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The New Coton Owners Guide to Grooming:
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Grooming your Coton will be a necessary activity in order to maintain their beautiful coat which is an important characteristic of the Coton de Tulear. A Coton's coat feels like a flowering Cotton pod or to me feels like an old fashioned cotton nightgown. As your puppy grows so will the hair and must be kept brushed to avoid the dreaded mats associated with long hair breeds. |
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Admittedly our mountain lifestyle and climate doesn't help the condition of their coat. I allow the dogs to play and a wrestle and that takes the toll on their coat. They bite and nip which can make it dry and break at the ends. Plus my water is hard well water, not softened. This also creates an environment where hair dries out making it hard to maintain.
Keeping it brushed out and conditioned is the key to keeping the coat lovely and manageable. To accomplish this, many Coton owners end up with a plethora of Canine Hair products. In fact, you may want to add on to your home to find the room to store it all.
All kidding aside, I'll try to outline what works for me here in the dry mountains where the dogs run in snow and play together constantly. Remember to make it as pleasant an experience for both of you as possible. Treats are a must.
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Each coat is different. Rocky has a huge coat but is easily manageable and a pleasure to groom. Colby's tends to mat and is harder to manage, many split ends on that girl. She will get the ends wet leaving the hair at the base dry and this creates terrible mats where the dry hair meets the wet. I have to comb her out each day to keep her coat nice.
Cotons will need to be groomed 2-7 times a week, depending on lifestyle, climate and coat of the dog. Bathing every 1-2 weeks, depending on the dog and preferences.
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Regular Maintenance:
I either use a wide toothed comb, such as a
poodle comb or reversible comb:
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I prefer ones with handles so I have them in fine, medium and wide widths.
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 Resco Comb |
I use the widest to comb them out. The key to combing them out is to not break the hairs, so the widest is best to begin and work down to a finer comb. I also use a Gold tipped pin brush, in many sizes to brush them. |
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Chris Christensen Gold Tip Pin Brush |
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Many Coton owners begin with brushing and will finish with the comb to make sure the mats are out. I do it in reverse order, line comb then brush. Either way will work. |
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The best way I've found to assure you've combed the entire body is to lay them on their side. You can also groom them on your lap if you have a cooperative dog.
I take them as if I'm hugging them around all 4 legs, then gently lower them to the table.
You will need to "line brush/comb". Meaning you go row by row (horizontally), combing until tangle free. Making sure you get to the skin and comb out, gently.
I start combing from the tips of the feet and work my way from the bottom to the top. Again, if the opposite works for you fine (top to bottom). I start at the rear legs, work up the hind end. Then go under the tail and back of the legs and underneath. Working to the belly and up the sides to the top. Then I get the front legs, shoulder and head. Turn them over and do the other side.
Make sure you get the groin and underarm areas. Mats will begin there from the constant friction.
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| Always use an anti-static or conditioning spray as you comb or brush. This will help in conditioning and make it easier to brush them out. You can spray it on the dog or the comb/brush. After trying many, these are the 3 I like the best: |
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"Coat Handler" is an economic, nice smelling spray. I use it daily. |
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"Vellus" is top of the line, oil and lanolin free, subtle smelling. A wonderful spray.
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"Quicker Slicker" made by Nature's Specialties. Has a tropical smell and works great. |
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| Inevitably you will find tangles and mats. Don't just yank them out, you will pull out more hair than you need and will hurt the dog. We want this to be as pleasant an experience as possible. So feel free to give treats, hugs and kisses. A consistent grooming schedule will help the attitude of the dog too, it will become routine. |
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| When I encounter a tangle or mat I use one of these two products to help loosen it making it easier to work out: |
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"Vellus" Satin Creme". This stuff is great. Work this into a mat. I also use it on the hair ends, if they look split. If a between bath conditioner is needed. I put some of this between my hands and massage it into their coat. Be careful, too much will weigh it down and hard to manage.
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"Silk Spirits" by Chris Christensen applied to the mat also works. |
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Apply these to the mat then try to loosen it with your fingers. Then if needed take the tip of a wide toothed comb and start working away at the sides of the mat until it will easily comb out. Be careful not to lose more hair than needed. |
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After combing, all mats removed etc. I do the face, using a small fine comb.
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I use this on the muzzle and between the eyes. |
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| I do like to tie the hair back away from their eyes. The best thing I've found is the latex rubber bands. This way you can just clip them out, preventing hair from breaking. My guys like to rub their heads on the floor in an attempt to remove the bands. So I double it up, making it harder to remove. |
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an example of a double tie |
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| Puppy Grooming: |
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When you bring your little puppy home from Old Snowmass Cotons he will have been groomed, brushed, combed, bathed etc. So if you keep it up on a very regular basis, problems will be minimal. What I do every other day is take a small pin brush and gently run it through their coat. This will take about 30 seconds but puppy will be used to this. As he develops it will take longer to brush out, being accustomed to it will help.
With the puppies, I also clean the corner of eyes to keep tear-staining to a minimum. Then with "Silk Spirits" or the "Satin Creme" on the tip of a cotton ball, wipe the hair around the eyes. This should prevent the hair from irritating eyes.
If you have a tear staining Coton, chances the little hairs around the eyes are poking the eyeball and the puppy is teething. Try to tie the hair back or comb it away from the eye. Rocky and Colby's tear staining cleared up around 8 months of age. |
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| Bathing: |
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Regular bathing will help keep the coat in better condition. It's easier to comb a clean Coton than a dirty. A few things need to be done before throwing them into the bath water. 1st make sure you thoroughly comb them out, removing all mats and tangles. Use Satin Creme or Silk Spirits all over their hair, the conditioning is good before the bath. Check their ears for hairs inside and clip those away. I put a dab of triple antibiotic ointment into their eyes to protect them from water. Get all your supplies out before getting the dog. They tend to know what's coming and may just run and hide.
I use a sprayer in my shower or kitchen sink to do the bathing. I pump up the heat too, they will get cold when wet. Wet them down and apply the shampoo from the top down to the ends. If the dog has really dirty feet or mouth, shampoo those areas first. Don't rub in a circular motion, mats will begin if the hair isn't kept straight. |
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| I use Vellus Show shampoo, diluted with distilled water on the Cotons. It's very mild with a lovely smell. You don't need to get them all sudsy for the shampoo to work. I use a wash rag around the face to wash that then rinse with as well. This keeps the sprayer from getting into their eyes. Make sure you rinse and rinse until all the shampoo is washed out. You want them squeaky clean. |
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| Then I use the Vellus conditioner, again diluted a little. I do use a good amount of conditioner because of the dryness and hard water. I leave it on for about 10 minutes before rinsing. |
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| After all is rinsed out I take a big towel and wrap them up and proceed to blot dry them, don't rub it will create mats. It will usually take a couple of towels. Then I lay the towels on the floor of the bathroom and let them continue to dry themselves rolling around on them. I let them air dry a few minutes. |
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Then spray them with a conditioner and comb them out with a wide toothed comb. Then I start blow drying from the roots out. With a high powered dryer point it at the skin and brush out from where the hair is flaring out. Brush up,down and sideways to create more volume. And continue all around the dog, up and down the legs etc.
When dry I take a brush and brush everything out making sure there are no mats or tangles. You can also use a comb instead of the brush. If needed tie back their hair.
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You will see your wet little scrawny animal blossom into a beautiful Coton. |
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| Bath time is also a good time to clip the hair and clean the inside of the ears and do a toenail trim. Grooming time is good bonding time and if you can do it regularly they become cooperative. |
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