Canine Groomer’s Glossary

Apron
the wealth of longish hair extending from the mane into the sides and under the neck and the frontal chest. Also known as “Biff” or “Ruff”, this coat characteristic is displayed by the Rough Collie and the Shetland Sheepdog.

Bare pasterns
Pasterns that are not longhaired.

Beard
Facial furnishings comprising thick and stand-offish hair that adorn the chin, cheeks, and lower jaw area. Commonly accompanied by bushy eyebrows and whiskers in the wirehaired breeds.

Bearlike coat
Harsh, thick outer jacket, usually referring to the coat of the Eskimo Dog. The undercoat is wooly and dense and normally one-third the length of the 3-6inch long (7.5-15 cm) outer coat.

Bloom
The sheen of a coat in top condition.

Blowing Coat
process of which double coated breeds shed in clumps. Terminology is also used in some breeds where excessive hair loss is noted on front of legs and skirt; common in bitches after first and successive heat cycles and nursing bitches (normally caused by a natural hormonal change).

Blowing out the coat
a procedure used by groomers to use a very high power force dryer to blow out the undercoat in double coated breeds. Best done when dog is thoroughly wet.

Bracelets
A poodle’s unshaven hair on the hind legs, when groomed in the continental clip.

Breeches
fringing of longer hair on the upper thighs in long coated breeds. In short coated breeds, the breeches are formed at the junction of the inner and outer thighs by longish hair in ridgelike patterns.

Broken coat
A crinkly wire coat, most often refers to terriers. Comprised of a harsh outer coat and a dense, soft undercoat.

Brush
any bristle type grooming utensil.

Brush coat
The coarse coat of the Shar-Pei longer than the horse coat which is appx. three-quarters of an inch in length.

Cage dry
Following the bath, the animal is put into a cage with a dryer attached for faster drying.

Cage dryer
a type of drying device that can be attached to a cage allowing for the dog to be placed in a cage to dry.

Cage shy
some dogs when put into a cage, will become frightened. They will try to bite in the process of being taken out of the cage.

Cape
an extension of the neck ruff, a profuse hair growth shawling the dog’s shoulder region as seen in the Schipperke.

Chamois cloth
used to polish and shine the coats of shorthaired dogs.

Clip
a particular type of cut, as used on the Poodle.

Clipper Burn
This is generally caused by the dog. Faces are especially prone to this malady. When the hair on the face is clipped and the animal has an ear infection, scratching occurs. With the hair being clipped away, the dog’s nails will irritate the clipped area.

“Continental” Clip
one of four AKC permitted clips in the Poodle Standard: The face, throat, feet, and base of the tail are shaved. The hindquarters are shaved with optional pompons on the hips. The legs are shaved leaving bracelets on the hindlegs and puffs on the forelegs. There is a pompon on the end of the tail. The entire shaven foot and a portion of the shaven foreleg above the puff are visible. The rest of the body is left in full coat but may be shaped for overall balance and appeal.

Coarse
rough or wire textured coat.

Coat
the hair covering the dog’s skin.

Collarette
moderate ruff formation around the neck.

Compact coat
a close-lying, short to medium coat with a dense undercoat.

Contact dermatitis
skin irritation caused by sensitivity to a substance with which a dog comes into contact.

Corded coat
natural interweaving of the outer and undercoat to produce individual cords for the protection and warmth of the dog. Cords should be separate from one another and should not form one unkempt matted mass.

Cowlick
a small tuft or swirl of hair protruding in an alternate direction from the rest of the coat as if it were groomed by the tongue of a passing cow.

Crinkly coat
the slight wave in a wire coat as in the Wire Fox Terrier.

Cuffs
name sometimes given to the pastern regions on an Afghan Hound when covered by short hair.

Culotte
the Schipperke’s trousers, longish hair breeching at the rear upper thighs.

Curly coat
tight, full curls providing a dog protection from the elements and water. Commonly found in water dogs such as the Irish Water Spaniel, Bichons, etc.

Curved Shears
used to achieve curved lines on a dog’s coat, especially in the shoulder, flank and chest areas.

Curved slicker brush
slicker brush with heavier pins which works extremely well on heavily coated long hair dogs such as the Old English Sheepdog.

Cut Down
low maintenance clip which can be done all year round. This clip is also done when the animal is severely matted. A close body clip.

Dandruff
natural flaking of skin caused by the constant replacement of cells of the epidermal layer. Excessive flaking can be a sign of too frequent bathing, or of other potential conditions or complications such as lack of fat intake, mange or allergies.

Dematting
the removal, undoing, or untangling of hair clumps and knots in the dog’s coat. a dematting tool or thinning shears can be used for this. If animal is excessively matted up, this process should only be undertaken if there is no pain for the animal. Bear in mind, some animals are extremely skin sensitive and care has to be taken. This is generally a judgement call.

Dermatitis
inflammation of the skin. Four common types in dogs include: atopic, cheyletiella, contact, and nasal solar.

Double coat
the dog’s usual coat, consisting of an outer coat and an undercoat.

Dry bath
designed to clean the dog without getting him wet; dry baths are normally sprayed or sprinkled on and brushed off after the given amount of time has elapsed.

Duplex dresser
stripping knife with a removable razor blade.

Eczema
form of skin irritation which may confine itself to redness and itching, or go all the way to scaly skin surface or open, wet sores. Sometimes referred to as “Hot Spots”, eczema can also be caused by hormaone imbalance or dietary deficiencies.

“English Saddle” Clip
one of four AKC permitted clips in the Poodle Standard: The face, throat, feet, forelegs and base of the tail are shaved, leaving puffs on the forelegs and a pompon on the end of the tail. The hindquarters are covered with a short blanket of hair except for a curved shaved area on each flank and two shaved bands on each hind leg. The entire shaven foot and a portion of the shaven leg above the puff are visible. The rest of the body is left in full coat but may be shaped in order to insure overall balance.

Ever-gentle slicker
Fine-wire pin brush, lighter in weight to be used on poodles and matting toy breeds like Yorkshires.

Excessive shedding
common in short haired breeds; using a metal shedding blade or a curry brush at least 4 times weekly will help, to some extent, alleviate the problem.

Expressing the anal glands
scent glands located inside of the rectum. These glands fill up with a foul substance. The groomer or bather applies gentle pressure to this area to extract the substance in the tub and then washed off of the animal.

Fall
long hair overhanging the face.

Feather
Plumage or fringing on a dog refers to the longer hair on the ears, tail, belly and back of legs. Flag and fringe are used synonymously although fringe often applies expressly to the ears of a specific breed.

Flag
the fringe or feathering found under the tail of setters and some retrievers; long at the base and short at the tip.

Flea bath
a flea shampoo is applied to the animal and then rinsed.

Flea dip
Following the bath, an insecticide substance is sponged on and left on the animal. This is not rinsed off. Ideal for animals with ticks. Care MUST BE TAKEN – to follow the instructions.

Floor stand dryer
Works well for blow drying on the table, as well as cage drying. A good dryer should swivel and have a post that can be raised and lowered.

Fluffies
A coat of extreme length with exaggerated feathering on ears, chest, feet, legs, underparts, and hindquarters.

Frill
Formed between the apron and the mane, a ridge composed of hair (long or short, depending on breed) that stretches down the sides of the neck from the ear base towards the prosternum.

Fringe
Feathering. Long hair that drapes over the ears, covers the tail, or supplements the chest and belly fur on a number of breeds.

Froufrou
A tuft of hair left intentionally on the tail during grooming.

Furnishings
A wealth of hair on the extremeties of some dogs. Furnishings are frequently found on the legs, tail, head, muzzle, ears, etc. Facial furnishings include beards, moustaches, and bushy eyebrows.

Glossy coat
A healthy coat with a sheen and a shine.

Goathair
Medium-length, harsh coat common to the herding breeds such as the Berger des Pyrenees or Briard.

Grinding the nails
generally when nails are cut with nail trimmer; they are shorter but still sharp. I prefer to use an electric nail grinder. Basically it’s an electric nail file.

Groom
To brush, comb, trim and otherwise prepare a dog’s coat for show or pleasure.

Grooming posts
Polelike utensils that attach to grooming tables specially designed to secure the dog during grooming.

Grooming table
Standard grooming tables measuse 24inches x 36 inches (61cm X 91cm). Smaller tables are available at 1/3 this size. The smaller size is preferred unless grooming large breeds. All tables should have an easy to disinfect, non-slip surface.

High velocity dryer
dryer that can be used while the dog is still in the tub. This dryer lacks a heating element and drys the hair by blowing the water down the hair shaft and off the hair. It uses very little electricity

Hound glove
a grooming device used to polish and shine short coats. It usually fits over the groomers hand like a mitt.

Hydraulic tables
grooming tables that can be raised, lowered, and turned full round with relative ease. These are especially useful when grooming large breeds.

Jabot
the longish hair on the neck of the Schipperke. Known as an apron on other breeds.

Mane
Long and profuse hair on top and sides of neck. AKA Shawl or Ruff

Mat comb
comb designed to cut through mats without causing destruction of the coat.

Molting comb
comb used to aid in the removal of a shedding undercoat. Available in several sizes for varying coat lengths.

Moustache
Facial furnishings of varying texture around the lips and sides of the face. Commonly found on many of the wirehaired breeds.

Open coat
a single coat where the hairs are separated and stand-offish, there is no undercoat.

Out of coat
indicates a long or wirehaired dog has shed its coat for one reason or another. Can be due to illness, weather, etc.

Outer coat
The harsh, longer or stand-offish exterior hairs of a double-coated dog.

Pants
Breeches or trousers, used in many breed standards.

Peeled off in one piece
term used when animal is severely matted. The blade used by the groomer will literally peel the hair off in one piece.

Pile
an undercoat that is good and dense.

Pily coat
a crisp jacket of harsh, thick outer hair, with a soft, close-lying undercoat.

Pin brush
grooming brush used for breaking up the coat and removing loose hairs.

Plucking
the required grooming technique for the coat of some show ring terriers. Can be accomplished by way of using a plucking tool or one’s thumb and forefinger to remove dead hairs from the dog’s coat.

Plucking the ears
process in which a special grooming powder is used inside of the ears. This powder actually makes the hair brittle at the base thus making the hair easier to pull out or twist out in a clockwise motion.

Puffs
round bands of hair on the forelegs of Poodles in the English Saddle or Continental Clips.

“Puppy Clip”
one of four AKC permitted clips in the Poodle Standard: acceptable for dogs under one year of age, with the coat long, the face, throat, feet and base of tail are shaved. The entire shaven foot is visible. There is a pompon on the end of the tail. Shaping of the coat is permissable in order to give a neat appearance and a smooth, unbroken line.

Pure boar bristle brush
excellent choice for routine grooming. Readily removes dead hair and is also efficient in distributing a dog’s skin oils down the hair shaft. Helps to promote a healthy shiny coat.

Quick
the blood vessel running through the dog’s nail. styptic powder should be applied immediately if the quick is cut into during a nail trim.

Quicking the nail
all nails have a vein; when nails grow and are not cut regularly, the veins grow also. Quicking the nail means actually cutting into the vein which causes bleeding. This is not recommended. Frequent quicking will cause the animal to resent having their nails trimmed; associating this procedure with pain.

Rosette
the patches of hair over the loins in the Continental Clip of the Poodle.

Rubber Brush
one of the finest brushes for removing dust and loose hair on shorthaired breeds and in cats.

Rubber curry brush
takes out dust and dirt on shorthaired breeds.

Ruff
long, abundant stand-offish hair covering the Entire neck of a dog, commonly found in many of the northern breeds.

Shaggy
the appearance of dogs with profuse usually medium to long coats, which because of their texture, length or growth give an almost unkempt appearance.

Shedding
replacing of the haircoat. Occurs twice yearly in most breeds, going from the heavier coat of winter to the thinner coat of summer and vice versa as the length of the days shifts through the seasons.

Shed’n blade
removes loose hairs from the top coat and undercoat simultaneously. Does not pull out healthy hairs.

Single coat
a coat comprised of one consistent type of hair, without an undercoat as found in the Italian Greyhound or the Maltese.

Slicker brush
wire pin brush with a hook pin that helps break up mats.

Smooth coat
coat comprised of short, close-lying hair. eg. Pointer, Bull Terrier

“Sporting” Clip
one of four AKC permitted clips in the Poodle Standard: The face, throat, feet, and base of the tail are shaved leaving a scissored cap on the top of the head and a pompon on the end of the tail. The rest of the body and legs are clipped or scissored to follow the outline of the dog, leaving a short blanket of coat no longer than one inch in length. The hair on the legs may be slightly longer than that on the body.

Stand-off coat
a type of double coat consisting of long, harsh hairs that stand out from the body and a supporting, soft undercoat.

Stripping
removing dead hairs from a terrier’s coat. Achieved by use of a stripping knife against one’s thumb.

Stripping knife
utensil used for stripping the terrier’s coat. Available in various sizes for use on specific areas of the coat.

Styptics
available in pencil or powder form, are used to stop bleeding if a quick is cut during nail trimming.

Table dry
Following the bath, dog is placed on a grooming table and dryed with a force dryer. This procedure is recommended for breeds with excessively curly hair (e.g. poodles). This procedure will straighten the hair.

Texture
the way a coat feels to the touch.

Topcoat
the outer coat.

Topknot
the tuft of long, wooly, or silky hair atop the heads of some breeds. i.e. Shih Tzu

Trimming
grooming a coat by plucking or clipping.

Trousers
longish hair at the back of both upper and lower thighs of some breeds.

Two-ply coat
double coat

Undercoat
The soft, dense, short coat that is covered by the topcoat.

Undercoat rake
grooming utensil used for loosening of the coat and removing dead undercoat.

Veil
the portion of the dog’s forelock hanging straight down or partially covering the eyes.

Whiskers
Long, stiff hairs on the muzzle and the jaws.

Wire coat
a coat made up of primarily harsh, crisp, wiry textured hairs.

Wiry coat
harsh crisp, and hard hair.

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