RUBY DOODLES OF LOUISIANA
PUPPY TOOL KIT
recommened supplies
Dog food
Goldendoodles are known for their teddy bear like coats. Just like humans, eating processed foods and lacking proper nutrition will result in thin and dull hair and nails, as well as overall poor health. If you want your goldendoodle to have a beautiful coat and healthy skin, a good quality dog food is very important. Without quality ingredients in their food, their skin and coats will suffer. We've seen too many dogs on cheap popular brands with terrible coats. If you love your dog, a good quality dog food is absolutely necessary and is usually more expensive. It's important for long term health, and will give you peace of mind that your dog is eating a healthy diet. Cheaper brands don't use quality ingredients, will usually lack the nutrients needed, and will cause issues down the road. Since they have more fillers, your dog will have to eat more of it to get the nutrients they need. Quality dog foods usually lasts a lot longer due to the nutrient dense formulas, because your dog doesn't have to eat a lot. Read about our favorite brands below.
Coat Change
Color Change
Did you know that red shades in poodles and doodles will fade over time? This is due to a progressive greying gene that is not testable, but effects all red bloodlines. There is a handful of red dogs that will hold their color for life, but it is very rare.
Usually this fade starts around 18-24 months old. Even the darkest red will lighten to a golden red shade by 3 years old.
There are some puppies that will darken over the first two years, but they'll eventually fade like a normal red by 3 years old.
If you are set on getting a dark red, please know that their color is temporary. We encourage our puppy owners to choose their puppy based on more important characteristics besides color, like te,porament and health.
Coat Change
Poodles and Doodles have a puppy coat for the first 6 months, which is softer, thinner, and straighter than their adult coat. Around 6 months old, their roots begin to thicken and get wavier.
Pictured above is our Piper, a retired mama from our lines. Click through her pictures to see how her coat texture and color has changed over time.
coat maintenance
GROOMING
Since a goldendoodle generally does not shed, their fur grows and grows, until it is cut. They are a high maintenance dog that requires grooming often. If you cannot afford to keep your dog groomed professionally, or don't have the income or time to learn how to groom them yourself, PLEASE DO NOT ADOPT A GOLDENDOODLE or any other poodle or poodle mix. We love each of our puppies that we produce, and want them to be well taken care of. Groomer's charge a lot more for doodles and poodles because their coats are longer and thicker than the average dog. Realistically, you can expect to pay $60 to $150 for a fullgroom every 6 to 8 weeks. The price varies with size and location. If you choose to have your groomer bathe and dry your dog between trims, you can expect to pay $40 to $60 for this service depending on size and location. If you choose to do all baths, drying, and grooming yourself, you can expect to invest $200 to $500 for supplies upfront, depending on quality of the products. Learning to groom a doodle at home is hard and time consuming, but worth it in the end if you have the knack for it and want to save money. Continue reading below for instructions on how to keep your dog's coat maintained, as well as what supplies to by in order to do so.
BRUSHES & TOOLS
If you like your dog's coat to stay long and shaggy, it needs to either be brushed at home or at the groomers often. A professionally dried goldendoodle coat will stay intact and knot free for 1-2 weeks if it's long. If you don't have time to brush them once every week or two, make sure you keep a standing appointment with a good groomer to get them bathed and fully dried every 1-3 weeks (depending on the length). If you want to save some money and don't have time to brush, have your groomer trim your dog to 1/2" - 3/4" (body and legs) every 4-6 weeks. This length is short enough that you can go a while without brushing. Every coat is different, but these time lines are consistent with what we see in our grooming business. If you want to keep your dog brushed at home and/or groom them yourself, the best and ONLY way to brush is to "line brush" (see video linked below).
Why is brushing important?
Matting is when there are knots at the root of a dog's coat, sometimes connected over their body like webbing. If a doodle goes too long between brushing, their coat needs to be shaved off because it is pelted at their skin. Some people may think that brushing sounds like a lot of work and effort, but as long as you keep it up, it won't be work. As soon as you stop maintaining their coat, then the knots will turn into matts, and it will be harder to brush out your dog's coat and cause them pain. When a dog has a matt, their matting is pulling at their skin and they usually lick at it or bite at it. In most circumstances, matting cannot be brushed out and your dog will have to be shaved. Some people will think that brushing out matting or tangles is a groomer's job, but it is the owner of the dog that is responsible for keeping their coat maintained. A groomer's job is to trim the dog, but that cannot be done if there is matting. If your groomer has to brush out matts (de-matt) just to be able to pass the clippers through it's coat, expect a huge grooming bill or a shave down instead. Grooming dogs is hard work, so any extra work you put onto your groomer will not foster a good professional relationship there. You'll be adding time to their work day, which pushes back other appointments and causes stress for the dog and the groomer. Even if there is matting in just a few spots, a groomer has to go through the coat, find the matting, try to brush it out, and shave it out if its too deep. This will add a lot of time to their groom and leave your dog looking bald or botched in some spots. If the matting is at the skin all over (often referred to as "spider webbed"), there is no choice but to shave under the matting to get it off. No good groomer will attempt to brush out matting because of the pain it will cause the dog. Our goal is to help guide our puppy owner's on how to properly maintain their goldendoodle at home, so they are loved by every groomer they meet and never have to be shaved down.
BATH TIME
We recommend goldendoodles be bathed and fully dried every 2-3 weeks to keep their coats clean, straight, and knot free. When a goldendoodle has a dirty coat, it's easier to get tangles and harder to keep brushed. Brushing a dirty coat tends to hurt the dog more since you're also brushing dried saliva, oils, and dirt. This is also important because you can inspect their skin during blow drying for fleas, ticks, cuts, and other skin issues. A lot of goldendoodle owners will keep their dogs on a schedule with their groomer for a bath and a full blow out every 2-3 weeks in between trims every 6-8 weeks. If you choose to do bathing and drying at home, make sure you invest in the right products. There are many grooming products out there that are great for keeping your goldendoodle's hair shiny and soft, and less likely to be tangled. Here are our tips, from our tried and true experience as both long time doodle owners and full-time doodle groomers:
We don't like using conditioner in the bath because it tends to take forever washing out. We prefer to use Lillian Ruff's leave in conditioner instead. After their bath, towel dry as best as you can, spray the leave in conditioner throughout the coat, and brush through with a slicker brush before drying.
A high velocity dryer is the only way to dry a goldendoodle. Move slowly and close to the skin, and their coat will straighten out and dry before your eyes. TIP: put cotton balls in their ears to protect them from the noise. After drying, line brushing is 10x easier so make sure to get that done now.
EAR CLEANING HOW -TO
Ear issues can be a big deal in the doodle world, but it doesn't have to be. Ear mites, yeasts, and ear infections love those furry ears when wet, and our southern humidity doesn't make things any better. The best way to avoid yeasty ears is to keep your dog's ear's plucked, and clean. Your groomer will do this during your dog's groom, but if you want to learn how to do this at home, keep reading. Click the links below to see how to keep your goldendoodle's ears clean and what products we use.
TIP: foods with grain and chicken *can* contribute to yeasty ears. If your dog is having chronic issues, consider switching to a grain free, poultry food.
NAIL TRIM HOW -TO
Keeping your dog's nail trimmed regularly is essential for grooming maintenance, reduces the chances of your dog scratching someone by accident (ouch!), and actually affects the way your dog stands. If their nails are too long, they will stand in a way that will compensate for those long nails, and this could eventually cause joint issues and muscle soreness. Your groomer will trim and buff your dog's nails for you, but if you find that your dog's nails grow too fast and want to take care of it at home, read on for our how-to and recommendations. If you make it a positive experience from the day you bring home your puppy, and continue to touch their paws when you hold them, they'll remain used to this and shouldn't fight you about it. Click the pictures below to order our favorite products from Amazon.
