Time commitment for rolling a mini's coat?

[Kortekk]

New pup is arriving soon and I have some specific questions about rolling I haven't found clear answers to. In particular, I'm trying to determine how much of a time commitment to expect if rolling a miniature schnauzer's coat (B&S). I am not planning to show the dog and just prefer the benefits of the wiry top coat.

1. I've heard to roll the coat 1x per week -- How much time does a weekly rolling session take?

2. If carding the undercoat 2x per week -- How much time does each carding session take?

3. If I didn't want the typical, neatly-cropped show look and preferred a longer, more natural look, would I increase the time between rolling sessions (e.g. every 2 weeks vs every week) or would I decrease the amount of time per rolling session (e.g. 30 mins vs 1 hour per week)?

4. Based on the natural-look preference I described in #3, would it be more effective to roll the coat regularly or just do a longer, more thorough stripping session every, say, 4-6 weeks?

Any input would be appreciated!

[Dawnspell]

Hi and welcome

You will see it recommended to strip once a week but bare in mind this is mainly aimed as someone who wants to keep a nice rolled coat for showing so they always look at their best. Groomers who hand strip pet dogs try to get owners to take them in every 4-6 weeks most owners choose the 6 weeks but groomers would prefer the 4 weeks.

1, I would say I spend half hour ish once a week stripping.

2, Depends on the dogs coat. Jasper really doesnt have much undercoat so for me the carding is the extra ish bit on the half hour. I maybe only card him once every 2 weeks he just doesnt have enough undercoat to do it x2 a week There are some who have profuse undercoat and would need it is x2 a week.

3, Yes you can leave what interval and how much you take depending on how quick the dogs coat grows. Taking smaller amounts but more frequently will give you a more even length coat. Leaving more time between and taking more coat it will get long then shorter if you see what I mean.

4, Its your dog you do what you like the look of. What I would say is to pick a time period between strips and stick to it for at least 4 mths if not longer. Then decide if thats the look you like.

[Schnauzerluv]

I keep Ozzy's jacket on the short side, but I strip when I get the chance. There are times like after excersise when he's resting it off or just sitting outside on my lap where he actually seems to enjoy it, so I take advantage when he's in the mood for it. Overall, I probably spend 1/2 an hour weekly on average.

I think if you wanted to keep it looking a bit longer, you would just take less per session. You would stop pulling hairs at a longer length.

I'll tell you I decided to leave his coat go 'au naturel' for the winter last year. I wasn't carding very much and I hardly touched his 'bum fur' to keep his back end and legs warmer. I'm not going to do that this winter because it was a challenge to get him trimmed up in time for the summer heat. Also his hair on his hind legs and back end seemed softer overall. It's slowly becoming wiry again, but it was like starting over at times.

I might just leave longer intervals between carding and strip to a longer length, which is probably what you would want to do if you wanted to keep it a bit longer and/or fluffier.

Bear in mind, the undercoat hairs really hold the heat in. I have to card out the undercoat at least once a week to keep him cooler (he's mainly black and doesn't tolerate heat well). I think a longer wire jacket would look nice.

[Kortekk]

Alison and Kat, thank you both so much for the info. I've been researching the rolling process quite a bit and my impression has always been that it was some monumental time commitment (many hours per week). Makes sense that this is for maintaining the neatly-cropped show dog look. In fact, my breeder strongly suggested that I do NOT go with rolling/stripping for a pet pup because of the time required. In retrospect, she was definitely referring to the shorter show look.

I saw some photos both of you have posted of your puppers in the past and the coat length and look is very similar to what I'd like to go for! I know not all pups will end up with coats that can be stripped and am not attached to this method but your responses have me very encouraged. The tinkering you can do with stripping frequency/amount in order to influence the coat several weeks down the road seems like a really fun challenge.

This forum has been a tremendous resource, thanks again for you replies =P

[Dawnspell]

In my opinion the commitment issue with a lot of people is not the actual time spent but making sure you keep to a schedule.

Thats quite narrow minded of your breeder, mine was overjoyed at the fact I was going to strip. It has so many benefits. It helps you build a bond of trust with your dog, which makes it way easier for handling for other things. Easier maintenance, the wire jacket doesnt get all the sticky seeds attaching like the legs and beard do, or if they do they drop off and dont get further tangled, this also is applicable for dirt or mud when dry it just drops off. You dont have to give them a bath before every strip like you do if you clip.

Give it a go you've nothing to lose and we are always happy to try and answer any questions to help you on your way.

[Kortekk]

Thanks, and yeah the response from the breeder was unfortunate. Was hoping she would be able to give me a quick demo but communication with her has been awkward and didn't want to push it. I do plan to start with rolling for all the benefits you mentioned, and if it does end up being too overwhelming, I can always switch to clipping whereas the opposite doesn't seem to be as feasible. Can't wait to share my progress ;p

[Schnauzerluv]

My pup's 80YO breeder was too busy to show me how to hand strip as well, and actually tried to deter me, but like you said, the way they hand strip is different than the result I need for my pet. With the help of fellow forum members, I think I did alright to learn on my own and you get exactly what you want. You can do it!