[Dukers]

Hey everyone.

We just rescued Duke, our 7 year old Standard Schnauzer, in October. We’ve taken him to the groomers before, but it’s just too expensive to do on a regular basis. My mom is sure that with enough information she will be able to groom him at home.

She wanted to start with what we already have just to be sure that she can actually do this, so she used our semi-cheap human clippers for Duke’s back and head. It looks really even, but we need some advice for the rest of him.

First off, we need to get some thinning shears for blending between the furnishings and his back/side. We’re hoping to get something in the $40-60 range, unless there is something cheaper that is really good. I’ve read that the Master Grooming Tools shears are decent, but any recommendations on a specific pair? Or for any other brand?

Second thing on the list is a new clippers. Everyone seems to think the Andis Ultraedge 2 Speed is the one to get. But it’s $150, plus at least one other blade brings the price to $175+. Are there any suggestions for other clippers? And what blades would we need to start off with? I also read something about clipping against the grain for Schnauzers. Any more info about that?

From what I can tell there isn’t a lot of information about Standard Schnauzer grooming available online. There’s plenty about minis, but they just don’t quite look the same. I did find this one website that seemed to have some good info, but I was hoping someone could check it to make sure it’s right before we rely on it too much. http://domino-173.nashacademy.com/caninereference/CanineReference.nsf/gr_profile?OpenAgent&570333EE4454CEC7852578D7005EE831

Are there any other resources with good information about either grooming in general or specifically grooming Standards? We love our dog and want him to look his best!

And two things specifically about the cut itself. The fur on the stomach is part of the furnishings, but how long is it supposed to be? I can’t really tell by looking at the competition dogs because there is no way to tell where the skin is. And as for his eyebrows, the angle looks good, but for some reason they always look like he has a unibrow. I don’t know if his hair just likes to grow towards the middle there or if we should be making a bigger gap between the eyebrows. So in general, how big of a gap is left between the eyebrows? (Right now the gap is about half an inch.)

Thanks so much!!!
And we’ll post pictures once we start finishing his groom.

 

[Tankstar]

Honestly if you wan tto buy equipment. You will be looking at atleast 400 bucks of the bat.

Nail clippers.
Straight shears (atleast a 8 inch. But also should try for a 5 or 6 inch too).
thinners.
Shampoo.
Blow dryer.
slicker.
grey hound comb.
#30 blade.
#10 blade.
#7 (possible)
hemostats.
ear powder.
ear cleaner.
quick stop.
And Im honeslty possibly forgetting something (been working since 730am today lol)

As for the unibrow. You trim the middle. I normally use thinners for that. Space it out to the corners.

You can make the fringe as short or long as you want. Depends on how often you want to brush.

Im really drawing a blank right now (over tired lol) so I hope graco comes in soon haha/

 

[Graco22]

lol Tankstar. I am here! Yes, you will need to spend money like Tankstar says. Think of it as an investment, as the tools will last the life ofmthe dog and then some. If she decides home grooming just isnt working, all are resale-able online and you can recoup a lot of the expense. The Nash Academy has great info. They are a premiere grooming school and continuing education platform in the industry. For thinning shears, since tou need a blending shear, the more teeth the better. 44 teeth at the very least. Most of the Master Grooming tools shears I have used are actually pretty decent, and cheap of course. For the skirt fringe, it should be no longer than the elbow. It is only there to give depth of chest, per the breed standard, so depending on how deep chested the dog is, you may need alot, or a tiny bit. Separate the brows more if needed, and be sure you are shaving off the eyelashes, as that will open the eye up and lift the brow and look better. Trim the outside corner all the way back. I dont like clipping schnauzers in reverse, because its too short and unnatural looking. It also makes it harder to blend into the furnishings, and you want it to look like the dog naturally grows that pattern. No shorter than a 7F on the back looks best IMO. They are supposed to be handstripped, so even when clippering, you want to get that same look for the best results. I will clip in reverse on the top of the head and the cheecks though, with a 7F. This way you can blend right off the top of the head to the brows.

 

[Dukers]

Thanks Tankstar and Graco!!!
I have a few more questions, though.

Tankstar: What is the #30 blade you mentioned for? And what is the purpose of having different sized straight shears?

Graco: You mention that the tools are resale-able. If that is the case, would we be able to find good quality used clippers, blades, and/or shears somewhere online? If so, where would we find them? Are all of the Master Grooming Tools thinning shears the same quality? Or are some way better than others? (From what I can tell, they range from $40-70, so there must be SOME difference, but I can't figure that part out.) Shaving off the eyelashes?!?! You mean actually cut them off? YIKES! Does that mean as close to the eye as we're comfortable with? Or cutting them along the eyebrow line? So we could basically do the whole clippering with just the 7F if we do part normally and part in reverse? Or are there places where it still needs to be shorter?

And just a couple of other general questions. Duke's ears are floppy, so does that change anything about how his head is groomed? And I was just looking at the clipper blades that PetEdge has for the Andis, and I noticed that they have both steel and ceramic. There doesn't seem to be a major price difference between the two. What are the pros and cons of each? (Is it like with knives where the ceramic blade holds its edge better but will shatter and chip easier than the steel?)

I'm just wanting to be sure we're doing the best we can for our dog!
Thanks!

 

[Graco22]

Thanks Tankstar and Graco!!!
I have a few more questions, though.

Tankstar: What is the #30 blade you mentioned for? And what is the purpose of having different sized straight shears?

Graco: You mention that the tools are resale-able. If that is the case, would we be able to find good quality used clippers, blades, and/or shears somewhere online? If so, where would we find them? Are all of the Master Grooming Tools thinning shears the same quality? Or are some way better than others? (From what I can tell, they range from $40-70, so there must be SOME difference, but I can't figure that part out.) Shaving off the eyelashes?!?! You mean actually cut them off? YIKES! Does that mean as close to the eye as we're comfortable with? Or cutting them along the eyebrow line? So we could basically do the whole clippering with just the 7F if we do part normally and part in reverse? Or are there places where it still needs to be shorter?

And just a couple of other general questions. Duke's ears are floppy, so does that change anything about how his head is groomed? And I was just looking at the clipper blades that PetEdge has for the Andis, and I noticed that they have both steel and ceramic. There doesn't seem to be a major price difference between the two. What are the pros and cons of each? (Is it like with knives where the ceramic blade holds its edge better but will shatter and chip easier than the steel?)

I'm just wanting to be sure we're doing the best we can for our dog!
Thanks!

The 30 blade is for foot pads and insides of the ears. I prefer a 40 blade instead, but either works. The smaller shears will be easier to use trimming brows, ear edges, rounding feet, etc and the longer ones for scissoring the leg and belly coat. You could make do with the longer ones, but a shorter pair would be safer and easier for those areas.
Yes, you can certainly find used equipment online. Ebay, groomers.net, petgroomer.com, etc. There are many sites.
The ding ifference in price can be a few things. Beveled edges are less expensive than covex edges, and are less delicate. However, you dont get as nice a finish when scissoring, say a poodle coat. Beveled will be fine for your use. There are differing hardness of steel too that plays into price. For you, grooming one dog at home, you can go with a middle of the road price, as all those are cheap shears really. NICE shears cost hundreds of dollars, but you wont need anything like that. Just make sure the thinners you get have at least 44 teeth.
Yes, shave the lashes off. Lol It may take awhile for you to feel comfortable enough to do that. I use a 40 blade, close the eye, and hold the brow out of the way with my finger. Yes, you can do most of the dog with a 7f, but will need a 30/40 for feet, etc and a 10 for sanitary areas too.
Nope, his ears being floppy doesnt change the groom. 30/40 the inside of the entire ear flap, and use a 10 on the outside. I dont care for the ceramics, too much difference in brands and how good they work. Geib blades are my favorite blades, and reasonably priced to.

 

[herson]

Well, Can we groom our dog at home? Absolutely. It is quite simple for us to groom our dog by ourself rather than paying some one else to do it. Your pet dog will feel being cared about if you groom it yourself and also can save some cash by not going through professional grooming services.

 

[SCHN4UZ3R]

I also have a 7 year old Standard Schnauzer. I have always done most of the grooming myself. It was an investment up front but it has paid off through the years. In my case, I now use most of the same tools I had purchased 7 years ago on a regular basis for both my Standard Schnauzer, as well as our young Wire Fox Terrier.

I hand strip both their coats and this would be very cost prohibitive if I had it done by a groomer. In seeing your question, I immediately went to the Standard Schnauzer Club of America website to get you a link to an excellent document they had available there for Standard Schnauzer grooming. I was sad to see it isn't there anymore. I had made a printed hard copy of it 7 years ago and I have been using that hard copy ever since. It was an excellent document to use every step of the way. It looks like in its place there are now videos or other items for sale. I'm sure they're great, but I can't vouch for them because I haven't purchased any of them.

Another suggestion is to ask for a quick session with a breeder. There aren't many Standard Schnauzer breeders around but most are very gracious with their time and will spend a couple hours with you going over the details if you set up an appointment to meet with them. I did that too and gave them a gift certificate to their favorite pet supply place as a "thank you."

Here is a video of my Standard in action with his little "brother"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OK5abcFmnyk&feature=plcp

A properly groomed Standard Schnauzer just looks awesome! Good luck with this effort and with your dog!

 

[Candydb]

GUYS check out Utube-- they have it all-- and set to music-- I found watching the videos to be very informative and to just start off, focused on the basic head to tail shave down, later scissoring the ears, and dont really worry about the furnishings too much-- I even found watching the groomers do minis helpful for my Giant Schnauzer-- its a similar look and should get you going-- my big girl has the long, softer probably incorrect "American" coat so stripping was not an option and clipping turns her into a beautiful Giant girl.... Just type Standard schnauzer grooming into the Utube search.....and see what you get!