[Terrie]

I created a thread a while ago dealing with my parents chow/lab mix Meemee. She had mattted hair all over and was very dirty.

I have removed most of her mats except some that are really tightly close to her skin under her neck. Her belly is a hard area to reach too as she does not like to lay down on her back and she gets angry if I touch her paws. In other words, it has been very difficult and since her fur is dirty, it makes all the harder to reach all the mats. I don't want to bathe her yet, I have heard here that it can make mats worse.

Anyway, I'm here again to ask for some encouragement. This task has proved a lot harder than I thought and it sounds so much easier to just give up but at the same time I feel really bad for her. I wish I knew more about dog care when I was 9 and my mom brought home this little puppy. I'm full of regret and sadness that I didn't care for her throughout her life until now.

Would it be a better idea to take her to a groomer? Her situation is so bad, that I feel they would turn us down or charge us more than they normally would. I've also never taken a dog to groomer and have no idea what to expect.

This is what she looks like today, what you see is basically her undercoat. I shaved all of the outer. Her tail looks really weird now and some of her outer coat is growing back on her back. It's hard to see but it's the black shade on her spine area.


Please help and thanks for reading!

[MoosMom]

WOW she is looking really good actually. GRATZ on being able to keep at for so long. I think if you continue what you are doing you will definitely get there. If she will let you brush you can start brushing out that undercoat and get more dirt, then she willbe ready for a bath soon.

You can also take her to a few groomers and see what they say. Most of us have a great amount of knowledge on matted dogs and I have done my fair share of matted chows! The bonus to a groomer is it can be done in one session. The rest of the shave, bath, her nails and any other pressing matter.

[Terrie]

Thanks for the reply, she actually looked prettier with her outercoat cause the mats weren't really noticeable unless you pet her and then all the lumps are easily noticed. After making the thread, I went back outside and really took a lot more of her neck mats and a lot of undercoat that was loose. The next difficult area is gonna be on her hind legs. Since it is close to her butt, she's really sensitive about hands going back there. My dad was helping me out a bit. She loves him the most so we did some progress back there too.

The coat looks very dull in the picture and it really is because of the dirt/dust and all. Is it possible for it to get better at her age(10 yrs). Are there certain conditioners or shampoos that could help her coat look nice. I also learned AFTER shaving her that dual-coated dogs shouldn't really be shaved because the coats may not grow properly or may take years to do so. Is this very common or in just some cases? I don't think I had much of a choice on the shaving anyways because her situation was so bad but it made me a little sad because she was SO pretty besides the dirtiness and mats.

Aanyways thanks again for reading and replying!

[MoosMom]

She's probably at an age now that it wouldn't be a big deal to shave.I am always one to tell people "please don't do it", but in this case I would have. Under coat is never shiny, it's always the outer coat. She more than likely won't grow back a full coat at this age, but that's really OK because I bet she is going to feel better with clean skin and air movement. And if you guys keep her inside it's just fine.

If you do take her to a groomer they may take a force dryer to the coat to help separate it and shave under the mats.(thats what I do) Also she would be on a table attached to a grooming loop that would help keep her from biting at anyone.

In any case you guys are doing good. Keep trying to brush, it will help to get that clipper under everything.

[Purplex15]

if you want the short answer go to the bottom, if yuo want the long, keep reading:

I'll address the coat growing back first. I honestly wouldnt worry about that at all, b/c no matter what (whether the coat had been brushed out or shaved) your dog's coat would have been damaged. brushing out matts, damages coat. what is left is not healthy normal hair. If the dog had been matted for a long time, then even if it had been brushed out, you would have neded up with an unhealthy coat that wouldn't have looked good. better to have her even, that way all the hair is at one length and wont matt (when hair is cut and uneven, matts form much easier). And yes, more than likely due to her age, and due to her coat being so unhealthy, the coat will probably not grow back to its original state.

Should you take your dog to a groomer? YES! I remember your original posting, it was months ago wasnt it? If you had taken the dog in then, she would be fine now. I'm just being honest, it doesnt make sense to feel bad about the state your dog is in, yet spend weeks/months trying to make the situation better.

yes you will be charged more than normal for her groom, that is to be expected. Chows, in normal coat with no matting are usually around 40-50 bucks for a basic groom/bath and brush. I have had matted chows be charged over $100, and take a lot of time and energy. And you are describing that your dog doesnt really like to be groomed, which will also end up charging you more if the groomer needs help to get the job done. Will you be turned down? Maybe, some groomers don't do chows, they believe they are more aggressive than most. But a lot of groomers shouldnt turn you down based on breed, and none should turn you down due to her condition. The only other possibility i see is the dog being too aggressive too groom (a grooming arm/loop does not keep a dog from biting you).

I dont really know what you mean by encouragement. Its astounding to me when people find out just how hard it is to groom a dog like a chow, especially a matted, untrained-to-grooming chow. Welcome to the world of a groomer. The only encouragement i will give you is to learn from this. Maybe yuo were too young to start caring for the dog when your family first got it, but you werent always that way, and your parents certainly werent. In the future, dont let your dogs get this way. brush them daily, take them to the groomer regularly. And when your dog does one day magically appear to be completely matted, Take the dog to a groomer, dont spend months doing the job yourself, leting your dog remain matted. Yes, you have made progress, and she probably looks much better, but your dog could have been matt free, clean, and happy so long ago. And the only reason you havent taken her to a groomer seems to be price, and ignorance. ignorance i can forgive, most people dont know anything about groomers. In the last few months, you could have saved enough to get your dog done, even with a crappy part time job. that would have been more productive than slowly brushing and clipping different sections of your dog.

I am trying to be honest here, and not sugar coat, which is what a lot of people do. I know you are sad and feeling guilty about the way the dog has turned out. But feeling that way, and doing something abut it are 2 different things. Like i said many people get into your situation, they know nothing of grooming, find their dog is matted to the point that they cant do it (and the dog wont let them now that is is 10 years old and never been regularly groomed). but most of these people call a groomer that day and figure out what to do, not spend months brushing and clipping, and feeling sad for the poor animal. I have a hard time giving you encouragement when all you had to do was months ago take your dog to a groomer. and dont complain about price, b/c this is a living creature. You could have and should have found a way to get it done, or your parents should have. I know everyone is going to say that i am being too harsh, but i dont care. i do this everyday, i see dogs like this. i get all the excuses, but if someone brought me their dog and honestly said, "i know she has been like this for months, i just couldnt afford it/didnt know/been trying myself", i would be mortified. most whose dogs get that way, love their dogs so much they are blinded by it and cant see mats until you shove them in their face. Like i said, ignorance is an excuse i can buy, just plain not doing it is not.

In short, take the dog to a groomer, and pay whatever price they say, b/c this is a dog you love, and a dog your family let get into this condition. to let her stand another day like that is abuse, imo (maybe you dont realize it, but it really is).

[Graco22]

I second everything Purplex said. The pics of this dog still show completely packed/matted undercoat all over the dog. If you cannot get a grehound comb thru the dog, then that skin is NOT getting air..which means it is itchy, uncomfortable, and doing nothing to insulate her from heat or cold. Just because its not to the point of dread locks and lumps does not mean its not matted.

And just for another reference point...chows around here start at $85, and its not uncommon for them to go up to well over $100. Spending $100 over the course of ten years on grooming, for a CHOW, is VERY reasonable!

Kudos to you for trying to help the dog, but its beyond what you can safely do, and not knowing what is matted coat and what isn't, is still going to leave the dog in a bad state. Having her professionally groomed/shaved is going to be the best scenario for this old gal.

[Terrie]

To Purplex: Thanks for the reply. Your info is very useful. I would just like to justify myself on why it has been taking me well over a month now. I am in college and go to my parents' house every weekend. So I only see the dog on those two days out of the week. I cannot take her with me during the week because where I am for the weekdays, I can only have one dog and I have Lexi with me(I also wouldn't be able to leave the two dogs alone during class as they do not get along). So that is why it has taken me so long. I'm also completely new at grooming so you can imagine it takes me 20 minutes to remove one matt or so. I have gotten better but at the beginning, it was really slow progress.

I really want to take her to a groomer but I honestly can't afford to spend 100 dollars right now. I know it is the least she deserves but I just can't do it. I just don't have the money right now. Her progress is slow but I am doing a lot of research here and around the web to help her myself as much as possible.

And don't worry, I didn't think you were being harsh.

To Graco: The picture looks really bad, I know. But her hair on her sides isn't matted anymore. There is still a lot of loose hair but I took out the mats from that area. The brush goes through nicely. Since she hasn't been bathed, there is also a lot of dirt and dust in it. In this picture, she has mats on the bottom of her neck and on her hind legs and some on her belly.

By now I have removed the ones on her neck, and most of what was on her hind legs. Unfortunately, she is a little aggressive. She's not horribly aggressive, she only tries to nip me if I touch somewhere she doesn't like. Maybe I can get a muzzle soon.

To all: I am going to keep up what I am doing and I will look into some local groomers and give them a call. I will see what they charge and start saving up some money. Hopefully I can get my parents to help me out.

Thanks to everyone for your advice and comments.

[Thracian]

I was going to say that she looked better than I expected from your description. But I do have to admit that even though I spent time brushing my own sweet Cupid several times a week, I discovered that the top part of his hair was brushed but he was matted underneath. My groomer showed me some tricks, and I use a comb so much more than I used to. I never want him to suffer like that again. In my defense, he was likely matted when I got him from the Humane Society, but my lack of knowledge didn't help him the first few months.

I think it's good that you gave her grooming a try. Plus it's good practice for brushing her. Now take her to a groomer so all those mats can be gone. Definitely ask your parents to contribute.

To Graco: The picture looks really bad, I know. But her hair on her sides isn't matted anymore. There is still a lot of loose hair but I took out the mats from that area. The brush goes through nicely. Since she hasn't been bathed, there is also a lot of dirt and dust in it. In this picture, she has mats on the bottom of her neck and on her hind legs and some on her belly.

By now I have removed the ones on her neck, and most of what was on her hind legs. Unfortunately, she is a little aggressive. She's not horribly aggressive, she only tries to nip me if I touch somewhere she doesn't like. Maybe I can get a muzzle soon.

Have you tried using a comb on her? You may find she is matted very close to her skin. That's what I discovered and was shocked, because as I said, I was using a brush with him and in most places it was sliding right through. So it's important to give a comb a try.

Good luck!

[Tankstar]

I would take her to th groomer. Just call one, explain the situation. Ask any frends or family for a groomer te would recomend.

[Graco22]

Originally Posted by Terrie

To Purplex: Thanks for the reply. Your info is very useful. I would just like to justify myself on why it has been taking me well over a month now. .

I'm sorry, but there is no justification for a dog to be in this condition at all, much less for as long as it has been. I understand you are trying to help, and have limited funds and time. There are other things you could have/can do that don't cost money or more than 5 minutes. This dog is your parents dog, and is THEIR responsiblity. If they are not going to take care of the dog, then someone needs to be an advocate for the dog and call the local humane investigator, who will come out, see the dog in this condition, and force them to either have the dog groomed immediately, or relinquish the dog.

Your parents are going to have to have the dog groomed as some point, because she is going to be matted again in 3 months..which is probably when you finish getting the matts she has now off of her. Since her coat has been cut/shaved, it is going to grow back in as undercoat only..which matts terrible. I can see where you shaved already how the coat is coming back in..the dark black patches of guard hairs..the fuzz grey undercoat. Trust me, its going to be a mess.


[quote]To Graco: The picture looks really bad, I know. But her hair on her sides isn't matted anymore. There is still a lot of loose hair but I took out the mats from that area. The brush goes through nicely. Since she hasn't been bathed, there is also a lot of dirt and dust in it. In this picture, she has mats on the bottom of her neck and on her hind legs and some on her belly.[quote]

In the pic you posted, she is matted pretty much everywhere there is hair on her. Her shoulders are a sold mess of packed/matted undercoat. Just because the brush slides over the outer hairs, does not mean its not matted. If you cannot get a greyhound comb thru it, its matted. Brushes are decieving, because they don't always go to the skin, where matting starts.

Again, I know you are doing what you think is best, and are able to do for the dog yourself, but this is really your parents responsibility and has been since they got the dog. If you can't afford to pay for care (grooming) of the dog, then your parents need to. Or at least get you a decent clipper and just shave her down already. I'm sorry to sound harsh, but I see and groom dogs like this all the time and there is really NO excuse for it..Its doesn't cost a dime to brush your dog and keep them matt free. If you aren't going to brush the dog for free, then you should be paying a groomer to keep them maintained regularly, or you shouldn't have a dog.

[HersheyBear]

Some veterinary clinics do shavedowns. You can try asking your vet?