How to Trim a Long Tail With Long Hair on a Dog

Your dog's tail is an intricate, important part of the anatomy and should look its best. When grooming a dog, the tail is part of the process. A dog's tail can get very matted and unruly, especially those with the longer hair. You can easily and successfully trim your dog's long-haired tail to give it that neat and finished look.

Things You'll Need

  • Shampoo
  • Towels
  • Blow-dryer
  • Brush
  • Comb
  • Scissors
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Instructions

    • 1

      Bathe your dog. Wet your dog completely and massage shampoo in to create a nice lather over the entire body. Rinse and repeat. With the final rinse, be sure to remove any and all shampoo to make your dog squeaky-clean.

    • 2

      Towel dry and then blow-dry your dog. Try not to cause tangles in the long tail while drying. If you can, blow the air in the direction of the hair growth on the tail or try brushing the tail while drying.

    • 3

      Brush the tail completely to be sure all tangles and matted hair are smoothed out. Follow the brushing with a comb to be sure it can get through all the long hair as well.

    • 4

      Gather all the hair in your hand near the base of the tail and work your way down to the tip of the tail where you feel only fur. Twist all the hair together and cut in a straight line across the tip where the hair is twisted, being sure that you are cutting only fur at that point.

    • 5

      Proceed to hold the tail itself, not the fur, at the tip. The rest of the fur will be hanging down kind of like a flag. Try to have the fur hanging down evenly on both sides of the tail. Comb the hair down to see if there are any uneven or unruly hairs.

    • 6

      Trim the fur that is hanging down to create a nice even line. The tail hair should be curved, shorter by the tip and progressively getting longer as it gets closer to the body. The finished tail should look more like a rounded fan with no wild hairs sticking out. If you do see some, keep combing and cutting to get the effect and neat lines you are looking for.