Bichon Grooming

sketchpad

Hi, our Bichon Frise is 4 and half months old.
We have been grooming him at home, just brushing and combing.
His coat is still pretty straight but I can see it is begining to curl at the roots now.
Does anyone know when is the ideal time to get a professional grooming where they trim the coat?
Thanks.

westies4ever

id take him as soon as you can - a bichon will need regular grooming so best to get your dog used to it now. the groomer can advise you of a groming schedule then as well.

sketchpad

Thanks Westies, will do.

Ms Tootsie

You can start from as young as 16 weeks once they have all their shots. We waited until our dog was 6 months as we wanted to get him used to being groomed by us first and be calm during the process before introducing a stranger. I would suggest doing it as early as possible because the sooner it is introduced the sooner he will be familiarised with being professionally groomed

Once you are happy that your puppy is comfortable with:

• having his toes touched - including in between
• having his ears touched - inside and out
• having his underbelly brushed
• having his teeth and gums touched
• having his tail brushed and held
• being around a dryer (we just blow dried him with a hair dryer on the low setting)
• being in a harness (most dogs are in a harness while being groomed to stop them jumping about and / of the grooming table

then I would say you can start taking him to a groomer. Chat with the groomer and let them met the puppy first. Make sure you specify whether you want the standard breed cut for the bichon or something specific so there are no crossed wires between you and the groomer.

ckvet

as soon as you can, also to help the bichons' hair texture changes for curly is important to get one full grooming with the blade number 4, is a little shocked at the first time once the hair will short but once you do, the hair starts to grow back with different texture and curly.
for keep one bichon with a good hair condition (fluffy no shaved) away from matts the dogs must be full groomed no more then every 6 weeks

sketchpad

Got the little guy groomed last week, he looks great. Very happy with the groomer also. very profession and Stanley didnt seem at all put out by the experience.
One point to note; when I collected him the groomer commented that he's actually not a Bichon Frise but rather a cross with probably a King Charles. Now this does bother me too much and I love him even more but I am a little disapointed that the seller lied to us.

andreac

sketchpad wrote: »

Got the little guy groomed last week, he looks great. Very happy with the groomer also. very profession and Stanley didnt seem at all put out by the experience.
One point to note; when I collected him the groomer commented that he's actually not a Bichon Frise but rather a cross with probably a King Charles. Now this does bother me too much and I love him even more but I am a little disapointed that the seller lied to us.

Where did you source your breeder and did you get ikc papers with your dog?
Have you a photo?

sketchpad

andreac wrote: »

Where did you source your breeder and did you get ikc papers with your dog?
Have you a photo?

DoneDeal advert.
She said she didnt register him with IKC because he had some apricot colouring on his ears and someone looking specifically for a Bichon wouldnt want him.
Because we chose him for his character, the apricot colouring on the ears didnt matter to us and it was minimal. At the time I didnt give it any thought and afterwards I read that the American Kennel Club recognises Bichons with apricot ears and/or tail.

ABajaninCork

Looks like a full Bichon to me! And a total lush bomb!! How did the groomer arrive at that conclusion?

sketchpad

ABajaninCork wrote: »

Looks like a full Bichon to me! And a total lush bomb!! How did the groomer arrive at that conclusion?

He's gorgeous isn't he. So playful and so much character.
She said the apricot patches on his back and ears means that he part Cavalier King Charles.

ABajaninCork

Bichons aren't necessarily born all white, as you've discovered. I'd just ignore the groomer and get on with enjoying Stanley!

ckvet

His color doesn't mean he is not a full breed, it's hard to say by picture bu he doesn't look as a " Cavachon" name people give to bichon cross cavalier , his face has all bichon expression and characters