# Cotton coat,



## CaroleG (Aug 13, 2016)

My 2 year old Hav has a very straight cotton coat. If I cut him in aa puppy coat or teddy bear coat, will I still have the matt problem. Now, if he gets wet anywhere instant Matt. .


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## Heather's (Jun 18, 2012)

Shorter coats are easier to maintain. If the coat gets wet it will mat. 😬 When Scout gets wet I brush and blow dry the area.


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## CaroleG (Aug 13, 2016)

Isis Scout Short cut?


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## Molly120213 (Jan 22, 2014)

Molly has a cottony coat that is very easy to mat. She also hates to be brushed. Keeping her in a shorter cut allows me to go several days between brushing so I don’t have to bother her with it every day.


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## Heather's (Jun 18, 2012)

CaroleG said:


> Isis Scout Short cut?


Scout was full coated until last year. He had to have his coat cut for two ACL surgeries. I really like the shorter cut. It's sooo much easier to maintain. His coat will mat if it gets wet. All my pictures are videos, but he is the cream colored on in my avatar. Truffles coat is silky, but will mat if wet


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## Heather's (Jun 18, 2012)

Here's few of pictures before and after the haircut.


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## Jeanniek (Mar 20, 2018)

Heather's said:


> Here's few of pictures before and after the haircut.
> View attachment 156810
> 
> 
> ...


He is so cute!!


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## CaroleG (Aug 13, 2016)

Does he/she get as many matts with cute shorter cut?


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## Heather's (Jun 18, 2012)

I had to make sure Scout was completely combed through daily with the long coat. After his surgeries and my fractured wrist surgery it was impossible to keep the coat. He stilll get mats, but nothing like when he was full coated. Combing him out has become my challenge and therapy! His coat is 3.5 inches long. I lightly brush him daily and only completely comb him out every three days. If his legs get wet after a walk I blow dry and comb! He has a very dense coat. I've had three Havanese with different coats. They have all become matted if their coats got wet. Even if the coat is short it needs to be combed, but it is definitely less work!!!


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## CaroleG (Aug 13, 2016)

Thanks! I am just feeling that although he is gorgeous, he would rather have fun and be a dog!


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## Heather's (Jun 18, 2012)

CaroleG said:


> Thanks! I am just feeling that although he is gorgeous, he would rather have fun and be a dog!


I always remind my DH to try and keep the furkids out of the dirt at the park. He always says, "They are dogs...I can just wash them." &#128556;


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## ShamaMama (Jul 27, 2015)

CaroleG, can we see a current photo of your dog?


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

CaroleG said:


> Thanks! I am just feeling that although he is gorgeous, he would rather have fun and be a dog!


There is NO shame in a short coat, and they can look adorable. I have two in full coats, but they both have relatively easy coats. Our third is in a puppy cut because she matted a lot when she was blowing her puppy coat. She is a petite, small-boned Havanese, and once we saw her in a puppy cut, it just seemed "right" for her. We love her that way. We call her our "Velvet Dog".


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## ptgrin (Feb 17, 2018)

*Blowing Their Coat*

When you say, "blowing their coat",what exactly can I expect from Piper who is almost 5 mos.old? When we had our shepherd/lab, blowing their coat meant extreme shedding twice a year. Bags and bags of hair after being brushed. Is it the same thing with Havanese?


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

ptgrin said:


> When you say, "blowing their coat",what exactly can I expect from Piper who is almost 5 mos.old? When we had our shepherd/lab, blowing their coat meant extreme shedding twice a year. Bags and bags of hair after being brushed. Is it the same thing with Havanese?


Yes, "blowing coat" in a shedding breed is very different. Havanese don't do that. But when they lose their puppy coat and start to grow their adult coat, the shorter "puppy fluff that is being lost, gets tangled around the longer adult hair. How bad it gets depends on the individual dog's coat. Kodi was a challenge, but not NEARLY as bad as some dogs I've heard of on the forum. Pixel was pretty bad, because her coat was SO fine but very profuse. Panda wasn't bad at all.

USUALLY blowing coat starts somewhere between 10-12 months, give or take. During that time, if you intend to keep the long coat, you may find that you need to comb them out a couple of times a day. And the cleaner you keep them, the less they mat. During the worst with Kodi, I was bathing him every 4 days. Some people just decided they don't want to deal with it, and cut the coat short. Even if you want a long coat eventually, you can always let it grow back out after blowing coat is over. Obviously, if you want a puppy cut, you should stat BEFORE they blow coat and save yourself a ton of work! LOL!

The most important thing is that you MUST, one way or the other, get COMPLETELY down to the dog's skin when grooming. The worst mats form right against the skin, and those are painful and dangerous. If you can't get ALL mats out regularly, it is MUCH better for the dog to cut them down BEFORE they are matted. If you bring a matted dog to the groomer, they will end up having to shave them to the skin. People get mad at groomers when they see this, but it really is the only humane thing to do to the dog. And if the dog is "only" matted in places, that's STILL what you'll probably get because the groomer will try to even it out.


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## ptgrin (Feb 17, 2018)

krandall: thank you very much for your helpful information on coats. This helps me a lot. Piper has been mat-free for the 3 mos we’ve had her, with daily brushings and combings. But now i see she has 2 mats that I just can’t get out due to her puppy wigglyness! They are very close to the skin, and even with de-tangler are still there. They apoear in the white, cottony part of her coat. She still has her original coat length at 4.5 mos old, and is due for her 2nd groomer appt to just do face, feet, and fanny again. I will do a puppy cut in June. I’ll continue to wirk carefully on those mats. Thanks again!


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## tuggersmom (Oct 16, 2008)

How long does the puppy coat blowing phase last? We started 2 months ago and it is pretty bad right now. Poor girl gets matts when the wind blows Lol.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

tuggersmom said:


> How long does the puppy coat blowing phase last? We started 2 months ago and it is pretty bad right now. Poor girl gets matts when the wind blows Lol.


It really varies from dog to dog. In some it goes on for months. Others blow coat intermittently several times. Kosi blew coat 3 times before he was 2... each time was easier than the time before. Panda only blew coat once, and it wasn't too bad. I THINK Pixel only blew coat once, but we put her in a puppy cut when she was just over a year, so it could be that it just wasn't as noticeable with her shorter hair.


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## Marni (Apr 1, 2017)

I loved having long coated dogs, strangers complimented how beautiful they were, and to quote Andy Warhol, "I am a deeply superficial person." 

I couldn't keep up with three young dogs full coats. Joy is a show dog and was away with her handler for a month. When she returned she laid on her side when I put her on the grooming table. She smiles the whole time while I part her hair and comb. I flip her to the other side and she smiles while I part hair and comb. It was worth the handlers fee to get this pleasant grooming experience. However, she always liked being groomed. 

Kosmo is fine to comb and brush, he could have a long coat. Zoey growls and snaps at the brush. I never blow dry Zoey's face. She is fearful.

Our dogs don't care how long their hair is. If you have a pup that finds grooming intolerable, they are meant for a puppy cut.


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## tuggersmom (Oct 16, 2008)

I love my girl in a long coat and before she started blowing coat I loved grooming her. She is almost finished showing and I think I’ll cut her then. I can’t keep the matts out even if I comb her 2-3x a day. She gets these little balls of fluff right by her skin that turn into felted pieces so quickly.


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## Melissa Brill (Feb 22, 2017)

It is completely a personal preference. I know some people love the long coat and they do look pretty, but I personally love a puppy cut AND it is so much easier to maintain. Perry's happier, I'm happier - so win win all around. No one should ever feel guilty about doing a puppy cut even if it's only because it's more convenient for you.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Melissa Brill said:


> It is completely a personal preference. I know some people love the long coat and they do look pretty, but I personally love a puppy cut AND it is so much easier to maintain. Perry's happier, I'm happier - so win win all around. No one should ever feel guilty about doing a puppy cut even if it's only because it's more convenient for you.


Absolutely! Panda is in full coat because she isn't done showing, and her coat is easy. Kodi's coat isn't hard, as long coats go, but sometimes I think, "WHY am I doing this?!?!" (especially during blow-dries!!!) But then I see how pretty he is, and I can't cut it.

But I sure appreciate how easy Pixel's puppy cut is, and she does look adorable!

Do what you want. And if you change your mind? Hair grows.


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## tuggersmom (Oct 16, 2008)

A product I am l loving for detangling matts is “MattX” by Artero.


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## ptgrin (Feb 17, 2018)

Piper Update:
So my issues with keeping up with Piper's mats continued! I was out of town in May for 5 days, and DH did an A+ job with her, EXCEPT did not keep up with the combing. Groomer took one look at her, and said that we needed to "start over", that it would be too painful to work these mats out (even if she could). So she was shaved, and looked like those little hairless cats. I felt like such a failure. But she seems to feel perkier, and loves not having to be brushed for an hour a day. We will keep her in her little fleece top until her coat and the weather keep her from shivering most of the day and night. Short puppy coat from now on. 

Before and After photos:


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