# Blowing Coat x2...



## Sonic and Aries (Feb 15, 2012)

I'm frustrated around here and had to share with some people who would understand...

Sonic is about a year and a half old and lately I've noticed he is getting mats again. I'm pretty sure is in the middle of his second stage of blowing coat.. No sooner than I get two or three brushed/cut out and give him a break then when I get him back to work on it again he's got as many mats as he had to begin with, ugh!!

If all this isn't bad enough, my sweet little girl Aries is 11 months and I was thrilled that she hasn't seemed to really start matting/blowing coat, but it appears I got a little ahead of myself because today during one of Sonic's breaks I got Aries up on my grooming station and she's got little mats starting all over her legs and belly too!

I think I'm in for a busy several days of grooming to keep up with two dogs that are blowing coat at the same time!!


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## shimpli (Mar 24, 2010)

wow That is really hard!! Good luck. Try to comb twice a day during this blowing coat time. I know it is very difficult to do having two to groom but it will help a lot. They are soo beautiful!!!


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## Suzi (Oct 27, 2010)

I hear your pain ! two Havanese are a lot of work. Mine go threw bad matting about twice a year. It helps to have a slicker comb I get lunch bags full of hair in one grooming. My experience has been that its more like shedding and the dead loose hair felts very close to the skin. Mine also play hard with each other causing more matting than a one dog home. I also fill the sink with about a cup of cheep conditioner and let them soak for about 5 min. It takes forever to groom two Havanese! But I think the deep conditioning helps.


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## Havafriend (Apr 29, 2012)

Hi, all this is new to me, so please explain "blowing coat". My 15 month old Lilly is getting a lot of mats now--I thought it was just my poor skills!


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## Luciledodd (Sep 5, 2009)

Agony, want to give the dog back, any discouring word you can think of, that is how ou feel when it happen. Rosie is three and I was just bragging on how easy she had become a few weeks back. Now is is one big mat. I am thinking about having her shaved down. Now for what it is: supposedly the puppy coat is being shed and tangles with the overcoat. It is not the same a schnauzer blowing coat or a poodle puppy. Their hair just comes out in tufts and it is over--not with our little angles. The only reason Havanese are such sweet and loving dogs is because they know that we would give them away because of this blowing coat thing.


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## HavaneseSoon (Nov 4, 2008)

You can get through this, if it is too stressful to comb out twice a day sometimes grooming sessions of 1-3 hours. The blowing coat gets worse before it gets better. Check behind those ears, that is where I found the first BIG mats. The pups are losing the puppy hair and the adult hair is coming in and while the puppy hair is falling out is is getting tangled really bad with the other hairs.

Hair grows and a short groom can save a relationship and a lot of your own gray hair. If I had to do it over again, I would have my boys clipped to a short groom the first two years.


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## rdanielle (Sep 2, 2008)

I feel your pain, I have had 4 blowing coat at the same time and it was a complete nightmare! Eventually shaved 3 of the 4 as the 4th had a coat which be equivalent to that of a Olde English Sheepdog if they were to have long hair! I'd brush and comb her and the *very* next morning she'd wake up with matts that were rock solid.

Thank God she's over that part but her coat is still high maintenance. Finally, after 2 years I've finally found some things that have helped make maintaining her coat a lot easier. If I don't do these things she feels like she is perpetually blowing coat.

I can't live without this comb:
*#013 Cat/Carding Buttercomb*
http://www.chrissystems.com/grooming-tools/pet-grooming-show-dog-and-cat-combs.aspx
It removes the hairs that causes the matts at the base and doesn't damage the coat the way other combs do as you usually have to flick your wrist to get the matt out. Line comb with it starting from the very base. I wish I had this when she was blowing the first time.

Shampoo + Conditioner see this thread:
http://www.havaneseforum.com/showthread.php?t=18055&highlight=keratin

*Warren London's Furbutter* is amazing! I picked this up at Havanese Nationals and am addicted to the way it works and the way it smells. 2 fragrances and both are awesome. Leaves your hands soft.

I accidentally left it out of the bathing routine and even using the keratin shampoo/conditioner she started matting up instantaneously

Amazon.com: Warren London Hydrating Butter - G & M: Pet Supplies

Dry coat = matts, so keep well hydrated. Hope this helps!


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## atsilvers27 (Jul 5, 2011)

The only sure way to get through blowing coat is to line comb all the way through twice a day before any major mats form, but this does take know-how and an iron resolve and dedication to do it. If I wasn't a groomer I don't know that I would've been able to keep it. Some people just take the coat down if it ends up a real mess. The hair grows back and you save yourself and your dog from torture.


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## Sonic and Aries (Feb 15, 2012)

Thanks for all the tips!! That's why I love coming on here with little problems, I always get the best advice .

After spending many hours trying to keep then mat free, I did breakdown and get them clipped in short puppy cuts again. It has made my life a lot easier in the few days since. I'm still brushing them both twice daily and it's a much easier/shorter/happier time for us all 

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## atsilvers27 (Jul 5, 2011)

Good for you. It's always good when owners choose the pet's health and comfort over vanity. As the coat grows back and is not in a blowing state you can teach yourself what you need to do to maintain it.


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## Laci'sMom (Oct 16, 2012)

I am new...I have had my Sweet Hav for 2 months. I am trying to learn all about the breed. Blowing coat? Can someone tell me exactly what that is? I love my Laci! She is so sweet, but at times so ornery ..I am so glad I got her!

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