It is time to talk about Skye coat care. Since this is an area that I would also like to learn more about, I have enlisted the aid of Skye Terrier Club of America members to help by giving us tips on how to keep our Skye coats looking their best.  I would like to thank them all for their help and special information. As you read these suggestions and tips, remember that climate and local conditions change the way that many products work. Even short distances can change the effectiveness of many products. Anne Boucher and I live 45 minutes from each other but the same foods do not work for both of us because our situations are different. I have hard well water and she in on city lines with soft water.  She has air-conditioning and I do not.  She has wood floors and mine are tile and carpet. For these reasons and others, shampoos and foods work differently. As areas change and the climates change, how the products and foods react to these areas are different. Also remember, each Skye coat is different. Try many of the different products mentioned here and see what will work for your particular Skye.

By the way their will be a quiz at the end so read carefully.

Sandra Goose Allen in Florida sent the following:

"After grooming Skyes for about 35 years, not much has changed. I do use food additives, and feel wholesome nourishing food that I believe help us growing and maintaining a healthy beautiful coat.  I normally bath the dog every 7 to 10 days. In between baths, I never touch the dog.  Never brush or comb your dog when dry or dirty. This will certainly lead to coat breakage. I use a small pin brush, electric clipper with a #30 blade for hair between the pads, and a good scissors for shaping the foot.

I have experimented with many different shampoos.  Each dog has individual needs and not one shampoo will fit all dogs.  I rinse with vinegar and water and use a good cream rinse.

I do not put my Skyes in oil, but have used hot oil treatment that has helped damaged or dry coats.  I blow dry with my standing dryer every hair - to the skin, shaping the hair as it blows dry. It's like an artist painting a beautiful picture.  Step back - move your dog - have someone move him for you. Are you satisfied??  Try different products to see which one will do the best job."

Thanks for reminding me about the vinegar and water rinse. I have used it in the past with very nice results, but in the years have forgotten.

From Minnesota Anne Boucher writes:

Coat care is never quite so simple as one fancier can convey in a few well meant lines of writing, but one fact outshines all the others - "Regular and consistent care".  Then the following::

• 1. Buy it or breed it     2. Feed it     and      3.  Care for it to the best of your abilities.

Anne & Don Brown from South Carolina write:

"CLEAN HAIR GROWS COAT! DIRTY HAIR BREAKS COAT!  We bathe our show dogs once a week and all others every 10 days or so.  It is important to remember when shampooing never to leave a residue.  Rinse, rinse, & rinse again!  Shampoo residues buildup on coat and leave it dull & sometimes even brittle. After shampooing, use a diluted conditioner. This also should be rinsed out.

 Soft coated and harsh coated Skyes require different care.  Harsh coats are more brittle, break more easily, and therefore, require more conditioning. They perhaps even require "oil". The idea is to keep the coat clean and soft between shows. Many products will do this. (Unicure, Pantene, #1 All Systems, etc.) In our experience, we have not found one product to be perfect. Softer coats tend to mat more easily and perhaps should be brushed more often.  A soft set, long pin brush is the brush of choice for Skye coat.  We use #1 All Systems brushes also, but there are others.  Listen as you brush.  If you are brushing to harshly, you will hear the sound of coat breaking. Brush from the bottom layer up taking very small amounts of hair each time.  Never pull a brush harshly through a Skye coat. Corn starch is a good de-matter. Sprinkle it on dry coat and gently brush mat. It will loosen.  Spray detanglers like NO More Tangles also may help.  We rarely use a comb. It has been our experience that new Skye owners often rip out coat with combs.  Combs are useful if a Skye has lots of undercoat and generally a soft coat,  usually around the neck and shoulders. Then a long toothed "greyhound" type comb will help remove excess undercoat. Again, comb through gently to pull out excessive undercoat.  Watch to be sure that you're not breaking top coat as well. 

Jeanne Culver in Maryland sent this tip:

The harder coated Skyes are wonderful, but the hard coat breaks easily.  I've been shampooing in Pantene (for damaged & dry hair) and using #1 All Systems Hemectant oil to rinse instead of creme rinse. Creme rinse, any kind, seems to attract dirt which in turn breaks coat. Comb out after using Hemectant oil and do not rinse out of coat with water.

From Pennsylvania we hear this from Donna Dale:

"If you want to grow a beautiful Skye coat, you must first have a healthy Skye, so the first step begins with proper diet, and a Skye free of parasites.  Good coat care begins with a clean coat with no mats or tangles. Wash the Skye in a gentle shampoo with a minimum of "scrunching" the coat. In fact, pouring water with the shampoo in it through the coat is adequate. Too much washing with too much shampoo strips the coat of valuable natural oils.

Never use oil to condition the coat. Oil is too heavy, attracts dirt, and leads to broken coat.  Brush often enough to keep out mats, but not so often to abuse the coat.  Use only a pin brush with a rubber base that allows movement of the pins.

 Donna Dale

 Pennsylvania

Yes we have just heard two different opinions about using a conditioning oil on the coat.  Again, remember that what works for each dog in each climate is different and there is more than one way to beautiful coats.

Judy Davis from California sent this tip:

As has been written many times before, good coats start from the inside out with proper nutrition, essential fatty acids, etc.  Good flea control is of primary importance since controlling scratching is the only way you can expect to grow a nice coat.  I like Dynamite supplement as well as Derm Caps.  I use #1 All Systems shampoo and also their pin brush.

I prefer to bathe the dogs once a week or every other week depending on coat texture. I never brush a dry or dirty dog, because in my opinion if they need brushing they need a bath.  I'm not a fan of conditioners and use them as little as possible since they tend to build up in the coat. Some coats don't require a conditioner at all.  Most good quality shampoos have conditioner already in them and that is adequate.

I talked to Walter Goodman in New York and he offered us these tips:

The word I want to use for conditioning for the Skye is perseverance.  By perseverance I mean constant care which does not mean constant brushing and combing.  I believe that diet is of major importance. And fresh food is very important !!  I used fresh ground beef, carrots, onions and celery which I cooked together.  I then took the meat and vegetables out , let the soup cool rendered the fat and used the soup for the biscuit of choice. The meat and vegetables where also mixed with the biscuit that had been soaked in the soup. If cooked in larger quantities or if you only have 1 or 2 Skyes, the beef and vegetable mixture can be frozen after it is cooked.  My Skyes also had added vitamins: pet tabs, brewers yeast and wheat germ oil to keep the skin soft and supple.  From time to time they had a hard boiled egg in the morning. If you have the time two meals a day are probably better then one. As far as puppies go, I used a wonderful formula from a book on dog care edited by Blanche Sanders and Jeanette W. Cross. However the book may be out of print.  Again, I feel that fresh food  is the best.

On grooming - do not overgroom!  When I prepared a dog for the show ring, I usually gave them a bath a day or two before so the coat had time to settle. However, you do not have to wash every week for the dog shows if coat is good condition and clear.  For ring presentation I used water mixed with Pinaud's eau de Quinine with Oil mixed 1 to 1 (this product is still available). This dries out nicely and does not leave the coat oily or change the quality of the coat. I have also used Vitapoint very sparingly to keep the part.  Use only enough so it does not disguise the quality of the coat.

Along with constant observation, maintenance and perseverance one must assume that the genes are there. They have a great deal to do with the length and quality of the coat and we just help it along.

I hope that you are beginning to pick up on a couple of the main themes that many of our contributors are pointing out.  Remember the quiz!

Robyn Hand, again someone from Pennsylvania writes:

I swear by Crown Royale products on my dogs. I use BioVite Shampoo #3 and Condition Plus conditioner. When I brush and comb between baths I dampen the coat with Crown Royale Magic Touch grooming spray.  Another product I use is Panacea creme. After the Part is set the last thing I do is put a generous amount on my hands and run it through the coat.  It really holds the coat down and doesn't leave any residue in the coat. Just before going into the ring I run the brush through. You are holding the coat down and conditioning at the same time. The only pin brush used on my dogs are #1 All Systems.

Bobbi and Ernie Koseff now from Florida send these pointers:

First and foremost you must start from the inside out. The proper diet high in quality protein and 100% digestible fat which will promote healthy skin and a coat that will be the envy of everyone when you groom, besides having a coat to care for.  We find that Best In Show food has all of these qualities.  I bathe and groom every three weeks and never brush a dirty coat.  Daily brushing just breaks coat. A standing blow dryer that blows soft moderately ware air doesn't harm the coat.  A hand held dryer blows too hot and forceful and only allows the use of one hand.  Skye coats should be brushed in layers.

The next tip is to find a shampoo that matches the texture of your Skye's coat.  It could be a terrier shampoo or a conditioning shampoo. I know some people believe in keeping Skyes in heavy oil. I have never believed in this. The coat picks up all kinds of dirt and debris and requires a detergent to remove the oil and destroys any good the heavy oil might have done.

The last tip is to find a brush and comb that doesn't tear out the coat as you groom.

Lynne Kuczynski in Pennsylvania writes:

"The best way to "get" a great coat is to have the genes for it. If you ain't got the genes, you ain't got the coat. However, the best way to develop and keep a good coat is to feed your dog properly.  My recommendation is to feed a dry food with meat as its first ingredient, and preserved with Vitamin E rather than ethoxyquin or BHA/BHT  You may also want to use a fatty acid supplement.

 My first suggestion for maintaining a good coat is an easy one: Pet your dog every day.  While doing that, you can check the condition of their skin, and find any tangles that may be developing, especially if the weather is humid.  Loosen the tangle with your fingers, and work it out completely with a comb.  Bathe as needed, using a good quality shampoo and conditioner for either dogs or humans. I've found Main and Tail shampoo and conditioner to do a nice job for my dogs who are not being shown, and #1 All Systems to be top notch for the dogs who are.  Let them air dry if it's warm enough, or blow them dry with only warm or cool air if it isn't."

From Ohio we hear this from Roxana Rohrich:

I feel washing the coat is one of the most important things in getting a coat in condition and keeping it there.  Now you MUST use a very moisturizing shampoo or moisturizing rinse afterwards to prevent drying the coat out. A Skye being campaigned needs a bath the day before the shows and the day after the shows, and sometimes in between if it's a 4 day weekend!  Never brush a full coat without a moisturizing spray. Puppy coat comes out best with no spray and a slicker brush. Get that prospective special to accept bathing with no stress as a puppy. Make it fun - give goodies and really make him think it's great. BE VERY CAREFUL never to get any soap in a puppy's eyes on his first time in the bath.  They NEVER forget.  Make his footing firm - not slippery so he doesn't get scared and don't have the water on full force (that can scare him too).  The first impressions on a pup really seem to last, so don't do it on a day when YOU are stressed. Make sure the blow-dryer is on gentle and not too hot. Getting a pup to learn to lie on his side for grooming takes every ounce of patience you have, but it's worth if you persevere. Stop grooming when you run out!! ( of patience).

Are you ready. Here is a little quiz.

1. What have heard about nutrition in at least 5 of our tips?  

2. What kind of a brush is good?

3. Should you brush a dry coat?

4. Can too much grooming be as bad as not enough grooming?

5. Have you learned anything?

Thanks again to all of our contributors!!  Good luck with your grooming and I'll see you around with all of those beautiful Skyes and their lovely coats.  That will, of course, be the ultimate test.