You can choose among many Poodle hairstyles. One of them is the Miami Cut, which your professional groomer knows. While some Poodle owners may find this trim hard to maintain, it’s a classic Poodle style many people love because of its French look.
Let’s look at what this trim is all about.
What is the Poodle Miami Cut?
The Miami Cut, or as we call it, the Bikini trim or Clown clip, exudes a short style, with pompoms left on the tail, topknot, and lower legs.
It’s the twist to the classic for Poodle-loving owners! This style is suitable for any type of Poodle, whether you have a Standard Poodle, Miniature Poodle, or Toy Poodle. It even works on cross Poodle breeds with curly hair.
With this trim, you’ll find a cute pompom on the legs to keep an elaborate style, though you’ll have a short-haired Poodle with a coat easier to manage. The Poodle will have a medium or long topknot with a short face to appear cleaner. An excellent groomer will also shave the base of the Poodle’s tail for cleanliness and easier maintenance.
While the American Kennel Club doesn’t seem the Miami cut as one of the acceptable Poodle haircuts, many owners love the trim for its elegant look. Plus, it’s a low-maintenance Poodle cut that makes grooming easier.
The Miami Cut for adult Poodles can provide a bit of style resembling the traditional breed’s appearance.
How to Do the Poodle Miami Cut
The Miami Cut is one of the coat styles owners can do independently. But if you’re not entirely confident with your skills, you can always take your dog to an excellent groomer for the assured, polished appearance.
You won’t need elaborate grooming tools, but you will need high-quality straight shears, curved shears, and clippers with the proper comb attachment. That will make the grooming process a smoother and safer one.
Follow these steps to achieve a polished appearance with the Miami Cut:
- Make sure that you bathe your poodle before the haircut. Use high-quality dog shampoo and conditioner. Once you’ve washed your Poodle, dry him thoroughly and brush his coat, which will make the grooming process more manageable.
- Shave your Poodle’s face using a #10 or #15 blade. Work from the area away from your dog’s eyes down to the base of his throat. Shave the entire neck from the topknot to the shoulders. Ensure to shave against the coat growth direction and create an inverted V.
- Trim your dog’s muzzle, then clip under his eyes and the outer corners of the eyes to his ears.
- Afterward, shave your dog’s feet, then the flanks from an inch behind the elbows to the hind legs. Doing so will have your Poodle’s waist, particularly around the stomach and spine, exposed, giving a clean finish. Clip with the grain to prevent digging your clipper into your dog’s skin. Clip from the top to the abdomen, then front to back.
- When you are clipping the front legs, follow the coat growth direction down to the midpoint of the elbow to the foot. After that, change direction and begin cutting upward to set your dog’s bracelet pattern. Set that bracelet about 1-2 inches above the dog’s point of the hock for the hind legs.
- When you shave your dog’s tail, start by creating a bevel at the V-shape of his tail band. Then, comb the tail pompom from the top of the tail, scissoring the end.
- Shave your dog’s abdomen. Also, shave or trim your dog’s sanitary areas, doing so carefully.
- Shape your Poodle’s fur, blending the entire body for a smooth transition and uniform style. Use a #30 blade with a 1-inch guide comb for this step. Alternatively, you can use a #3F blade. Blend abrupt transition areas with your clippers or thinning scissors.
- Give your dog’s topknot a rounded finish and trim his ears using scissors.
- You can brush your Poodle one more time to remove any stray hairs.
And you’re done! After a couple of weeks, your beloved poodle will need another trim. You can consider other haircuts for Poodles like the Continental trim or English Saddle clip. The choice is yours!