my poor pomeranians matts!!

Purplex...I guess you didn't read my posts thoroughly.  I stated that you were wrong in saying that Shih Tzu's don't have a double coat and they do.
I do know that their coat is different then a poms.  BTW you are the one who mispoke about the double coat on the Shih Tzu.
I do not need for you to explain to me.
You are the one who evidently was unable to comprehend my previous posts...sorry that you were not able to.  Atleast read then through before trying to decaptate me.  Groomer in training who doesn't know it all.  I certainly do not know it all and therefore I can learn and listen to others.  Those who know it all are unable to listen and learn.[]

This is fantastic. I've never brushed any dog! I love it

Wow, how do you mange that?[].  Haha, that is the funniest thing I have heard all day!  Telling a pro groomer she has never brushed a dog before.  What?![]

im not really going to respond beause i already retracted my comment about terriers earlier. im just going to say that this thread started about a pomeranian. so i have been making my comments in regard for a dog with that kind of  hair. so im sorry if some things i have said or not have explained enough.
 
kennel keeper- about the poodles. i have never seen any poodle that was shaved grow back funny. so i wouldnt consider shaving them to be a problem when it come to how the hair grows back. you may differ in opinions from me, but im sure we can both agree about that. from what i have read the coat cords because of the way the hair grows from matting. if someone needed their poodle for retreiving in cold water on a regular basis then i would say sure why not. if someone actually took care of the corded coat, i would also say ok.
 
again didnt say i applied this to all dogs, just the one that is, or at least was, being discussed on this thread.

firestorm-we already solved the shih tzu double couted debacle, go back a page.
 
will groom- i didnt tell a pro groomer she hadnt brushed a dog. what pro groomer are you talking about?

how do i know if a dog is feeling pain when being brushed? um it wont let you do it.

Well that's just bull pucky xD
 
As someone who has groomed her own dogs since age 10 (and the dogs of some other people), I know that to be horse pucky.  Some dogs kick up a fuss simply because they don't want you to touch them.  Things are all fine and dandy until you set a pinbrush to them.  You don't even have to BRUSH, just touch them with it.
 
Huskies are notorious for this I've noticed. "OMG OMG OMG!! U R KILLING MEEEEEE!!! THE PAYN THE PAYN!!" and I can be running a slicker brush over them with a featherlight touch.
 
They're not hurt.  They're being bratty.
 
Same thing goes for dogs who won't let you do their nails, or who yelp after every one.  I've been clipping a dogs nails (and I always muzzle dogs when doing nails, even my own) and had them squall and try to go after my hands.  I look at the foot, and 9 times out of 10, I was nowhere near the quick.  They were just being spazzy "OMG she cut it!!" [8|]
 
Dogs can be such drama queens. LOL

Don't feed the troll, guys. []

Good grief, get busy for a couple days and look what happens........
 
I will not name names, because doing so would be a personal attack and I AM a moderator so will behave, however.....  This thread is absolutely FILLED with rude comments and condescending behavior, along with inaccuracies.  It needs to stop and it needs to stop NOW.
 
Speaking AS a moderator, let me say that this thread is simply disguisting.  Please examine what you have posted and HOW you have posted it and go in and clean it up accordingly.  No one really wants the mods to come in with the red ink.
 
Speaking as just me.....to the OP, it sounds like you haven't been shown the proper way to groom your pom, and unfortunately shaving MAY be the only option at this point.  I'd strongly suggest that you take her to a professional groomer and discuss the options.  If she is badly matted, dematting might not be an option.  But whatever the course of action NEEDED, be sure that you ask to be shown how to properly care for the coat for future maintainance.

ORIGINAL: purplex15

will groom- i didnt tell a pro groomer she hadnt brushed a dog. what pro groomer are you talking about?

Jennie_cd is a groomer.

To the original poster, if you are still there, why don't you jsut shave the matts out, and then scissor clip the rest of the hair short to somewhat blend it in?
 
I work in a groomers and I see poms shaved all the time, and the hair always looks and feels normal after it grows back... I shaved my own short-haired dogs (because of the heat) and it grew back rough for several months before it got soft again, who cares really. Take it as a lesson to remember to brush your dog every day...

Just out of curiosity, Colleen, how long does it take you to strip a dog? Are yours pretty tolerant of it?
 
I'm tempted to strip Emma a couple of times, to see if her coat will improve (and maybe even her skin). I just hate to waste all that time on something she'll likely hate, if it doesn't help a thing. It takes me all of 20 minutes to shave her down, and bathe her. I've also never stripped a dog (nobody  here wants thier dog stripped), so it'd be good practice.

It is my experience (after 42 years of grooming) that the hair will grow back normally unless the dog is shaved short that the hair follical is damaged or the dog has another health problem like a hormone problem.I have cut down many poms and they all grew back just fine. I have one pom that comes in twice a year for cut downs and each  time it has a full coat again.So if you do have to have it cut down it will not be the end of the world.

ORIGINAL: jennie_c_d

Just out of curiosity, Colleen, how long does it take you to strip a dog? Are yours pretty tolerant of it?

I'm tempted to strip Emma a couple of times, to see if her coat will improve (and maybe even her skin). I just hate to waste all that time on something she'll likely hate, if it doesn't help a thing. It takes me all of 20 minutes to shave her down, and bathe her. I've also never stripped a dog (nobody  here wants thier dog stripped), so it'd be good practice.

Mine have no problem with stripping at all.  I don't have a grooming table, so sometimes, I just sit on the floor with Rose on her side, do one side, then flip.  She falls asleep for the most of it.  If she is standing, she tries to sit sometimes, but nothing more than normal.  Colton can be a brat for it once in a while, but he doesn't mine either.  Hes just a brat in general sometimes.  This last time I stripped Rose COMPLETELY to the undercoat, which she has little of.  She had TONS of hair at the time...it was like 2" long.  It took me less than an hour.  Maybe 45 minutes?  Rose's hair looks much better if I strip her and then keep on top of rolling the coat.  If I shaved her, she would look "like a peeled onion" as my mentor says.  I actually took pictures this last time and I'm going to post them over in the photo section tomorrow.

HAVE A GROOMER SHAVE THE DOG......... It is in the dogs best interest! Matts are painful and as many others have said, you can hurt your dog trying to do it yourself. I have a Shih tzu and a Lhasa Apso and the Shih tzu is getting shaved next week. She has hair similar to a Pomeranian, like troll hair!!! It grows back quickly and I know it's a lot more comfortable for her. PLEASE, if you love your dog, don't let it go because it will continue to get worse and I've seen horrifying pictures of dogs who were never combed and were just one big matt. Try pulling on the hair on your head constantly and see how that feels......that is what you are subjecting your dog to!!! Don't wait........be a responsible pet owner - who cares what the dog looks like as long as it's happy and comfortable. IT GROWS BACK!!!!

If I shaved her, she would look "like a peeled onion" as my mentor says.

Hahaha! I shave Emma *very* short. I take off her undercoat, too. I use a #10, backwards. She's getting long, now, though. She's got a good 1 1/2-2" of coat, all over. I should order a stripping knife and see what I can do. You might be getting "OMG WHAT DID I DO?" emails, in a week or two[]

Right, you can have the groomer cut the hair very short, it doesn't have to be a total shave, unless the matts are super bad! But it does grow back......that's the key!