Clipping my bichons hair?

Can anyone give me any advice on cliping my bichon's hair myself.

Clipping my bichons hair?

You'll need a good set of clippers (Make sure they are the kind that can handle body-fur, trimmers will only burn out.) so expect to pay about $75+. Getting a book about bichon clips would be helpful, or you can look online for how-to's.

You'll need to get your dog used to the sound of the clippers. Take breaks while clipping, as the clippers will heat up. Have lots of praise, and some treats ready. If she seems stressed, take a break. There are lubricating sprays that will cool the blades a bit, and will cut down on the wear on them.

Clipping my bichons hair?

If you have no prior experience in grooming your dog i would recommend that you find a groomer who is willing to show the basics. Dog grooming isn't as easy as a good groomer makes it look. I had to groom 100 dogs to my manager's satisfaction before i got commission for them, other wise it was just my hourly pay. But its more important to learn good brushing and combing techniques than clipping. You can't make a pretty dog if its matted and dirty.

Also there are a verity of great books on grooming your breed available in book stores and your local library.

My other piece of advice is to invest in a "Andis" clipper. I prefer them over the big bulky "Osters" in that the Andis is very quite, self contained and light weight. The Oster is big, noisy and it blows hair around due to an internal fan motor. Plus that big sucker gets hot in your hand.

Lastly invest in quality "A5" blades and a spray can of "Cool Lube" to keep your investment clean and running cool.

Good luck in finding your local friendly groomer.

Clipping my bichons hair?

I am a professional dog groomer and in the 7 years or grooming have come across many Bichon disasters!

If you brush your Bichon every day and like the 'big' Bichon look,I recommend you get him professionally scissored by a dog groomer.

I do clip some but this usually involves clipping the body and still scissoring the legs and head.

In some cases I have had to fully clip Bichons but this is because the owner has let the hair get terribly matted and its the kindest way to remove the matts.

If you really want to clip your dog you must invest in a good pair of clippers with metal blades as the plastic ones just pop off at the smallest of knots.

Brush the dog fully and bath before clipping.

For a short coat use a 6mm blade and clip with the hair not against it.

Be careful around armpits and ears as they can easily be cut with the clippers

If scissoring around eyes and ears use a round tip pair of scissors to avoid stabbing the eye and cutting ear flaps.

let the clipper glide trhough coat and do not force them.

Clip at least every 6-8 weeks to keep coat in knot free condition.

Still brush dog in between clips.

Hope this helps.

Ps) Do not attempt to clip 2mm or shorter as for an experienced person you will almost definatley cut the dog