# DILEMMA: to clip or leave long!



## Tuss (Apr 22, 2012)

Gemma is now 18 months old. I've never clipped her other than a sanitary and a bit around her feet. I've managed to keep her mat free. She only needs to be combed 2-3x/week now but needs a bath every 1-2 weeks to stay clean. it's getting into summer and it's harder and harder to keep her clean. i worry that her long coat will be hot in the summer heat. I'm starting to think that clipping her a bit shorter will be more comfortable for her but i love the look of the long flowing coat. It is a lot of work to maintain it, but i'm sure she doens't care what she looks like. Is it cruel to keep her in a long coat just for my vanity? Once it's cut it will take another year to get back to this length. Oh, what to do, what to do...


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Well, it's absolutely NOT cruel to keep her long, if that's your decision. They do just fine. It's just more work for the owner. So I don't think you need to burden yourself with any guilt, no matter what you decide.

As far as HELPING you decide... I think there will be sharply divided "party lines" here.  I vote for long hair, but I may be a bit prejudiced!


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## kathyc (Mar 7, 2013)

Well my little guy is just about 6 mts. I looked through the long thread on hair growth and I can say, with no doubts, I hate short hair on the Havanese, with short hair they just don`t look like the breed, in my opinion. But I have intentions to clip a little where the coat gets close to the ground and in the important parts but it will stay med. long without a doubt, for me. I can understand your trepidation cutting your havs short, so good luch whatever you choose. Kathy


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## morriscsps (Aug 17, 2010)

Jack is in a puppy cut. He is HOT in the summer. Digs trenches to lie in. I don't think it matters. Who knows maybe the long hair provides a layer of heat regulation? 

It is up to you.


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## jabojenny (Sep 18, 2011)

Can I tell you.... I was ready to shave Timmy these last two weeks. :frusty: I have him in a puppy cut and even with that he has so much "stuff" in his fur, buds, twigs, leaves, mulch, I could go on and on. I was having to comb him out constantly the little tender bud covers were almost sticky and lodged in his fur, so frustrating. I don't know how you "long coaters" do it! Okay enough of me complaining, ask me again in another month and I'm sure things will be better... but then there's the sand. :faint:


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

jabojenny said:


> Can I tell you.... I was ready to shave Timmy these last two weeks. :frusty: I have him in a puppy cut and even with that he has so much "stuff" in his fur, buds, twigs, leaves, mulch, I could go on and on. I was having to comb him out constantly the little tender bud covers were almost sticky and lodged in his fur, so frustrating. I don't know how you "long coaters" do it! Okay enough of me complaining, ask me again in another month and I'm sure things will be better... but then there's the sand. :faint:


I think you've exactly hit on the point! I think, unless I SHAVED Kodi, he's STILL pick stuff up in his coat, and he'd CERTAINLY still get just as dirty looking around the edges, because he's mostly white. If I had a curly hair Hav that matted a lot, I bet I'd want a shorter cut, but Kodi's coat is pretty easy to deal with unless he gets really filthy. Then I just throw him in the sink and it's BATH TIME!!!


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## Carol Sue (Feb 25, 2013)

Wait - you mean all Hav's don't have curly hair! I don't mean the dread locks look, my sister's dog has that. But my baby is wavy to frizzy...


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## Diann (Apr 25, 2011)

I have two havs, one long and one short. The short haired one is certainly less messy but I wouldn't cut my long haired girl for anything. I love the flowing coat. My vote....stick it out and don't cut it. By the way, my short haired hav has very curly hair.


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## veridea (Apr 26, 2012)

I've kept Pickles in a puppy cut since he blew his coat a couple of months ago - I love the look, actually, even though I had originally planned on letting his hair grow long. 

To be honest, for me, it's just as much work with a puppy cut as it is for long hair. I brush him once a day, and bathe him once every two weeks. In the summer I have to bathe him more often, as he gets FILTHY at the dog park we take him to.

If you love the look of the long coat, keep it. You'd still have to do maintenance on a shorter one regardless.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Carol Sue said:


> Wait - you mean all Hav's don't have curly hair! I don't mean the dread locks look, my sister's dog has that. But my baby is wavy to frizzy...


Nope. Some have a "silkier" coat that is shiny and wavy. The curly hair gene is one that breeders can test for. Some choose to breed away from it, while others (particularly those who like the corded look) choose to keep it in their lines. The curly ones have coats that are harder to manage, especially for pet owners, and often get put in shorter "hair dos" if they aren't being shown.

Below are a couple of photos of Kodi. The first is a "formal" portrait where he was was just bathed and blow dried... you'll see that you can't see much of a wave to his coat just after he's been blow dried. The second which I posted in another thread too, was tonight, almost a week since his last bath. This shows the silky coat texture very well. It's very shiny, has a definite wave, but isn't curly, either.

Another difference is undercoat. Havanese are SUPPOSED to have an undercoat, but some have MUCH more than others. Those with more undercoat can look really "fluffy", even though they have they silky (non-curly) type coat. Kodi has a definite undercoat, but it's not as heavy as some Havanese have.

Finally, puppy coats can be different from adult coats. Kodi was VERY silky and almost straight as a little puppy, then went through a "fuzzy phase" when he was blowing coat. When his adult coat came in fully, it is like most of his family, silky, shiny and wavy.


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## Tuss (Apr 22, 2012)

Gemma's coat is getting quite thick and it's wavy (not tight curls, but if i don't blow dry it it's quite unruly). She is almost a foot wide with all her fluff! I love my giant fluffball when she's freshly groomed, but oh my, when she rolls in the mud/dirt/leaves/burdocks/etc it isn't pleasant!

Part of me feels i should just leave it, and part of me feels i should cut it for now and then let it grow out the fall and winter until next spring.. oh the dilemma!


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## Lila (Apr 9, 2013)

A Hav is a Hav with whatever length his hair is. They are beautiful to me either way. I've had them both ways. I do think that a shorter cut is easier to maintain. When a long coat is not taken care of it can look pretty messy but boy, when it is taken care of, it's gorgeous!!!

I'm not much help - except to say - you can't go wrong either way. (as long as the groomer is good hoto:

I love these little animated faces :juggle: :wave: :clap2:


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## marlowe'sgirl (Jun 17, 2010)

You can get both looks (and less professional grooming expense) if you cut down during the summer and let it grow the whole year. My Hav's been back to his shaggy self these last 3-4 months. I prefer the shaggy look, but the summer is just harder for me to keep up with the grooming required.


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## Tuss (Apr 22, 2012)

Here's my fluffy shaggy girl, no recent bath (last week), combing (yesterday) or anything, fresh from a walk and roll in the grass with her sister.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Tuss said:


> Here's my fluffy shaggy girl, no recent bath (last week), combing (yesterday) or anything, fresh from a walk and roll in the grass with her sister.


She's adorable! And I'm sure she WILL be, whatever you decide!


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## Carol Sue (Feb 25, 2013)

Thanks for the input. I guess I have a silky coated pup. Planning on keeping her in the puppy cut as she grows...and kinda afraid of the blowing coat phase around the 10 month mark, from what I read. Correct? I comb her out every other day and bathe her every couple of weeks. If she gets really dirty, we bathe. She doesn't mind it too much ;-) I love this breed! What a joy and sweet companion. I went from Border Collies to a Havanese. I can do this!


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## TilliesMom (Sep 30, 2010)

marlowe'sgirl said:


> You can get both looks (and less professional grooming expense) if you cut down during the summer and let it grow the whole year. My Hav's been back to his shaggy self these last 3-4 months. I prefer the shaggy look, but the summer is just harder for me to keep up with the grooming required.


ya, that's kind of what I've done. Originally I planned on growing her out ... then blowing coat hit us HARD at 9 months old... and I had her shaved down. I took over ALL of her grooming at that point. I trimmed her down last March and haven't cut her down since. I am also in limbo trying to decide to let her keep growing or to trim her down. Honestly at almost 3 yrs old it is almost a no brainer to let her keep growing, it is so easy at this point. BUT the original posters hav is 6 months... blowing coat is yet to come...


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## HavaneseSoon (Nov 4, 2008)

I have one in short clip and one in long. So, I have halved my work for my Havs. I have found the older they get, the longer you can go between baths, they just don't get dirty like they did when they were pups. 

Dexter does not tolerate the heat well with his black hair, so it is short for the Summer. And, I have fun clipping him down each month. 

Jack is really easy to groom, just did a comb out and it took less than 15 minutes, last comb out was 2 days ago. 

It is your decision, see how they do this summer and you can decide at that time.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Carol Sue said:


> Thanks for the input. I guess I have a silky coated pup. Planning on keeping her in the puppy cut as she grows...and kinda afraid of the blowing coat phase around the 10 month mark, from what I read. Correct? I comb her out every other day and bathe her every couple of weeks. If she gets really dirty, we bathe. She doesn't mind it too much ;-) I love this breed! What a joy and sweet companion. I went from Border Collies to a Havanese. I can do this!


It can be hard to know exactly what type of coat a dog will have when they're a puppy. You'd have a better guess knowing what the coats of other dogs in the family look like.

You will most likely need to step your grooming up to at least daily during coat blowing, and things will go better if you step the baths up to at least weekly.


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## Tuss (Apr 22, 2012)

TilliesMom said:


> ya, that's kind of what I've done. Originally I planned on growing her out ... then blowing coat hit us HARD at 9 months old... and I had her shaved down. I took over ALL of her grooming at that point. I trimmed her down last March and haven't cut her down since. I am also in limbo trying to decide to let her keep growing or to trim her down. Honestly at almost 3 yrs old it is almost a no brainer to let her keep growing, it is so easy at this point. BUT the original posters hav is 6 months... blowing coat is yet to come...


Naw, she's over a year, we didn't have much of a blowing coat phase to speak of. She never really got terrible matted. She is almost 18 months old now. Her coat seems to get thicker ever week. It seems her undercoat is now growing in quite thick which makes her coat stand up and fluff out and makes it more of a challenge to comb down to the skin (she has to be really good and lay on her side so i can line comb her). But she still rarely has any challenging mats unless i've been away and she's been at the kennel for a couple weeks and her coats had no attention and even then it was only a couple hours work.


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