How often should you actually groom your dog?
The honest answer depends almost entirely on coat type, and Colorado’s climate shifts the timing more than most owners expect. Here’s the schedule we actually recommend.
Care It’s the question we’re asked more than any other, and the internet’s answer of “every four to six weeks” is only right for about a third of dogs. Grooming cadence is really a coat-type question, so let’s answer it by coat.
Curly, non-shedding coats (doodles, poodles, bichons)
Every four to six weeks, without exception. These coats don’t shed. They keep growing and trap every loose hair, which is exactly how a soft puppy coat becomes a solid mat against the skin in a matter of weeks. Owners are often shocked how fast a doodle mats behind the ears and in the armpits. Stretch past six weeks and you’re usually choosing between a painful de-matting session or a shave-down. Regular visits are cheaper, kinder, and keep the coat you actually paid for.
Double-coated breeds (huskies, shepherds, Bernese, goldens)
Every eight to twelve weeks, with a heavier de-shedding treatment in spring and fall when they blow their coat. One important thing for Colorado dogs: please don’t shave a healthy double coat to “keep them cool.” That coat insulates against heat as well as cold, and shaving it can permanently change how it grows back. What these dogs need is a professional de-shed and a high-velocity blow-out to pull the dead undercoat, which is precisely the step a rushed groom skips.
Short, smooth coats (labs, boxers, beagles)
Every six to eight weeks for a bath, nails, ears, and a de-shed. They look low-maintenance, but short-coated dogs still shed heavily and still need their nails kept back. Long nails change how a dog stands and, over time, stress the joints.
The Colorado asterisk
Our dry, sunny Front Range climate does two things to coats. It dries out skin, so conditioning and non-harsh product matter more here than in humid climates. It also brings a long trail season of foxtails, cheatgrass, and burrs from roughly May through October. Through those months, a thorough brush-out isn’t cosmetic; it’s how we catch a foxtail before it burrows and becomes a vet bill.
The real answer, of course, is that your dog is not a chart. At the first visit your groomer will look at the actual coat, skin, and lifestyle and give you a cadence built for your dog, and then hold the same appointment so you never have to think about it again.
