Wet Clipping Question Regarding Blades and Finish....

[SLewis]

The other day I tried wet clipping on 3 matted dogs and it worked out GREAT. I am so glad I joined this forum and learned about this technique.

Today I did a shave down on a 100 pound golden retriever. To say he was massive would be an understatement. His coat was incredibly thick so I figured the wet shave would work out superb, but it ended up taking me about the same amount of time because I found myself cleaning out my blades more frequently from the wet hair getting stuck in between the teeth and at the end he didnt look very clean even though he was washed thoroughly before I started the clipping. So my questions are:

Do you notice that you have to clean out your blades a lot when doing a wet clip, and if not is there something I'm doing wrong?

And

Do you usually end up bathing the dog twice?

Thanks in advance

[Cat Crazy]

I love wet shaving matted dogs, but I generally don't use that technique for the double coated dogs for exactly that reason. Generally, they are packed with undercoat with mats only in their bib, pants and behind ears. For these dogs, we deshed in the tub (thanks Jodi Murphy) and dry, then I clip and get a beautiful finish. I tend to use Wahl clip on combs when asked to clip a double-coated dog, so they aren't scalped. The deshed and HV will often get the mats out or at least move them away from the skin enough to get the comb under. If I need to go shorter under the matting, I use my thinners to erase the hole.

As for a second bath, that depends on the filth of the dog or if the skin looks irritated. About half the time I give an Oatmeal bath after the wetshave.

[Kubota]

In my experience with wet clipping

I would probably not wet clip a Golden except for maybe the longer or matted areas.
I would bathe him really well, getting out as much undercoat as possible in the bath.
Clip off any matting and longer coat while still wet, thoroughly towel dry and then HV until dry to get out the remaining loose undercoat. After wet clipping, I usually have to go over them again anyways to get a smooth finish and I've found the same issue that you had with the hair clogging up my clipper blade with the Goldens. I think it's all of that excess, soft undercoat hair that causes the issue.

[barkinbeauties]

Love Wet Shave-downs!

I've tried this technique quite a few times lately & have to say that I absolutely love it!!! I wet-shaved a badly matted bichon using a 5 blade, fluff dried & was able to use a 2 comb to finish with, I was VERY satisfied with the results & so was the owner! Of course I didn't tell her my secret, I made it look like it was sooooooooooo much work trying to keep as much hair as possible because I didn't want to "shave" her dog, charged an extra $5 AND got a very generous tip!

I also did this on a badly matted shihtzu using a 7 blade wet & finishing with a 4 comb, I wet shaved the legs using a 5 blade & finished them with a 2 comb!

[Particentral]

I KNOW this was an old post to begin with, but I missed it...If your blades are gumming up , then the dog isn't clean enough or wet enough. Also, it is not uncommon on really grungy dogs to have to re-bathe them after shaving. It happens often in fact that they need another bath.

[RudyRoo]

Of course I didn't tell her my secret, I made it look like it was sooooooooooo much work trying to keep as much hair as possible because I didn't want to "shave" her dog, charged an extra $5 AND got a very generous tip!

!

I always charge extra for matted dogs, even tho wet shaving has made my job easier. I normally don't do pre cuts before the baths, so it does take more time, doing a pre clip wet shave, and I re-bathe them after, cause some have skin have skin issuses from the matting or I just feel they need another bath to be squeaky clean.. Thats 2 extra steps I normally wouldn't do on a dog who isn't in bad shape.

[petpalswi]

I do a lot of wet shaves and have to agree with whats already been said. if your blades are getting packed with hair, the dog may be too wet or not wet enough. this just takes practice to find the right dryness and may change depending on the breed. also, not every blade will go smoothly through wet hair. I generally use a 5 or a 7. as far as 2 baths, it really depends on the dog. I have started wet shaving some dogs that have soap on them, then rinse and do a second wash. Particentral here, has a wonderful blog on wet shaving. good luck.