If the hot summer months are approaching, then it’s time to prepare your Poodle for the heat. The hot weather can cause heatstrokes or dehydration in your pet, so besides timing his regular exercise and supplying him with a lot of water, consider giving your Poodle a summer cut.
Professional dog groomers offer this specific style perfect for the summer or poodle owners living in hot climates all year round.
What’s the Poodle Summer Cut?
Even if Poodles feature a single coat, that doesn’t mean they aren’t prone to heatstrokes or heat exhaustion during the hot period. For extra sun protection, you can give your Poodle’s curly coat a trim with the summer cut.
As the name suggests, this cut is one of the more popular Poodle haircuts to keep dogs comfy during hot weather. Your professional groomer also knows this as the Utility Clip, part of the functional haircuts for Poodles you can choose.
It’s also a low-maintenance style, making it less of a grooming hassle for owners with a busy lifestyle. You won’t have to worry much about saltwater or other debris sticking to your dog’s curly hair, lessening the effort of bathing and brushing him.
That way, your Poodle stays cool while he still has the aesthetic finish to stay attractive!
I recommend this haircut for Poodles living in hot climates or into high-activity activities such as swimming, hiking, agility training, and hunting. It prevents mats and tangles, dirt build-up, and even bug bites!
Alternatively, there are winter cuts for Poodles, which leave more hair on your dog to insulate him from cold months.
For this cut, you will need to keep all the hair of your Poodle’s body about half an inch short while leaving the hair long along the tail, ears, and legs. You also have the freedom to cut the hair short across your Poodle’s face and body as well, accentuating his natural features. You leave your Poodle with much shorter hair and a distinct finish.
I love how the summer coat looks on dogs, especially the white Poodle!
How to Do a Poodle Summer Cut
Are you thinking of doing the summer haircut for Poodles? It’s suitable for any poodle, such as Standard Poodles, Miniature Poodles, and Toy Poodles!
What’s great about this Poodle cut is that you can do it yourself. This cut will be pretty easy to do if you have grooming tools and prior grooming knowledge. But if you want the perfect haircut and don’t want to risk injuries, you can always go to a pet groomer, who will take extra care of your dog and give the professional finish.
To transform your pet into a comfortable, short-haired Poodle, follow these steps:
Gather your supplies
Prepare the following tools:
- Gentle shampoo and conditioner
- Towel
- Blowdryer
- A slicker brush or other dematting tools
- Electric clippers with blades
- Scissors and combs for dogs
Bathe your dog
Before you trim your dog, regardless of the haircut, you need the bathe, dry, and brush his entire body!
Clean hair will help your clippers while making the entire grooming process more manageable.
When your Poodle is completely clean and rinsed out from soap suds and residue, dry him with a towel and blow dryer.
Brush out
Once you have a completely dry poodle, you’ll need to brush him out. Start from his head, working your way across his entire body using a slicker brush.
If you come across any knots, use the detangling comb and spray. Make sure you brush to the root to avoid skin irritation while cutting your dog’s body hair.
Shave the body
Using your electric clippers, select a comb guard that keeps the coat long enough for you and your dog, preferably leaving only less than an inch of curly hair.
Begin from the neck and shave down your dog’s back. Shave in your dog’s direction of hair growth, never against it.
After shaving your dog’s back and sides, move on to his stomach. Your Poodle needs to stand for this step, sometimes raising his paw when shaving certain areas. Be careful when shaving the armpits, where you might catch his skin.
Don’t shave the tail, legs, and head just yet.
Trim the legs and tail
Here, you have the option to shave the legs as you did the body or create the puppy cut, where the hair around the legs and feet is slightly longer.
Shave the legs using the next size up comb attachment for longer leg and feet hair. If not, then continue using the same attachment.
When trimming the feet, use scissors and be very careful to trim the hair. Be sure to cut the hair between your dog’s toes, too.
It would be best if you also took care of your dog’s tail, which you can shave as you did with his body or keep longer, like his legs.
Groom your dog’s tail by pulling it gently to straighten it for a uniform cut. Comb the tail hair, parting it evenly. Then, cut your dog’s tail hair at an angle towards his bottom, making it shorter at the tip but longer towards the base, giving it a feathered appearance.
Don’t forget to trim the sanitary areas as well, such as your dog’s anus. It would be best to do this with scissors for more safety and accuracy in achieving uniform hair.
Finish off with your Poodle’s face
Leaving the most challenging for last, you’ll have to trim your dog’s face slowly and patiently. Use clippers and the longest guard, shaving your dog’s head in a downward motion.
You can start from the center of your dog’s head and go down the chin. When you reach the jawline, start shaving from your dog’s ear until the end of his snout, then repeat on the other side. Then, shave under your dog’s chin, moving from his mouth until the neck.
And you’re done! You can pat your dog down with a damp towel and brush him once more to remove any stray hairs.
You can also follow other Poodle cuts during your dog’s next regular grooming session. Check out the blog’s other posts to consider your Poodle cut options for an attractive dog with style fitting your lifestyle!