Instructions
How to Trim a Hairy Dog
Before you even plug in the clippers, you want to trim as much of your hairy dog's hair with scissors as you can. You might find out by the end of clipping him with scissors that you've gotten most of the hair you wanted off, and you can skip the clippers part.
Get your dog outside on the grass or up on a picnic table. Put a leash on him and secure the leash under your foot or to the table to he can't wander off. If you have to be inside, choose the kitchen or a room with a floor that's easy to sweep.
Start by trimming in the hairiest areas. Around the neck, the back of the legs by the tail, under the stomach. If you've never cut hair before, start conservatively so you don't take out a huge chunk and then have to match it, cutting the hair shorter than you'd like. Try to have an image of how you want your dog to look when you're done, with what length of fur. Cut the first piece to about that length, and then spend the rest of the time, with each scissor cut, matching that length for an even, finished look.<br>Don't be alarmed if the hair looks choppy when you are first cutting. The hair will look funny the first week or so after the initial cut, and then it'll start to look nice.
On the neck, start by brushing the hair out as puffily as possible, then make your first cut under the neck, by the collar. Continue around the neck, using the first cut as a guide to how short to cut the rest of his "lion's mane." <br>Under the chest and stomach, use the same procedure, brush the hair down, and trim from back to front, with the scissors horizontal with the floor. Be careful not to cut too closely to skin. In the back, by the rear end of the dog, brush the hair on the legs straight out, then cut aiming your scissors up toward the tail. Feathers on lower legs can be trimmed the same way, brushed straight out, starting at bottom and cutting up toward top.
Once all the very long hair is cut and you decide you want more off, break out the dog clippers. Make sure to use the attachments that fit over the blade to allow for an ample length of hair to remain covering your dog's skin.<br>Trim starting at the neck and aiming toward the tail, pushing in the direction the hair grows. You will have to remove hair from clippers often, and reoil your clippers during the trimming, since it is a long process! In the end you will have a smoother version of your very hairy dog.
How to Trim a Hairy Dog
You loved the dog as a puppy because he was a hairy ball of fluff. Now he's full grown, and his hair is full-grown too. And your house is covered in dog hair. If you'd like to cut down on some of that dog hair, you can trim your big hairy dog with clippers and scissors and have some pretty interesting results. Your dog might not look ready for a dog show by the end, but he'll be cooler in the summer, and in a few weeks his hair will grow enough that your amateurish hair chopping will look almost amazing. Try the following steps to a lighter, less puffy look on your dog's fur.