I took the girls to Edenbrook today as I planned to give them a bath so it wasn't going to matter if they got mucky in the lakes.

Half way through the walk Ruby stopped to fuss her leg, I expected to find a burr or a twig stuck in her fur, but when I got to her I found that she was covered in spikey seeds embedded over her body.  I brought the girls straight home and set about bathing them but it was impossible to get the little blighters out of their fur!

Ian was despatched to purchase some emergency conditioner and then between us we had to methodically comb each of them through - it was the only way we could get rid of them.

I've no idea what they are, but thankfully, three and a half hours later they are both clean and seed-free!  I just hope that we have got them all as they are so sharp I'm sure they would easily pierce their skin.  Fingers crossed they will be OK and Edenbrook is definitely off the walking list for now!

It's that time again! 

Ruby had started to matt badly so I decided that it would be best to get her groomed by Suzi from Bark Avenue Grooming while poor Pepper would have to put up with me!

I have recently invested in a new blade for my clippers - it cuts at 19mm so can be used without a grading comb over the top.  I asked Suzi to do Ruby with the same blade so hopefully they should look similar when finished!

Here are their 'before' shots:

Here are the pictures of Ruby's groom:

This is the new blade that I have bought:

And here is Pepper before, during and after:

Since attending the Pampered Pooch courses back in March I have been lucky enough to get my own clippers, grooming table, grooming scissor set and blaster/dryer - all of which have been presents for my birthday, or that I have used vouchers from Christmas to purchase!

It was very scary the first time I attempted a full groom at home, without the instructor there to put me right or correct any mistakes that I made! But the more I have done, the easier it gets, and my mantra of 'it'll grow back if you make a mistake' has certainly helped!

I'm also very lucky to be friends with a local groomer, Suzi at Bark Avenue, where I still take the girls if they need a more experienced hand! Suzi has her own Cockapoo, the lovely Humphrey, and she has helped me with some areas that were not covered on the Pampered Pooch course!

So, with a bit more confidence I decided to see what Pepper would look like with a shorter style - I was very pleased with the results!

You can really see some of the variation in her colour when she is shorter - she has lots of little white patches and you can still see her two black spots!

Ruby and Pepper have very different fur - Ruby's is more 'Poodly' and Pepper has more of a loose curl. Because of this, their grooming needs are very different so I decided that it would be a good idea to attend the course again with Pepper.

Pepper has only had one trip to the groomer before and has never been clipped so I wasn't really sure how she was going to react to it! At 7 months her fur has grown into a beautiful shaggy coat but it has started to get a little more difficult to maintain, she can't see and in the hot weather it is probably not very comfortable for her! There is also the risk of her adult coat starting to develop which could mean an increase in matts.

Pepper's blue roan coat has been developing beautifully since we have had her. She started off almost white with two clear black patches, and then started to develop a darker grey at the root, lightening to the white at the tips. I know that when she is clipped the white is going to go but am interested to see what colour variation is underneath.

Here are some pictures of our day:

She was completely exhausted, bless her! 6 hours of grooming was quite tiring for both of us!

One of the worst things about owning a Cockapoo is the need for continual grooming! Their coats have a tendency to matt and because their fur grows very like our own hair, they need to be clipped to keep a nice shape!

Grooming costs around £35 - £40 depending on the amount of grooming that is required so you can imagine that now having two dogs this can be quite expensive!

My friend Karen, another Cockapoo owner, recommended a course that is run at Merrist Wood College near Guildford called Pampered Pooch. It is a one day course that you attend with your dog where you complete a full groom with instruction. A few of us with Cockapoos booked on the course which we attended today!

We arrived and were welcomed by Dinah, the instructor, who gave us an introduction and then came to discuss any specific areas to work on with each of us, and then we were off!

Step 1 - Brushing Out - make sure all of the matts are removed before bathing
Step 2 - Bathing
Step 3 - Blaster - a blaster is a high powered tool that is designed to remove the water from the coat
Step 4 - Drying - using a brush to lift the coat as it is dried
Step 5 - Clipping - using the clippers to shorten the coat and create the shape that is required
Step 6 - Finishing - using scissors to tidy up the coat and shape the face

Here are some pictures of our day: