Click to Skip Ahead
Golden Retrievers are some of the sweetest and best-looking dogs. They are the envy of the dog world because of their beautiful golden coats and their loyal and friendly personalities. As much as we love the beautiful coat, the constant shedding can become a bit much at times.
If you own a Golden, you may want to limit the shedding by cutting their hair. However, due to their coat type, nothing more than a simple trim is actually needed. Let’s look at a couple of haircuts that will keep your furry friend looking spiffy without damaging their skin or coat.
About Your Golden Retriever’s Coat
Your Golden Retriever is a double-coated breed. This means that their coat is made up of two parts: a soft, fuzzy undercoat and a long, smooth outer coat. This coat type is crucial for your dog, as the two layers protect them from the elements, such as the sun, cold, heat, and moisture. Essentially, their fur acts as an insulator. As working dogs, this helped them to stay outside for long periods in all sorts of weather conditions.Â
Keep in mind that these dogs were bred to retrieve waterfowl, hence their name. Their double coat acts as a water-repellent barrier and is designed to keep dirt and debris off the skin. So, your Golden Retriever coat was literally designed to keep them protected through all of the various types of weather that the seasons have to offer, and you really shouldn’t mess with it too much.
Should You Give Your Golden Retriever a Haircut?
Now, you might think that because their coat works as an insulator, it would be best to cut or even shave your dog’s coat in the summer to keep them cool. However, this is not at all necessary, and in fact, it could even compromise the protection it provides to the body.
In the summer, your Golden’s undercoat is shed. If you were to shave it, it would leave your dog’s skin unprotected and susceptible to sunburn. Clipping is also not needed, as doing this could hinder the growth of the undercoat later in the year, which protects them during the colder months.
Cutting or shaving their hair too short could lead to issues such as overheating, sunburn, coat damage, signs of allergies, and other skin issues. Basically, this breed doesn’t actually require haircuts at all, regardless of the weather outside.
So, How Do I Groom My Golden? Can I Cut Their Hair at All?
All a Golden Retriever really needs to keep their coat healthy is regular grooming via brushing and the occasional bath. Brushing their hair regularly will not only remove the loose hair from shedding but also remove dead skin cells from their body and distribute their natural oils across their entire coat to make it extra shiny.
With that said, there are definitely situations where cutting your Golden Retriever hair would be fine. For example, most people like to trim the longer parts of their dog’s coat, such as a light trim on the legs and tail, just to keep it looking tidy.
Let’s take a closer look at the safest haircuts for Golden Retrievers that won’t compromise their coat and skin health. Remember, other than the cuts listed below, you should never cut or shave your Golden Retriever’s coat, as you’ll simply be doing more harm than good.
The 2 Acceptable Golden Retriever Haircuts
1. The Simple Trim
With the Simple Trim, there is not much trimming or cutting. The groomer shapes up the coat so that it is clean and tidy. The length of the hair is trimmed, and the fur is feathered. The groomer will thin the chest and neck fur, as well as the hair on the back of the legs, tail, and behind, to keep the coat looking well-groomed while maintaining the shape of the dog. This cut keeps the coat protected while making it less raggedy.
2. The Show Cut
When you want to show off a Retriever’s shiny gold coat, the Show Cut is ideal. Pet owners usually take their dogs to a professional groomer to get this cut, especially if they have entered them into an upcoming dog show or event.
The Show Cut is very similar to the simple trim, but it’s a bit tidier. Once the coat is trimmed, the groomer will focus on the ears, paws, legs, paws, and any areas that may be unsanitary. These intricate details will emphasize your dog’s lustrous coat and make them look show-ready.
Grooming Tips
- Brushing Their Coat: Brushing your dog’s coat will prevent it from getting knotted and tangled. It will remove dead skin cells and hair so the skin can breathe freely. Brushing their coat distributes natural oils to keep their coat shiny and healthy.
- Bathing: Bath your dog regularly with a dog-specific shampoo. Ones with oatmeal will soothe their skin if it has been irritated by bug bites or debris.
- Clean the Ears: Clean your dog’s ears regularly to prevent earwax buildup and dirt in their ears. With a few drops of ear-cleaning solution, massage the ear for 30 seconds. After the dog shakes their head, wipe the ear clean with a soft cloth.
- Trim Their Nails: A Golden’s nail will grow fast and need to be trimmed regularly. Don’t take off too much, as you might hit the quick inside and cause discomfort and bleeding. If you’re not comfortable using nail clippers, you can either walk your dog on hard surfaces so that they file down naturally or have your groomer or vet clip them instead. As a rule, if you can hear their nails clicking on the ground when they walk, they’re too long.
When it comes to choosing the right products for grooming your pup and avoiding skin irritation, there are two products we cannot recommend highly enough. The Oatmeal Pet Shampoo from Hepper is formulated with aloe and oatmeal to soothe skin and hydrate the coat; and for a convenient on-the-go option to quickly refresh sensitive areas, Hepper's Wash Wipes will help you keep your dog clean from head to tail with moisturizing ingredients. Both products are pH-balanced and formulated with pet-friendly ingredients, free of harsh soaps, chemicals, and dyes. Give this duo a try to soothe, heal and nourish your dog's coat, and leave them with an irresistible just-left-the-spa cucumber and aloe scent.
At Dogster, we've admired Hepper for many years, and decided to take a controlling ownership interest so that we could benefit from the outstanding designs of this cool pet company!Our Favorite Grooming Products
More About Golden Retriever Hair
- Golden Retriever hair can have a range of textures. It can be extraordinarily straight, wavy, or curly.
- The double coat and the undercoat of a Golden Retriever are very thick. The thickness allows them to repel water.
- Golden Retrievers have a thick coat that sheds a lot, so they are not considered a hypoallergenic breed.
- The hair on the base of the tail, back of the legs, and under the stomach of a golden is heavily feathered.
- The feathering of the hair makes a Golden Retriever look posh when they hunt and run.
Conclusion
Keeping the coat of a Golden Retriever clean and trimmed makes them look classy and proud. It is the shiny golden locks of a Golden Retriever that make them highly recognizable, along with their sweet and playful expressions. So, keep on loving them and caring for their coats so they look polished and healthy. However, don’t ever clip or shave their coat, as this could do more harm than good.
See also:
- What Is a Summer Cut for Dogs? Vet-Verified Guide
- Short Haired Golden Retrievers: Pictures, Facts, Origin & History
Featured Image Credit: Dina Gomankova, Shutterstock
