Hand Stripping

[MissFritz]

Hi,

I have a miniature schnuazer pup and he has a lovely dark coat.

I think he will need a hair cut soon and I am thinking about getting him hand stripped so he doesnt lose his colour.

Can anyone tell me a bit about this method?

It sounds a bit painful from what I've read and I'm not really willing to hurt my boy for the sake of a nice coat.

Experiences?

[greentea]

Dear Miss Fritz,

My Griffons need to be hand stripped as well. It is difficult to find groomers willing to do it for you, though I suspect within the Schnauzer community there will be someone. Actually I am quite sure there is someone. If you contact your club, they should be able to tell you sho it is. They can demonstrate it for you.

It can be quite tricky, if you are stripping your dog for show, it really is an art. An art I still haven't been able to master ha ha!

Anyway, it isn't painful. If you get your thumb and index finger and hold a few bits of hair and pull in the direction of the growth, you will see the hair should come straight out and it doesn't hurt the dog.

It usually only hurts in the sensitive areas like the ears and face.

You can use a chalk or a powder first as this makes it easy to grip. Then you could wear some rubber gloves or those thumble rubber things on your fingers all of these make it really easy to grip the hair.

Just keep pulling and you will see it comes out nicely and there is a new rough coat growing underneath.

You can also buy a stripping knife, but be careful you use it to pull rather than cut.

I find it a bit hard to use still, I tend to cut and this is very bad for the coat, so I don't use that much.

With my breed, there are bits we don't remove and bits that must be bald (i.e ears and head) so it is really important you find out which bits you have to remove on your breed.

We got a little map that shows where and how much to pull and I just follow that.

For the first strip I took a bit off the back and sides, but left the rest as I wasn't too confident. I took Henry to an excellent groomer who happens to be on DOL and if you are in luck, she might see this thread and post some more advice to you... (bump! You know who your are!)

After that I could see what to do and now I am getting quite ok at it. It takes time,

I think the most important thing is to get someone to demonstrate it for you first time, then you will be confident to take it from there. Is there anyone like the breeder who coould show you?

[Pup's mum]

I have friends with schnauzers and they hand strip...they use a small rock looking thing similar to a pumice stone and rub that across the fur to take it out. Doesn't hurt the dog at all - hers fall on their sides and sleep sop can't be too painful! :D

I don't think you have anything to worry about....

If you keep in touch with your breeder (and providing he/she is close) why not ask if you can watch him/her strip a dog and it will be clearer!

[MissFritz]

A pumice stone?

I'm in Melbourne and my breeder is in Qld so not much opportunity there.

[greentea]

Why don't you give the club a call, in VIC. They are usually very willing to give you contacts and advice. Another breeder or exhibitor may be willing to meet you and help you out for a small fee.

I found the pumice stone is good on the puppy fluff but not so good on the rough coat, alternatively you can buy a 'grooming block' it is a bit harsher than a pumice and seems to work better on the back and legs etc. You can gret them online I think Petnetwork or they always sell them at shows for about $5.

Pulling the old hairs by hand is easy on the back, why don't you start there?

[Miranda]

I use a stone on my dogs' topcoat, it is time consuming and quite hard work (compared with a Mars Coat King for instance), but it gives me brilliant results and the coat looks better in the long term. I think using a stone is well worth the extra effort involved. I only pay $5 for mine and they're readily available at any of the dog show vans.

[greentea]

Are you going to show your dog?

If not, maybe you could consider what Miranda mentioned - the Mars Coat King. I looked into it originally but because it tends to make a Griffon's coat grow back fluffier and lighter, the other Griffon exhibitors told me not to use it. If you are not going to show, it might be a good alternative to clipping...

Certainly don't give up though. I couldn't do the stripping at first because I had a health issue and also I just needed to see in action what had to be done, but now I quite enjoy getting my boy to look more and more beautiful!

[Vehs]

and don't forget your new little girl Greentea!~

[Dogsfevr]

The type of methods mentioned would be used to maintain the coat but to keep the correct coat you would have to hand strip back to skin when the coat blows(dies)strippng the coat is done over a few weeks & in sections so when the coat grows it grows neatly & uniformed as they kneck,head & tail area grow quicker than the back coat,this process is done 2-3 times a year is very hardwork .

You still need to clip the throat,ears,bum & scissor the feet,under belly,eye brows etc.

We dont strip pets ,even though we breed them if the pet people want the dog stripped then we teach them as we keep hand stripping done to the smallest of numbers as long term it isnt great on your joints,fingers elbows etc a price you pay for stripped coats.

Stone wont do the job ,hand stripping is the only way & the schnauzer club of vic do have grooming days etc

[greentea]

and don't forget your new little girl Greentea!~

How could I forget my little terrorist! She is such a clown, honestly!

As for her coat, that is another story. She has been clipped (not by me of course) so it will take a fair bit of work to get it up to scratch... We aren't sure if we will be showing her, just waiting on a few things first!

Showdog is right though, you shoud contact the club!

[schnauzer]

Contact Shelly Hancox, President of the Schnauzer Club of Vic. and she will help you. They have a great website too.

[MissFritz]

Thanks guys, all good advice.

PS: The stone that you are talking about, would it happen to be a black brick that smells a bit like rotten egg, like you buy from saddlery to groom horses?

Edited August 5, 2005 by MissFritz

[Dogsfevr]

Miss yes we use them to maintain a good show coat plus it can be used for stripping the coat fully.

[greentea]

Yep sounds like our grooming block too! Only it is big like a brick so I get the OH to break it into smaller pieces for me.

Sometimes it can graze the skin on sensitive areas like the head, so I am very gentle there and prefer to finish off with my fingers and a lot of powder. I was taught to keep the coat rolling so it never really blows and needs to be stripped back to bald. Though with the head I have been trying to get it back to bald so the colour can get stronger in that area...

I don't know if this approach is possible with your breed though?

I tend to the coats every week for a about a couple of hours and daily I give them a little once over.

For me it was impossible at first, I had to be shown how.

Good luck and let us all know how you go!

[Dogsfevr]

You can only roll the coat for so long & after a while it statrts to look tacky & when you roll the coat your actually just breaking the top coat,when push comes to shove you have to strip right back to keep a good coat in the end

[ellz]

Totally agree that if you aren't going to show, but would like to strip the coat, that the Mars Coat King is excellent!!!

:p

[Kavik]

OK I know little about stripping but am trying to learn :p

How do you keep the feathered areas longer if you strip back to bald? (probably a stupid question I know!)

If stripping right back does that mean that you have to wait for the coat to get to desired length before showing (so out of action for a while)?

And if not showing, will something like the Mars Coat King work OK? Eidt: Question answered while I was typing ;)

I don't have a terrier but just interested in case I ever decide to get one.

Edited August 7, 2005 by Kavik

[Vehs]

Just don't strip the furnishings Keep those long and tidy with scissors and then blend the stripped area into the furnishings either through blending when stripping or with thinners.

I guess just like with body builders, you'd have to consider your most important show and work out from that date in regards to the stripping pattern.

[curlyking]

If stripping right back does that mean that you have to wait for the coat to get to desired length before showing (so out of action for a while)?

And if not showing, will something like the Mars Coat King work OK? Eidt: Question answered while I was typing

Yes, you do have to wait for the coat to regrow if you strip out bald. An Airedale takes about 8 to 10 weeks for the saddle to come in correctly. While waiting you need to go over it frequently to keep it even.

There is no way I would use a Mars Coat King on a dog I was showing. It is prone to cut the coat not pull it.

As for the furnishings, it is very rare that you would remove them fully however, they do need to be trimmed and thinned to keep under control. Scissoring them is not the best method as this tends to leave pale dead ends. Finger and thumb stripping is best on furnishings - at least those with coloured furnishings.

[becks]

With mini schnauzers though the legs are trimmed as the hair isn't the right texture to strip. However with giants some do have the correct texture and I strip the legs on mine and it is a different look to the scissored legs.

I strip my pet schnauzers, take out the body coat a couple of times a year but keep the clipped areas and legs trimmed more often. I find it makes them easier to maintain on a weekly basis.

Clipping a pet mini will usually leave you with just the undercoat after a few grooms, so p/s clolour will turn a uniform grey. Some minis that have very little undercoat naturally will keep some texture and the colour will stay.