Maintaining a Portidoodle's or Portuguese Water Dog’s hair requires regular daily attention to keep their coat healthy and free from mats. Matting can be very uncomfortable for your dog, the tangled hairs can pull on your dog’s skin causing discomfort, loss of blood circulation, and even skin issues. It is important to maintain your dog’s hair coat to prevent injuries and health issues in the future.
Here is a grooming guide and some tips to keep your Portidoodle or Portuguese Water Dog in tip-top shape:
Brushing |
Portidoodles and Portuguese Water Dogs (PWDs) can have a wavy, curly, or wiry coat, that can easily mat if not brushed regularly. Use a slicker brush or a pin brush to brush your PWD's coat daily. Start from the head and work your way down to the tail, making sure to reach under the legs and around the chest. This helps prevent tangles and mats. We recommend not dry brushing your Portidoodle or Portuguese Water Dog, use a light spray of water or a detangling solution to dampen the coat prior to brushing. This will help prevent hair breakage and ease brushing discomfort.
While brushing, feel for any mats or tangles in the hair. Use a metal comb to gently work through mats if you find any. It's important to address mats promptly to prevent them from becoming larger and harder to remove.
Line brushing is a technique that we recommend using at least once a week, to ensure thorough brushing and prevent mats and tangles. Here’s how line brushing works:
Prepare the Tools: Before starting, gather a slicker brush, a pin brush, and a metal comb. These tools are essential for effectively brushing through the coat.
Divide the Coat: Begin by dividing your dog's coat into sections. Start with a small section at a time, rather than trying to brush the entire coat at once. This makes the process more manageable and ensures that you don't miss any spots.
Brushing Technique:
Take a section of your dog's coat and hold it firmly but gently up with one hand.
With the other hand, use the slicker brush to brush through the section of hair from the roots to the tips. Start at the bottom of the section and work your way up.
After using the slicker brush, switch to the pin brush. Brush through the same section again to further smooth out the hair and remove any remaining tangles.
Finish by using the metal comb to comb through the section. The comb helps to detect any hidden mats or tangles that the brushes may have missed.
Repeat: Move on to the next section of your dog's coat and repeat the process. Continue dividing the coat into sections and line brushing each one until you have brushed through the entire coat.
Check for Mats: While line brushing, be sure to check for mats or tangles. If you encounter a mat, use the metal comb or your fingers to gently work through it. It's important to address mats promptly to prevent them from becoming larger and harder to remove. If a mat is particularly stubborn, you can use a pair of thinning shears to cut the middle of the mat, making it easier to work apart, without loosing all the hair near the mat.
Final Touches: Once you have line brushed the entire coat, you can go over it once more with the slicker brush and pin brush to ensure thorough grooming. Pay attention to areas prone to mats, such as behind the ears, under the legs, and around the tail.
Line brushing helps to keep your dog's coat healthy and free from mats by systematically brushing through each section. It allows you to detect and address tangles early, making grooming sessions more effective and comfortable for your pet.
Daily Hygiene |
In addition to daily brushing, daily hygiene for your Portidoodle or Portuguese Water Dog may include cleaning eyes and ears, brushing their teeth, and cleaning around their genitals and anus.
Eyes and ears are an important part of your Portidoodle or Portuguese Water Dog, these areas should be cleaned and checked daily. Use a damp cloth to wipe around your Portidoodle's or Portuguese Water Dog’s eyes to remove any tear stains, “eye boogies” or debris. It is normal for them to have “eye boogies” as their hair will catch any debris or tears that come out of the eyes, we recommend removing this build-up daily to prevent eye infections.
Check their ears regularly for signs of wax buildup or irritation, and gently clean them with a dog ear cleaner solution and cotton balls. You can also remove some of the hair from the ears to prevent hair from adding to wax build-up in the ears.
We recommend you brush your Portidoodle's or Portuguese Water Dog's teeth regularly with a dog toothbrush and toothpaste to prevent dental issues. You should see your Veterinarian for an annual dental exam to ensure your dog’s teeth and gums remain healthy.
Daily cleaning of your dog’s genitals and anus with a warm wet washcloth can help keep them clean and prevent Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs) as well as other infections and sicknesses. Trim any excess hair around their genitals and anus to keep the area clean. We recommend that anal glands only be expressed by your Veterinarian when they determine it is necessary.
Trimming |
Portidoodles or Portuguese Water Dogs often have hair that grows over their eyes, around their muzzle, between their paw pads and around their genitals and anus (sanitary areas). We recommend trimming these areas between professional grooming appointments, about every 3-4 weeks, when hair is noticeably long or becomes matted and dirty.
Use rounded-tip scissors to trim the hair around their eyes and mouth carefully, ensuring not to poke their eyes. We like to trim eyes to form a triangle between their eyes, with the point being at the forehead.
You can use scissors or small trimmers to trim any hair that grows between their paw pads to prevent slipping and matting. You can also use scissors or trimmers to shorten the length of the hair around their genitals, down the back of the legs and up the belly to prevent matting in these areas, this also helps prevent UTIs and keeps your dog cleaner.
Nail Care |
Check your Portidoodle's or Portuguese Water Dog’s nails weekly and trim them as needed using dog nail clippers. Be cautious not to cut too close to the quick (the pink part inside the nail), as it can be painful and bleed. Trim a small amount of the nail at a time, just below the quick. If unsure, it's better to trim less initially.
For white nails, it is easy to see the pick quick in the middle of the nail, trim up to the tip of the pink quick, being careful not to cut the quick. For dark nails, the quick can be harder to see, we recommend you trim small bits at a time until you see a black dot appear in the center of the freshly cut surface. This dot indicates you are nearing the quick.
If you accidentally cut into the quick and it starts to bleed, apply styptic powder or cornstarch to stop the bleeding. Press gently for a few seconds until the bleeding stops.
Bathing and Drying |
Portidoodles or Portuguese Water Dogs should be bathed at least every 3-4 weeks, but no more than once a week, to keep their coat clean and healthy. Use a dog-specific shampoo and conditioner that is suitable for their coat type. Make sure to rinse thoroughly to avoid skin irritation.
After bathing, use a towel to gently dry your Portidoodle's or Portuguese Water Dog’s coat. We recommend using a forced air blow dryer to dry their hair completely and help separate the hairs during drying. Using a forced air blow dryer will cut down on dry time, but it also will blow the hair out straight, helping to prevent matting and making brushing easier. Brush their coat while drying to prevent mats from forming.
Professional Grooming/Haircuts |
Schedule regular visits to a professional groomer every 4-8 weeks for a full grooming session, which includes trimming their coat. There are many different styles of haircuts for your Portidoodle or Portuguese Water Dog, including a Retriever Clip and a Lion Cut, you can find instructions for these cuts on the PWDCA’s website. We recommend discussing your lifestyle, available time for daily grooming, and style preferences with your groomer to decide which cut would be best for you and your dog. If you find that you are regularly dealing with lots of mats or do not have the time to brush daily, we recommend keeping your dog in a shorter haircut which will be much more manageable.
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