I want to clip my Golden Retriever!
 

Hi everyone. I have an 8 year old Golden Retriever named Kassie, normally a professional groomer maintains her coat throughout the year, but I have been brushing/trimming her for the past 8 to 10 months without her needing to see the groomer. I want to try my hand at giving Kassie her summer "puppy cut" We live on a horse farm and otherwise she gets too hot and too dirty!! ;)

I should note, I have experience clipping horses, ponies and Minis .. so I am used to and am comfortable using clippers :) Plus the Golden Girl is wonderful for grooming and such things, adores the extra attention (and treats!) so she's a willing partner.

What I DO need help with, is what blades or guards to use? Is there a blade/guard one would usually use? My ballpark figure was 3/4" to 1" coat length .. but I have no idea if that's "right" or not!?

Because of the undercoat, would it be advisable to go for the Skip tooth style blade? Or would sticking with a sharp set of "regular" finishing/fine blades be OK?

Also, where does one buy guards for clippers, if thats the way to go? I can get blades through work, as the same companies supply the "large" animal as the "small" animal suited ones! :)

Thoughts and suggestions please!! :)

I want to clip
 

If you get her undercoat brushed/combed out then she will not be too hot and her outer coat will protect her from the sun so clipping a golden is not in the best interest of the dog, besides not looking anything like her breed.

[QUOTE=t.pettet;1011786]If you get her undercoat brushed/combed out then she will not be too hot and her outer coat will protect her from the sun so clipping a golden is not in the best interest of the dog, besides not looking anything like her breed.[/QUOTE]

Unfortunately, even with the undercoat fully brushed out, she still is prone to overheating badly. As well, living on a farm and having lots of outside time, she gets far too dirty with her full coat. I have been having her clipped this way for five years and found it is the easiest on her and us.

And frankly, I'd rather she was comfortable, not nessesarily the "perfect" breed specimen.

So thank you for input, but I'd prefer help with [I]how[/I] to clip her, not debating [I]whether[/I] I should clip her!! :)

I'll stay out of the "to clip or not to clip" debate, just a suggestion of where to purchase clipper blades... i've used "Ren's pets" (renspets.com), they have an online store and all the grooming "stuff" you could ever imagine. Give them a call if you have questions, they have groomers who can give you advice.

Personally I just used scissors to trim down my golden's fur, just her withers, pants and belly trailers, kept the muck out of her fur but didn't compromise it's cooling and protective properties.

I want to
 

I don't recall mentioning that she wouldn't look like the "perfect" breed speciman, just not like a golden. If the undercoat is not removed then any blade other than a #7 or #10 won't get through and utilizing these 2 blades will leave her coat so close that she would be susceptible to insect bites and sunburn. A guard on these blades will get clogged in the first 2-3 seconds so again undercoat has to be removed and sometimes that is not completely possible without the proper tools. Perhaps your groomer uses a ferminator so why not ask her unless of course you would rather she not know you're going to clip the dog yourself.

I've been using something similar to a furminator, which strips out the loose undercoat. The pro groomer is very 'old school' and has a hate for furminators, as he feels they razor the coat. He just brushes with a double tooth comb vigorously to strip out the undercoat (along with bathing), along with clipping :)

And yes, I am hesitant to ask him, as he will then try to get me to bring Kass in to groom :/