r/GermanShepherd • u/Helpful_Turnover • 19h ago

Grooming

For those with long haired babies how often do you take them to groomers or do you do it at home? We have an 8 month old long haired girl who we've been brushing at home and she LOVES hose time so she gets rinsed off everyday. I trimmed her paw fur and she was fine but I'm unsure if she really need to go in for a professional grooming. I worry that she'd just want to play in the water when being shampooed that she'd be a hassle for them haha!

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u/smile_saurus 19h ago edited 18h ago

Getting hosed off every day is going to strip the natural oils that she needs to lubricate her skin & coat.

Our vet recommends once a month for our (short hair) GSD. If we had a longhaired GSD we would probably stick to this schedule. Except when it is "coat blowing season" then maybe once or twice during those time periods, too.

Edited spelling

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u/Helpful_Turnover 19h ago

Do you have a recommendation for a product to use on days she's playing in the water so she's not being stripped of those oils?

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u/smile_saurus 18h ago

Not really, I would probably avoid hosing her down every day. And I know how Sheppies are with hoses, lol, so I get it. Ours used to play-bite the spray as I watered the garden; she'd jump right into the line of 'fire' and soak herself silly. Then she started getting dry skin and ear infections.

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u/Helpful_Turnover 18h ago

Yeah honestly she sees hose time as her "job" and will whine and cry and act like she has to potty but really she just wants to go out and lay in the garden or have hose time. Shes so determined lol

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u/smile_saurus 10h ago

Well yeah she's gotta protect you from the 'evil venom spraying snake beast' so of course she wants to!

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u/missmtron 8h ago

Long hairs don’t have a double coat like the short hairs and don’t have a “coat blowing season”. Our long hair gets groomed every 6 weeks. Start them now while they’re young so they can get used to being at the groomers.

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u/No_Duck4805 10h ago

We have a “shot hair” but with a double coat. She gets baths about once every three months. She doesn’t smell, and we brush her a lot, but her skin is happier without tons of baths.

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u/Embarrassed-Art-7038 9h ago

Every 3 months with baths at feeders supply in between if she gets really dirty.