What is a deshed? Why does my dog need one?

I am going to focus on double coated breeds for this blog, as well as use as much owner friendly language as possible.

Double coated breeds, such as retrievers and collies have an undercoat and an outer coat. They need both of these layers to manage their temperature in both the warm and cold weather. 

In the cold, the undercoat (when not compacted) helps manage their temperature and keep their natural body temperature stored in the coat. But it needs to be loose enough that the air can still move round the body. The outer coat protects their skin from the harsher weather.

In the summer, the combination of both coats (when not compacted) means that the cooler air can get closer to the skin and the warmer air can escape into the atmosphere. 

So having a double coated dog shaved and short in the summer is actually a terrible idea because their skin is expecting the outer hairs and the undercoat to manage the temperature for it. When they are not working together, the dog can overheat and get sunburnt. 

The other issue comes when a double coated dog has not had that loose undercoat removed. The hair is on a (roughly 4 week) cycle and will forever shed. Unfortunately, a deshed package is only so good stopping that fur being all over the house. But when that loose undercoat is not brushed out, it can get caught up in itself and the outer hairs, which causes compaction or matting. This means that the air cannot flow freely across the skin so the dog cannot manage their temperature and will overheat. It is also incredibly uncomfortable and the hairs can pull on the skin. With no space for the air to move freely, it can become an ideal place for bacteria and there can be all sorts of nasty skin issues lurking underneath the compaction and matting. The only way for this to be rectified is often by shaving the compaction out of the area and allowing the skin to breathe. 

A dehesed package at The Pet Aunty Grooming is a bath with a cleansing shampoo and then a deshed shampoo and conditioner. This cleans the coat initially and gets rid of a lot of the dirt and grime. The second shampoo and conditioner is specially designed to loosen the undercoat . It is brushed through the coat in the bath,  to allow it to sit and soak in the hairs for a while, but also to work out any lose fur, loosen any matting in the areas and spread the products evenly. They are then rinsed before being dried on the table with a high velocity dyer. 

One of two things then happens:

1. The undercoat blasts off in large chunks and fills the room with fur snow. Large tufts of hair go zooming out of the dogs trousers and belly at amazing speeds. 

OR 

2. Thousands of tiny hairs fly off the dog's body creating a mist in the air that takes days to settle on every surface. This version means that no matter how many times I hoover, I will forever find your dog's hair on my floor. 

Either way I end up pulling your dog's fur out of my eyes for the next three days. But the main thing is that your dog is more comfortable and it isn't all over your house.

This service is added on to the relevant breeds for each bath or full groom. There is an additional cost of £5 for the specialised shampoo and extra clean up needed.

Like I said above, unfortunately the hair cycle means that generally every 4-6 weeks this  cycle is repeated. It is recommended that you come and see me once a month to keep on top of it. If your dog has  a coat that naturally sheds less, then we can discuss how often you need to come and see me.

Use the Boop to Book button to book in right now. Or contact me on 07899952283 if you have any questions.