead of setting up the washer to use quarters or credit cards. My husband got 8 tokens while I led the boys to the bathing room. 

Once he caught up to me with the tokens we put the dogs in the tubs. Then we inserted one token for each dog. Roar, swoosh, buzz. Each dog had a slight meltdown at the noise, so we stopped spraying them while they calmed down. Then the time ran out. We put two more tokens in. We got each dog halfway soaped up, and the time ran out. We put a third token in. Sudsing complete, on to rinse. The time ran out. Last token for each dog. Rinse complete, but now they need conditioner.

Hubby returns to the service counter to buy 8 more tokens. While he's gone another customer comes barging into the bathing room. Snarky and Pogo throw a conniption: "Woe, Woe, save us from this abuse, oh rescuer, please, Woe." Of course the other customer does not speak poodle and merely perceives two sixty pound spotted dogs lunging against the flimsy leads in the tub while simultaneously yelling "Woof, ack, cough, ack, waaaghoof." The other customer exits the room with alacrity. Hubby returns with tokens, and we lock the door to prevent further interruptions.

We are now slightly more familiar with the equipment, so it only takes one token per dog to get them completely conditioned and two tokens to rinse them. We have started on the dryer when a store employee bangs on the door to find out when we will be done. Both dogs launch their "Woe, woe, save us" routine. While I'm talking to the employee my token runs out, leaving a soggy Snarky still standing in the tub. I head up to the service counter to buy another 8 tokens. The employee who was so determined to evict us from the bathing room has conveniently disappeared, leaving me fourth in line with a single staff member at the register. Eventually I get my tokens and return to the bathing room. 

We feed all 8 tokens into the machines and point blower nozzles at the dogs until the dryers shut off. Both dogs are still dripping. My husband and I look at each other. We look at the customer service counter, which still has a single employee and four customers standing in line. We pack up our brushes, put our leashes on the dogs, and let the boys hustle us to store entrance as quickly as two relieved poodles can go. I glance back over my shoulder on the way out and see a line of water marking our path all the way from the wash room. I yell,"Sorry" to the clerk at the register as Snarky triggers the automatic door, digs in his feet, and drags me to the car.


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## Liz (Oct 2, 2010)

Poor you, and poor Pogo and Snarky! Actually I don't see any winners in this story--not the employees, nor the other customers, nor their dogs. Poor everybody!

What a story, though!


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## Skylar (Jul 29, 2016)

cowpony said:


> Oh gosh, you just reminded me of my worst ever experience at the dog wash. Pogo and Snarky had gone swamp diving, so we went to a big box pet store that had just opened a self service dog wash. For some reason the store insisted on selling tokens at the customer service counter instead of setting up the washer to use quarters or credit cards. My husband got 8 tokens while I led the boys to the bathing room.
> 
> Once he caught up to me with the tokens we put the dogs in the tubs. Then we inserted one token for each dog. Roar, swoosh, buzz. Each dog had a slight meltdown at the noise, so we stopped spraying them while they calmed down. Then the time ran out. We put two more tokens in. We got each dog halfway soaped up, and the time ran out. We put a third token in. Sudsing complete, on to rinse. The time ran out. Last token for each dog. Rinse complete, but now they need conditioner.
> 
> ...


OMG, I can't imagine a worst experience. For a sensitive poodle this could ruin all the training done to make a happy relaxed poodle during grooming.


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