Bichon Frise (Detailed Introduction)

　　Poodle grooming is the most complex and involves many clipping methods. For exhibitions, grooming should follow specific standards and not be done casually to avoid affecting beauty. However, as a household pet, to keep the dog cool and reasonably neat, the "Dutch style" clipping can be applied. The method: hair on the top of the head should be trimmed into a round shape with proper length, whiskers can be retained, hair on the face, below the ankles, and the base of the tail should be clipped short; hair on the rump, shoulders, and front legs should be trimmed to about 4cm long, while the hair on the waist and neck should be clipped short, making the dog look like it is wearing "jeans." The tip of the tail should be trimmed into a large pompom, which is not only beautiful but also gives a fresh and "eye-catching" feeling and prevents eczema. Another clipping style is: for dogs with smaller heads to compensate this flaw, leave the hair on the head longer and round it off; the neck hair should hang naturally, and the ear hair should be left long so the head looks slightly larger and more attractive. For dogs with larger heads, hair should be short, and the neck hair does not need to be trimmed.

　　For dogs with long faces, the whiskers on both sides of the nose should be trimmed into round shapes to emphasize focus. For dogs with small eyes, trimming about two rows of hair on the upper eyelids can help to enlarge the eyes.

　　For dogs with short necks, the shape can be improved by trimming neck hair, cutting deeper into the middle neck hair to make the neck appear longer. For dogs with long bodies, trimming the hair on the chest front or behind the rump short and loosening the body hair with curling irons will make the body look shorter. For fat dogs, it is best to cut all the hair short and trim the limbs into stick shapes to make the body appear slimmer.

　　The standard Pomeranian should have a body full of beauty and vitality, a plump physique and ample coat, with a gentle temperament, energetic gait, and cheerful expression. The head shape is long along the axis, with a flat skull. Ears occupy a very small part of the head, and the face should be short. Eyes are deep-set, oval-shaped, giving a small and elegant feeling. The chest should not be too wide, with a straight line from the throat, chest to the forelimbs. The tail root should be slightly high, not too low, and the long and thick decorative hair should be kept in the middle of the back.

　　Generally, the whole coat is trimmed into a round shape with scissors. During trimming, to maintain a good body shape and neatness, the hair should be combed up with a comb before trimming; the ear tips should be rounded. The tail base is trimmed about 1cm wide with an electric clipper so the tail curls from the back up to the ear region. Nails should be cut short, and the long hair at the toes should be clipped short, resembling cat feet.

　　The standard Shih Tzu should have a body covered in long hair, the skull is round and definitely broad, large ears covered with long and beautiful hair. The base of the ears should be slightly lower than the top of the head, with wide spacing between ears. The body is round and long, the back is short but remains level. The neck slopes gently, with the head held high, short limbs covered with hair. The tail is high and mostly feathered, curling up towards the back, with dense long hair, no curl, and woolly undercoat. Based on these features, when grooming a Shih Tzu, the coat should be parted from the center line of the back to both sides; apply some oil about 3cm on each side of the back line to prevent hair breakage. To prevent abdominal hair matting and facilitate movement, trim the hair under the abdomen by about 1cm with scissors. To make the raised tail look better, cut 0.5cm wide hair at the base of the tail. Remove excess hair around the feet as much as possible. When the dog stands on the grooming table, trim the lower part of the coat (the hem) slightly longer than the body height (the hair length is a bit longer than the body height), but if too long, it will affect movement and the lively characteristics.

　　The Shih Tzu’s hair texture is somewhat fragile, prone to breaking and shedding. The facial hair is also long, easily covering the eyes and affecting vision; therefore, these long hairs should be tied to prevent breakage and shedding and also to enhance appearance. The tying method is: first use a comb to part the long hair on the nose bridge along the centerline to both sides, then divide the hairs from the nose bridge to the eye corners into upper and lower parts; from the eye corner towards the back of the head, part the hair in a semicircle up and down. The groomer holds the long hair from the eye to the top of the head with the left hand and combs against the direction with a fine-tooth comb, making the hair fluffy, tightens the top hair, binds it with a rubber band, and ties a small bow. Alternatively, the long hair on the head can be parted left and right and tied into two knots or braided into two braids.

　　The standard Maltese has long, silky shiny hair, a relatively long and short body, entirely pure white fluffy long hair, with black eyes and nose, lively and bold behavior. The neck length is about half the height, giving a strong impression. The curled tail raises above the back, with rich, soft, radial decorative hair, giving a very elegant appearance. Therefore, when grooming Maltese, pay attention to head decoration. The hair under the lower edge of the eyes can be trimmed by half; the hair on the nose bridge should be parted from the centerline and combed to both sides; the thicker whiskers and long hair around the lips should be trimmed from the root; the length of the whiskers on both sides is about one-third of the head length. The back hair hangs down both sides along the centerline. About 1cm around the tail root should be trimmed with comb and scissors; tail hair should be parted left and right, and a small amount of oil can be applied at the tail root. Hair around the feet should be trimmed round near the toes with scissors, and hair growing between the toes should be carefully trimmed. For dogs with thick coat, use hands to lift outer body hair and comb the inner hair; for those with sparse hair, let the inner hair hang naturally and then comb upwards with a comb. When combing the outer hair, comb three or four times from top to bottom, never comb all at once. When trimming the coat hem, let the dog stand on the grooming table, hold the long hair with a comb in the left hand, fix one side of the comb on the table, then trim to create a beautiful hem. The tying method for the head hair can refer to the Shih Tzu’s tying method.