3 Beautiful Grooming Styles For Shaving a Golden Retriever

Before you head out and give your dog a new cut, I first think its best that you get the right training beforehand.

There’s nothing worse than leaving your dog looking like a rugged old mop head that’s been used to clean a dirty bathroom the past 6 months. 

To save you the problem and time, I’ve put together a little guide that will help you with grooming your dog the right way.

shaved dog image golden retriever

Furthermore, I’m sure you’re also here to find out whether you can even shave a golden retriever in the first place right. 

There’s a lot of hearsay around this topic and today I’m here to set the record straight once and for all on whether you can shave this breed. 

Is it ok to shave a golden retriever?

The short answer to this question is no. By shaving a Golden retriever you are removing their protective outer coat that’s used to keep them cool in the sun and provide warmth in the cold. Instead, it’s recommended you should trim your Golden retriever that will in no way harm their outer coat. 

How often should you groom a golden retriever? 

Its recommended that you groom your golden retriever at least once every 4 – 6 weeks. This is Golden retrievers are one of the most active dogs on the planet, which in turn means they tend to work up a sweat more often than not. 

Due to Goldens have a double coat, you may notice that they emit quite a bad odor compared to other dogs too. But that doesn’t mean you should groom them more often, as their skin releases natural oils that help protect them from the outside elements that can be affected by constant washing. 

A golden retriever’s double coat works by trapping in heat when its cold outside and trapping in cool air when they’re hot. By taking away this coat, you are in fact exposing them to danger (especially in the sun).

Youll find that a nice trim every so often will usually do the trick, and a nice dog pool (link to review) with some water outback will help regulate your dog’s temperature in the hot weather.  

What’s the best age to start grooming?

A nice ballpark figure to go off from would be 10 to 12 weeks, which is a great age for your dog to have his first groom. Golden retriever doesn’t become fully grown adults until 2 years of age, so it’s important to make this a great experience from as early on as possible. 

The first time would be well worth the investment of taking your dog into a professional groomer. But as they get older than you can make the choice of grooming from home or continue paying a professional. I have a really cool post that you can read more on here

Read Also: >> What clippers are best for shaving your dog?

How fast does golden retriever hair grow back? 

You can expect a Golden Retrievers hair to grow back to the full length within 8 to 10 weeks. Although it’s not recommended that you shave or cut your dog’s hair to the point that you are waiting for it to grow back again. 

On the flip side, if you’re just looking for more info on how long your dog’s har will take to grow long again before needing another groom. Well, that would be 8 weeks which is why 6 weeks is a great time to get them back in for another groom. 

So let’s go through a few beautiful designs that you can do with a basic set of tools and a good guide (that I’m giving you here). 

6 Styles to groom a Golden Retriever

3 Steps … Bath, brush out and follow a video guide of your choice for trimming.

Simple Groomers cut (commercial) – Best Style!

This is probably the most common type of groom that you would have come across in the past. it involves using scissors and trimming shears over clippers. That’s why it’s my go-to style and method that I recommend to readers and friends or family.

Method

The idea of a cut is purely to neaten up your dog’s coat whilst avoiding any damage in the process. As you can see from the video you want to leave enough padding around the feet to make them look weak or thin, the idea is to go for a rounded cat-like look opposed to a skinny look.

When it comes to the hock, you are looking to trim down the area to align it with the rear bottom of your dog.

When you move onto the front you, first of all, want to use the trimming shears around the neck and ear. The idea is to go for a natural look and create a picture of balance and symmetry.

For the tail, you’ll want to taper it to the tip, which means you’ll need to hold it up and use thinners to maintain a nice natural look to the cut.

Teddy Cut

I don’t usually recommend any kind of cut that involves taking your dog’s coat away, but if you decide that you want a teddy cut, then here are a few steps. 

Method

  1. First, you want to use a slicker brush to detangle any knots and ties in your dog’s coat. This will also help to remove any loose or dead hair that you will want to get rid of before getting started. 
  2. Next, clip your dog’s nails and file down till smooth. Then Clip their pads of the feet with a #30 blade.
  3. Using a size “O” snap-on comb, clip the entire body of the dog, leaving the back of the front and rear legs, which will be scissored.
  4. Then go over their body with a Carding knife (Link to Amazon) to even out any un ven areas that were caused by clipping. 
  5. For the tail, you’ll want to use a set of curved shears and then take it down using small snips to the length. The tail should be long enough to meet the hock or exceed the hock as a good rule of thumb.
  6. Use a set of scissors for the rear legs and try to keep a natural look as you snip them down.  
  7. Trim the hock into a half-moon shape like
  8. Trim nice tight cat feet, using a combo of curved shears and thinning shears.
  9. Repeat the same process for the front feet too. 
  10. Trim down the front legs using the thinning shears form the feet all the way up to the body (along the whole length of the leg). 
  11. Using a pair of thinning shears, trim around the ears and the ear leathers. The snap-on comb used on the body has already clipped the hair under the ear tight.
  12. The last step is to go over any loose hair with the trimming shears and neaten it up to finish.

That’s it! Once you’ve completed these steps you should now have a nicely groomed dog.

Summer cut 

Whilst I do like the finish of this method because it uses clippers it’s not a method I personally use. However, if you’re looking for a cut to bring down the length of your Goldens coat in the summer then here’s your best bet. 

This is something you can do from home with a simple pair of clippers and a grooming table.

Method

  1. Start with the back area and use clippers to give your dog a complete shave around the back area down to the legs.
  2. Next, move onto the neck area and then to the legs.
  3. Trim the hock using the clippers and then trim underneath the chest and stomach area.
  4. Use a pair of trimming scissors to get into the ears and snip andy loose hair away.
  5. Finally, finish by trimming the tail with a set of curved shears and taper the tail to the tip.

That’s it!

I recommend checking out my review post on the best clippers for thick coats before attending this method.

Read Also: >> Top clippers for double coated dogs

Conclusion

As you can see there are a few ways that you can style your golden retriever. Just make sure to be careful with shaving your dog as it’s not what you are really meant to do. If you decide to do so, just approach with caution and make sure you have a good set of tools to get the job done.

Rachael Summers

Rachael Summers

Rachael Summers is the Founder and Senior Editor at Dig Doggy. She is a lifelong canine enthusiast and adores dogs of all shapes and sizes! Rachael also loves iced coffee, hammocks, and puppy-cuddling!

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Rachael Summers

Rachael Summers

Rachael Summers is the Founder and Senior Editor at Dig Doggy. She is a lifelong canine enthusiast and adores dogs of all shapes and sizes! Rachael also loves iced coffee, hammocks, and puppy-cuddling!

About Dig Doggy

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