Grooming

Among the three styles recognized by the American Kennel Club and the Poodle Club of America for all regular show conformation classes, the Continental clip is most common. 

It is also interesting to note that the Continental clip is the oldest recorded Poodle clip, first described by Gervase Markham in 1621.

Video Instruction

• Standard Poodle Continental Clip with Lienke Luthart on YouTube

Prep Work

Maintenance Prep

1. Shampoo

2. Condition 

3. Nagayu Carbonated Spa Tablet with coconut oil (https://nagayu.com/products/co2-tablet-for-pet-10-pack-coconut.) (Optional, use instead of oiling for active Poodles.) 

4. Conditioning spray

5. Dry with a power blaster only (unless the dog has any mats), from bottom to top. 

Show Prep

Complete all prep work the day before the show in order to minimize time on the grooming table for the dog, and in order to increase bounce in hair. 

1. Shampoo (once only).

2. No conditioner.

3. Volume or texturizing spray.

4. Dry with a power blaster.

5. Finish with line brushing from bottom to top (with slicker brush) under stand dryer. 

Brushing and Combing the Coat

1. Spray.

2. Line brush (optionally use handheld dryer) with dog standing up. 

3. Comb through.

Clipping the Coat

Feet

1. Shave the whole foot to the top of the ankle (one finger above where the toes end).

Back Legs

1. Start from two fingers above the line of hock on the back and the indentation on the front (or 45 degrees), in other words, at a diagonal.

2. Shave up (against the grain) back legs with a 30 (0.5 mm) or a 15 blade (1.2 mm), except for the five inches on the center of the rear curve, which is shaved slightly longer (depending on what you started with, it could be a 15 or a 10 blade), in order to avoid too much skin showing through.

Rosettes

1. For the rear line, hold the tail erect and mark a line with a comb against the front of the tail to show where the rosettes cannot hit.

2. For the side line, feel for the point where the hard muscle changes to the soft point right above the “tuck-up” (or “fender”).

3. Always shave the rosettes square, in order to avoid having them open up too wide.

4. Shave the side of the rosette forward to the place where the jacket will start, which is just behind the dog’s last rib.

5. Shave maximum one finger line between the rosettes and the back of the jacket, just “tipping” the line with the clippers.

6. Don’t shave between the rosettes until you’ve shaped the back and sides of both rosettes.

7. Shave the center line no wider than one finger (as small as possible), in a straight line to the back of the jacket.

8. Make a small-v at the center corners back and front (but not on the bottom corners).

Tail

1. Shave the base of the tail up no more than two fingers.

Front Leg

1. To get the height of the front pom, measure the rear of the back pom with a comb placed on the table, and transfer height to the front pom.

2. Shave up to two fingers above the elbow.

3. Shave both lines horizontally.

Scissoring

Jacket

You want the jacket to look round, but you will start by scissoring it square. Hold the dog’s head level as you scissor, in order to maintain the correct position.

1. The first line is made at the point of the elbow. Scissor off all the hair on the bottom of the jacket in a straight line (with straight scissors).

2. The second line is the back of the jacket. Scissor up the dog’s body in a straight line.

3. The third line is the chest  line. With the scissors held points upward, scissor the hair right below the shave line so that it’s as short as possible. 

4. Hold the ear up (without pulling the skin), and, with straight scissors held upward, scissor the hair up at a slight diagonal toward the top of her shoulders, under where the ear would lay.

5. With curved scissors, begin at the point of her chest bone and round off the hair to the straight line on the bottom of the jacket.

6. With scissor points angled upward, round off the corner left on the bottom edge of the jacket where it meets the side.

7. Round off the back of the jacket, where the bottom line meets the back line.

8. Round off the edge where the front of the chest meets the side of the jacket.

9. The side of the jacket will remain straight (do not round off the top edge of the jacket where it meets the dog’s back, because the line from the sides must rise straight up to the top line).

Rosettes

1. With straight scissors, comb the hair backward, and trim off all the hair that crosses the back line.

2. Comb the hair down, and trim off all the hair that crosses the bottom line.

3. Comb the hair forward, and trim the hair to the middle of the line between the pom and the jacket back (in effect you should only tip the hair, so that the line doesn’t become too wide which will make the dog look longer).

4. Clean up the edges of the rosettes with the clipper.

Rear Poms

Keep in mind that you should not scissor any part of the top side of the poms, because when the dog walks around the hair will fall down, creating a pear shape.

1. Comb all the hair straight down, wrap your palm around all the hair, draw it down tight around the line where the foot is shaved up to, pull up on the skin to make the hair taught, and clip the hair all the way around in a line parallel to the table top.

2. Release the hair and shake it out.

3. Without holding the hair flat against the skin this time, clean up just the inside bottom line with clippers (or scissors).

4. The front side of the pom should not cross the front of the foot.

5. Scissor the front of the poms first, making the front a flat side.

6. Scissor the outside side of the pom straight.

7. Scissor the inside side of the pom straight.

8. Only tip the back of the pom flat and straight with a chunker.

9. Only tip the top of the pom so that it’s diagonally flat on the top.

10. Bottom should look like a little-v shape.

Front Poms

1. Do the same thing you did on the back poms to create the bottom line bevel.

2. Hold the foot and flex the foot downward so you can round off the front edge of pom.

3. Comb everything upwards, and with curved scissors, just tip the top of the pom level, (not down to clipper line).

4. With curved scissors held horizontally (never vertically), shape the front round by clipping straight from leg to outside edge straight, then round top edge into front flat area. The front of the pom should not cross the front edge of the foot.

5. With curved shears held horizontally, do the same thing to the outside side. The outside of the pom should not cross the outside edge of the side of the jacket.

6. Clip the back of the poms last. The back of the poms should also be left as long as possible (because it closes up the space between the legs, and it’s also the area that breaks off the most). Tip the back with chunkers.

7. Hold the foot up in order to see the inside side and wIth curved shears held horizontally, do the same thing to the inside side.

Tail

1. Comb all the hair down past the end of the tail, and holding the end of the tail, cut off all the hair past that point as short as possible.

2. Hold the tail up and comb everything down, and with curved shears shape the base of the plume round.

3. Still holding the tail erect and pitched forward, comb the hair up and trim the sides.

4. Finally, trim the top edge of the tail leaving this edge the longest.

5. Finish with chunkers.

Ears

1. With chunkers, trim the hair to a level curve across the bottom.