Here’s How To Groom Your Shih Tzu By Yourself.

No matter how cute and adorable Shih Tzu puppies and dogs may look with the long fur, the fact remains that it can get very difficult to groom them.

Their fur needs to be combed at least twice a day, which is a lot more than most of us can provide, considering our work schedule and other chores.

Secondly, the excess fur makes them feel extremely agitated because the hair may fall over their eyes and interfere with their vision.

The hair may get matted all over the body, which they will try to bite and chew at.

Getting the dog shaved by a professional can become an expensive practice, because of the sheer frequency at which the dog’s fur needs to be dealt with.

It would be wiser to try to learn how to groom your dog by yourself, which will enable you to avoid spending $50 or more every other month, as well as help the dog get used to your grooming.

Tips for Shaving a Shih Tzu

– Make sure that you place a disposable sheet on the floor or on the table on which you will be placing your dog. This sheet will catch most of the discarded fur.

– Use a 7 and a 10 sized clipper blade. The 7 size will be used for the dog’s face, feet, ears, anal area, and tail.

– Keep a hand held vacuum cleaner at an accessible distance, so that you can use it to suction the free fur from the floor.

– Wear a plastic apron, so that the fur doesn’t get stuck onto your clothes.
– You will need to comb the fur beforehand, so that all its fur is even and easy to handle.

– You must wear a facial cloth mask, to prevent the dog’s free hair from troubling your nose. To avoid this, you may wet the fur and then proceed with the shaving.

Steps for Shaving Your Shih Tzu

Step 1 – Shaving the Back and Tummy

Make your Shih Tzu sit, on the table or in front of your lap.

Let the dog calm down and keep talking it into relaxing.

Use the size 10 electric clipper blade to shave the fur on the back. Start slowly and gently, by extending from right above the tail and continuing till the dog’s neck.

Repeat this process, until very little fur is left intact.

Now roll your dog on its back, so that its tummy is facing you.

Use the same clipper to shave the tummy of the dog, extending right above the anal area, until it reaches the neck.

Step 2 – Shaving the Private Region

Use a very fine and small scissor, for trimming the fur around the dog’s anus and genitals.

Be very careful and try not to clean shave the area.

The reason being that the fur offers protection to the animal from infection.

Ensuring that the private areas of this dog are clean at all times is a very important part of the care routine.

Keep the hair extremely short around the anus, so that it isn’t long enough to catch dirt.

Use a size 7 clipper to shave off any excess fur around the private parts of your dog.

Step 3 – Trimming the Legs

This breed of dog has a dense coat of hair on its legs, which needs to be tended to.

You can use the size 7 clipper to shave the legs so that the only hair remaining is on the dog’s feet.

Use the scissors to trim the fur on the feet.

You will need to trip the hair in between the toes, so as to prevent the dog from slipping on smooth floors.

Step 4 – Trimming the Ears

It depends on you if you either wish to retain the fur on the dog’s ear or have it shaved off as well.

If you wish to keep the fur on the ear, you must trim it slightly, so that it looks nice.

If you choose to shave the fur off, use the smaller clipper and gently shave the area clean.

Step 5 – Shaving the Snout

You will need to shave the fur from the upper parts of the dog’s snout.

This patch has a dense growth, which can get extremely dirty with time.

Food, mud and muck, get stuck in this patch of fur, making it difficult to clean.

Use the small clipper and simply remove the fur, using a down to up hand motion, starting from the tip of the nose to the snout.

Step 6 – Trimming the Facial Fur

Trim the excess hair falling over the eye so that the dog is able to see more clearly.

You must do this by using your fingers and trimming the hair which is in excess or longer, as compared to others.

Make sure the trim in even-looking and appears attractive.

If you wish to enroll your Shih Tzu into a dog show, you must ensure that its facial hair is kept long, especially on the head and the chin.

The dog must be given a prominent mustache and beard.

The beard must be long enough to reach the mid-chest of the dog and mingle with the long hair on the torso and legs.

You may make a ponytail for the dog by tying up the hair on the top of the head with a cute ribbon or plastic bone shaped band.

Step 7 – Trimming the Tail

Trim the tail using the scissors and never use the clipper, as that will make the tail look skinny and frail.

Let the fur be long enough and not too short because these dogs look the best with a fuller tail.

Give your Shih Tzu a sponge rub immediately after the shave, using disinfected water, and air dry him using a dry towel.

You will, however, need a steady hand and a lot of patience to go about completing this task.

Keeping the dog’s fur-trimmed can have many health benefits for both the master as well as the pet.