Received my degree in show grooming

[Anfsurfer]

Haha! Not quite.

I had my first lesson in grooming a chin for a show yesterday. Wow. It was so hard! I have no idea how people can do a lot of chins. I was exhausted when I finished my ONE! I have to say though, the BEFORE and AFTER was astounding.

I have a question...
The first part of grooming the chin was cutting the end of the tail to be straight across, and trimming all the white hairs off along the tail.
I read Empress show standards, and tail and ears aren't judged. So why do we groom the tail?

I will have one more training session before the CO show in Feb. Then it's all the prep before the show and onto the REAL show!

 

[jags]

The tail is trimmed to eliminate or at least reduce orange and yellow discoloration from urine and other waste that may cast an off color on the rest of the animal.

 

[Amba1027]

I don't know anything about grooming; I'm new to the chin world. I was wondering if you had any pictures of the before and after you could post? I would love to see the difference especially since I can't imagine what all would be done to them.

 

[Anfsurfer]

Thanks for answering my question!
Do you really have 999 or more chins???

 

[Anfsurfer]

Anyone want to share their grooming secrets?

 

[Lynn & The Chins]

Also, if your chin has a curly tail, it can touch and kind of "ruffle" the perfectly groomed chin on which you have spent time grooming "to perfection".

 

[Ruby]

I know many people try to get the rough grooming (a #1 or #2 comb) prior to the show and then work mainly on getting the tips done at the show with a #3 or #4 comb.

Rough grooming from the time the animal is a kit is a good idea to get the fur shaft straighter with allows dust to get into the fur better.

Make sure you don't hold the chin too close to its body or fur will slip, I have had this happen to me, oops! Fur can also slip from the tail also, so just watch your grip. Some slip fur a lot easier than others.

Not really a grooming tip, but for people wanting to pet chins/pelts at or before a show, use the back of your hand as to not get so much oil onto the fur.

Make sure you wear jeans and bring a towel to put on your lap because some chins bite while being groomed and you will want the protection.

Lint rollers are great help to get loose fur off of them, or some people use nail files, hacksaws, or these rubber loops things (can't remember who sells them). If you want to be a good help at shows if you want to kill time, go tear lint roller sheets for people grooming, they will appreciate the help!

I am sure I can think or more, just can't remember all of them now.

The best way to get better at grooming is to watch ranchers at the show and practice, practice, practice! I have asked people at a show if I can groom one of their extra animals or and animal they are selling. You can sit beside them and get tips on how to improve your technique.

 

[Spoof]

Anyone want to share their grooming secrets?

Be patient, if they are in prime there won't be much to do. If they are not it is an uphill battle, just don't remove all the loose fur or the chin looses volume.

If your chin is the type where it's fur is easily imprinted by cage bars - show it in the earliest class possible for ECBC.

I groom the opposite of Ruby, if I pre-groom it's with a larger comb just to knock out the dead fur. Once I get there I touch up with a 1 or 2.

Show kit contains; Combs, lint rollers, saw blades. You can use an emory board too. I like to groom on a table.

Ears are the gift of spare handles. If a chin is trying to kill you - don't be afraid to use them! lol.

I have no idea how people can do a lot of chins.

If you're running a full string (40) you have to bring help or have them all completely pre-groomed. Between the paperwork (30min, minimum) and the finding of cages and pen cards (+20-30) it leaves a single person with only 3 minutes per chin to pull it out of it's carrier, put it in the show cage, put the card on the cage and deposit the chin on in the correct spot OR clean up the show cage if they've been in them all night. That's with a 3 hour lead time before the show. I team groomed with Ronda for several years and it was still very difficult for us each to get 20 out to the table (6 min per chin).

You will see that many of the ranchers have a team system - one grooms, the other does everything else. )

 

[threewingedfury]

I know many people try to get the rough grooming (a #1 or #2 comb) prior to the show and then work mainly on getting the tips done at the show with a #3 or #4 comb.

I think you have it backwards. A 3 or 4 should be used for rough grooming and a 2 or 1 should be used for the fine tuning. Rough grooming an animal with a 1 is looking for a disaster.

 

[Ruby]

I think you have it backwards. A 3 or 4 should be used for rough grooming and a 2 or 1 should be used for the fine tuning. Rough grooming an animal with a 1 is looking for a disaster.

Yup, sorry. I tend to get them backwards!

 

[Anfsurfer]

The breeder who is mentoring me through this grooming training told me the same thing...to spend time with other breeders the day of the show because everyone has their own techniques. So far from what you guys have recommended he's already covered. The towel and jeans is a good thing to mention here because I did get bit twice! lol The chin that was my guinea pig was not one of my chins and he did not appreciate me grooming him in the beginning. He calmed down a lot over the time though.

Thank you all so much for your input. As I said, I was surprised how much work it took to groom the chin, maybe because it was my first time it seemed more difficult than it was. When I went to learn I thought I would be watching. I didn't realize I would actually be grooming someone elses chin and it was a bit daunting. Made me have a lot more respect for all the work it takes to prepare the animals.

 

[jags]

Yes we have over 1000 chins in the barn, though with sales the way they have been this year the barn is more empty than normal. I try to help anyone with grooming that i can both at the shows, at chin meetings and seminars and also here in our barn.

 

[mark miller]

Some people have grooming down to an art form. I like to look around and watch different people and their grooming regimen and techniques used at the show. There are many different ways to groom your chins and always new innovations that people come up with to assist with grooming. Some people comb from head to tail and some from tail to head, some like to comb chins in their laps and others like to hold them up by their tail when combing, some use lint rollers, some use hacksaw blades, and some just breath on their hand and rub over the chin from tail to head to remove loose hair. The key to easy grooming at the show is proper preparation. Develop a regimen that works for you and do it the same with every chin. I like to deep rough comb (removing dead fur) with a 3 or 4 about 1 1/2 to 2 weeks before show. This is when I also trim the tail fur and ear tag the animal. Then comb again just a couple days before show with a 1 or 2 comb getting through the fur, but not so deep as first combing (shouldn't be pulling a lot of dead fur out). Then the morning of the show I use a 0 fine comb and only go about half way down into the fur shaft pulling fur upwards and forward towards head. The fine comb pulls the dark tips of the fur together creating a more closed smooth uniform appearance over the top of the fur, it also is faster since you don't comb as deeply. This is my regimen, but everyone has their own that works best for them. Watch as many groomers as you can at the show to get ideas and practice at home on any non-show animals that you have. Find a regimen that works best for you and remember preparation is key so you don't have to spend 30 minutes on each animal the morning of the show.

 

[Godins Chinchillas]

They make a 0 comb Mark?

 

[Spoof]

I'm not Mark, but there are many different sizes of chinchilla combs made. I've seen sizes 0-7, some alternating short and long tines... etc. Only 1-4 with average length tines ever caught on in the U.S. for some reason.

 

[mark miller]

I actually have a 00 comb that you can't even see space between the teeth on. I can't get it through the fur though or I'd use it at shows. Lol! The finer the comb, the more it pulls the fur shafts together. You just have to be careful not to go to deep with them or you'll pull fur out when you lift the fur up and forward.

 

[Anfsurfer]

Well since I only have three Chins and all of them are going to be shown, I don't have any chins here that can be Guinea Pigs. lol So that's where my mentor comes in. heehee.
Do people REALLY use a hacksaw? Or is it a shedding blade which resembles the teeth of a saw? lol
Thanks for all the info Mark. These are my pets and I don't ever plan to be a breeder/rancher. It's just fun to attend the show, learn what I can, and see how my animals do. I'll do the best I can from what I'm learning from everyone. Most likely my chins will be too old to show next year. Time will tell...

 

[chechinchillas]

The black rubber water tubing is just duct taped at the ends to create a loop shape and it is helpful in remove excess dust if you rub it back and forth over the chin (saw this at Ryersons). They also do a little shake (gently) after grooming where they have ahold of the base of the tail and let the front paws touch the ground. Also I have been told to quit dusting dark colored chins earlier in the week before lighter colored chins before a show. Another thing was not to use brand new dust the week before the show, just to keep adding a little new dust to the old dust. The only other thing is I was taught to use an emery board to go over the coat lightly to help remove loose hairs. Never stack chins on top of each other in case one decides to pee. I would definitely do grooming ahead of time and then just do your finish grooming at the show. I was a nervous wreck and had to redo my entry paper, so anything to save time is a plus.

 

[mishalaa]

Yes, I saw a video that ChinWorld used to sell that showed Gary and Margot Neubauer using a hacksaw blade to get the fine hair that lays on top of the coat after combing. I tried it and it didn't work for me, I wasn't dextrous enough to both hold the chin in one hand AND control that long of an instrument to do that fine of a job with the other. I prefer the lint roller.

 

[Vyxxin]

Personally cannot STAND lint rollers! Used it to pre-groom one of my first guinea pigs...did not work well for ME.

One month before show I start dusting about 5X a week. I pre-comb with a #4 about 2 weeks from show when I tag my show string. About 4 days before show I remove dust from my dark animals, 2 days before show remove dust from my light animals...night before show (we're talking wee morning hours really) I groom my animals for show. This involves going through (again) with a #4, THEN through with a #2, THEN using the waterline whisker, finally giving a sake off...popping them in their show carrier and hoping all goes well.

Something to note, I use Ryerson carriers with mesh in each hole. The mesh is lifted 1" off the ground with absorbent bedding underneath.

Watch, watch, watch and practice, practice, practice! I've always allowed new people to watch me groom (I'll bring one of my own or groom theirs at shows) as well as instructed on how to groom...but each person learns over time what works best for THEM!