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All Things Great Pyrenees

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Managing the Undercoat

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Great Pyrenees Blowing Coats

Spring means green grass, blooming flowers, and warm sunlight, but for those of us with double-coated breeds, it means something less delightful.

The blowing of the winter undercoat.

Oh. My. Fluffy.

The struggle is real, friends. You can literally pull loose tufts of undercoat off of your dog. Kind of reminds me the truffula trees in the Lorax.

You can brush your double-coated dog for hours each day and still fail to keep up with the fur. So what are we to do?

Keep brushing. Brush, brush, and then brush some more.

Bathe your dog. Bathing helps to loosen the undercoat that wouldn’t normally come out with brushing.

Befriend your vacuum. You two are going to be spending a lot of time together over the next few weeks.

Survive. The shedding season will end after a few weeks and you’ll be left with your normal-shedding dog (that still sheds ten times more than other dogs). Just remember that your dog will be so much happier without the added warmth of the thick, winter undercoat.

I know it can be tempting, but please do not shave your double-coated dog They need the protection of their coat from the summer heat and sun and their coat will actually help to keep them cool.

How do you handle your dog blowing his undercoat?

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Grooming a Double Coated Dog

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Grooming a double coated dog can be quite the task--not to mention time-consuming! Here's our basic guide for grooming a double coated dog.

Grooming a double coated dog, such as a Great Pyrenees, can be quite the task. But, fear not! It’s not as difficult as it may seem.

I can’t even keep track of how many times I have heard someone ask me, “why don’t you just shave them?”. Shaving a dog with a double coat is rarely ever a good idea. The only time shaving should be done is when it’s absolutely necessary. I can think of two such times:

  1. A dog has been neglected and his coat is severely matted. Brushing/trimming out the mats isn’t even an option.
  2. Surgery.

Few people realize that a dog’s double coat actually helps them in the winter and summer. Have you ever heard someone say, “my dog is blowing his coat”? For most double coated breeds, this happens twice a year. Once to go from summer to winter and again to go from winter to summer. Currently, Mauja is blowing her winter coat and getting in her summer coat. This means extra shedding! Atka still has mostly puppy coat, so he is slowly shedding that for his beautiful adult fur.

Grooming a double coated dog can be quite the task--not to mention time-consuming! Here's our basic guide for grooming a double coated dog.
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