Grooming and Tools
Whether you have a puppy or an adult Polish Lowland Sheepdog, you will be faced with the task of grooming. If you plan to show you will have a full coat to contend with and if you choose to just have a pet you may or may not choose to have the coat trimmed down. Either way you MUST START AT AN EARLY AGE. Your PON must be taught that brush-time is a fun thing and it begins with a young puppy. So a daily line * fun -brushing is essential initially...five minutes maximum followed by a treat and gradually add more time. Puppy also has to learn it is okay to have all parts of the body touched and groomed and that toenails will be clipped. You can also choose to clip closely and carefully around the anus for health reasons. Much of the hair in the ear should be removed. If you are unsure about how to do this or plan to use a groomer you must begin this at a young age and let the puppy know you are going to do it...protests will not work. The key is making it fun and an enjoyable time together.
*Line brushing is important . If you don't know what this means ask a groomer, another PON owner, or you can even google it.
BEFORE
AFTER
GROOMING AND TOOLS
Brushing on a regular basis ia a requirement for the PON. The Polish Lowland Sheepdog coat is double-coated and is considered a hypo allergencic , non-shedder. Its coat consist of a courser top coat and a more wooly undercoat.The coat requires a complete brushing at least once a week if not more often. Some people do keep their Polish Lowland Sheepdog cut back to a shorter length, but if you plan to show the dog it must be in full coat. It is important to keep your Pon's coat clean and up to date or you will end up with a tangled mess. Just brushing the top coat will not work. You will also often find that as a PON moves from puppy to adult coat matting is far more common..this is generally around 5-6 months to a year but varies from dog to dog.
If you plan toshow your PON it should be shown in a natural coat, with NO trimming. It means your PON should be clean, well brushed out (use a very little conditioner in water in a spray bottle when brushing...never a dry coat) , not trimmed or sculpted in any way. As previously stated the coat will have two distinct layers and it is imortant to keep the undercoat in tact, not removing too much of it when de-matting. This is best done by separting the coat mats with your fingers.
The two most important tools are a pin brush (without knobs at the end) and a wide tooth comb, often with wide teeth and one end and smaller on the other end. It is best to speak to your breeder about coat upkeep. Slicker brushes should be used only on the feet and ears if at all because they can split the coat. Many groomers may be helpful, but some lack the knowledge and experience to correctly care for a Polilsh Lowland Sheepdog coat, so ask your breeder about experience with dog in double coat. Each breeder may have other specific tools which work best for them above and beyond the pin brush and comb. Grooming is essential if you do not plan to cut your coat down, and even then toe nails should be kept clipped and some hair removed from the ears and many trim lightly around the anus (do not cut) and let the top coat come down over the top.
You can search on line to find good articles...here are a couple examples to start
JThought you were done with your grooming didn't you??
