Our Puppy Needs a Haircut...

When we were deciding what kind of puppy to get, we were looking for a breed that wouldn't shed much.  We were happy to hear that miniature schnauzers are hypoallergenic (or at least as much as a dog really can be).  They shed the way humans lose hair - just a little at a time.  I rarely ever notice dog hair on our furniture or the car seats, which is nice.  However, you have to make sure to groom minis well, because their hair can mat quite easily, especially in the "underarm" area.  I think this is because they have two coats - a very soft, downy undercoat, and then a wiry longer coat.  I brush him once in a while, but I haven't really noticed any matting in his hair.  The only exception is when he manages to find a towel to chew - the fluff sometimes gets matted in the hair around his mouth and gets so tangled that I can't brush it out.

This may be a controversial thing to say on a blog about a miniature schnauzer, but my husband and I don't like the Schnauzer cut.  (The Schnauzer cut is when the hair on the dog's back and sides is cut short, while the hair on the belly and legs is grown out along with the eyebrows and the beard.)  We think Oscar looks cuter when he's a little shaggy.

Even though we like to keep Oscar a little shaggy, we've already taken him to the groomer once, several months ago, and we'll be bringing him back this weekend.  It's really his face that needs upkeep, because his eyebrows and the hair on his muzzle starts to grow right into his eyes if we let it go too long.  I'm not brave enough to groom him on my own because I'm afraid that he'll fidget when I've got scissors near his face.  No good could come of that.

The last time we brought him to the groomer, the blade we chose made his hair way too short.  When they asked if we wanted to keep the hair on his head the same length, we said sure.  That was a mistake.  The combination of the two ended up looking pretty odd, since all of his hair was short except on the very top of his head.  This time, we'll ask for his hair to be left longer, and make sure that the hair on top of his head is the same length as the hair on the rest of his body.  I'll be sure to post pictures of how handsome he looks afterwards!

Can he even see?

He looked completely crazy after the short cut on the body but with long hair on the head.
He looks even crazier here with crossed eyes and his tongue out....

From a few weeks ago - getting a bit shaggy but still able to see.  Cute!