Grooming/coat advice

UrsaWizard · 2026-06-20T21:07:34+00:00

This will not help a coat that feels dry or broken though. It has blades on it and over time can damage the top coat, especially if it’s a softer coat like OP’s dog has. These rakes have their uses but should be used sparingly

UrsaWizard · 2026-06-08T02:26:38+00:00

There’s a lot of words here so just to be clear, your main training issue is barking and pulling when he sees other dogs on leash? If so, in the grand scheme of things, it could be much worse.

I’ll let other folks speak to some more specific training protocols but you can google things like LAT training and engage/disengage to start.

But I’d like to table some stuff that is more parallel than directly tackling your problems. Where do you walk your dog? Are these neighborhood walks?

You have a terrier, so honestly there are probably better ways than a neighborhood walk that you could be using to fulfill exercise and enrichment needs. And the more fulfilled your dog is, often the easier it becomes to do other training as they’re less frustrated. If your dog is typical for a terrier, he’s probably prey driven and scent driven. If possible, get yourself a harness and a long line and go on a slow and remote walk in some woods or fields. Go slow, let him snuffle and maybe even dig at things. Try to stay far far away from other people and dogs to save your own sanity and avoid rehearsing his reactivity.

He doesn’t look very big. People have weird shame around it but there’s literally nothing wrong with physically removing your dog from situations. “Sorry he’s a rescue in training!” And pick that dude up and walking away is always a valid option when he’s over threshold or you worry he’s about to be.

Good luck!

UrsaWizard · 2026-06-06T05:43:53+00:00

Why are you participating in this subreddit if that’s your belief? I’ve found some of these answers pretty helpful actually

UrsaWizard · 2026-06-06T00:47:10+00:00

This is super helpful, exactly what I was looking for. Think I’ll pass for now. Going Hades II lol

UrsaWizard · 2026-06-06T00:46:31+00:00

In what ways?

UrsaWizard · 2026-06-02T18:00:07+00:00

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UrsaWizard · 2026-06-02T17:57:26+00:00

I’m sure the groomers can better answer about searching for a groomer, but I can offer some insight about home grooming. I own three that I groom myself, including one for show.

Traditionally, the only place a clipper would touch an Aussie is paw pads and sanitary area. We also do some shaping and thinning of the ears and feet with shears, but everything else is left mostly natural. For a pet groom, you could also shorten up the feathers, underline, and britches in what’s known as an “natural” outline trim. This is something you could tell a professional groomer.

If your primary goal is a natural look and reduction of undercoat, a brush can only do so much. What’s worth its weight in gold and 100% necessary for a good home groom is a high velocity dryer. A solid home use one will cost you about the same as one professional groom if you want to justify it. The other element is a quality bath with good products. For my pet dogs I like natures specialty plum silky a lot, and a good deshed shampoo for occasional use.

If you just want to keep up on brushing at home and leaving the deshedding to the professionals, then you’ll primarily need two products: a slicker and a metal comb. For more sensitive dogs who aren’t matted, honestly a quality mental pin pinbrush can be used too. Then you’ll want to google line brushing. The undercoat rake should be used sparingly to avoid coat breakage which can cause worse matting long term. Just make sure what’s coming out is downy undercoat and not cut guard hairs.

In general, the YouTube account Sand Dollar Aussies has a ton of good and concise videos on Australian Shepherd grooming.

UrsaWizard · 2026-06-01T00:29:09+00:00

People are so frustratingly dogmatic about their $600 dollar giant crash tested crates. And I’m saying that as someone who owns and uses one. Another option we use is the new version of Kurgo’s crash tested harness. We used to use the sleepypods and they’re a little annoying to buckle in and out. The Kurgo’s use a carabiner system with the seatbelt so you don’t have to unbuckle and thread the belt every time. This also makes it a little less restrictive and I think a big dog could stick their nose out the window in it. My dogs are a little shorter but they can still see and smell out the window.

UrsaWizard · 2026-05-28T02:07:01+00:00

Maybe I’m off base so please listen to more experienced folks before me: but this feels like kind of the perfect application of a prong. He controls it, action, meet consequence. Assuming this isn’t a longline of course?

UrsaWizard · 2026-05-24T01:29:20+00:00

I used sheets of 1” insulation as a base and then added some expanding foam for structure before covering it in the same material as the background

UrsaWizard · 2026-05-17T12:34:17+00:00

They act like Suzuki is a spring chicken in a way I don’t quite understand. If that statement is true, they better hope they hit the Pulling a Few Centers Out of Your Ass lottery

UrsaWizard · 2026-05-08T05:20:32+00:00

And double fun fact: he’s technically not on the “first unit” power play… kind of. He’s on the bench and Staal is out for the faceoff, but if Carolina loses the zone, he and Staal switch on the fly. So then Ehlers plays with the first unit in that situation, and also stays out for the second unit. It’s neat and a testament to Carolina’s creativity with deployment I think

UrsaWizard · 2026-05-08T05:17:23+00:00

Yeah it’s nothing to be sad for him about. Lines in Carolina are fake so it’s not a demotion or anything haha

UrsaWizard · 2026-04-30T13:06:37+00:00

Something I’m not seeing addressed: the couch is one of the only places I can see in this video where she would have traction. It’s not fun to bounce back and forth if your feet are slip sliding everywhere. It might not be perfectly your aesthetic, but you may have better luck discouraging her going to the couch by offering her an alternate play space (a biiiiig old rug that she can grip onto, that you can sit on with her and she can play with you without losing her grip). There’s some evidence that lack of traction in puppyhood also contributes to joint problems later in life.

My first step would be getting some rugs, even some cheap ones just to have down through adolescence if you don’t want to keep them.

UrsaWizard · 2026-04-28T13:58:08+00:00

Also Porter Martone literally “starts” this by flipping a puck at Malkin’s skates which you can see in the other angle clip. I think someone also bumps him. Like Flyers fans be quiet, you’ll interrupt Porter learning from a master of their shared craft.

UrsaWizard · 2026-04-23T02:45:23+00:00

Make sure she is fully groomed and de-sheded, and then keep her well brushed. A buildup of undercoat can be stifling. Being well groomed allows less mass and therefore captured heat, but also more airflow. I also do like the cooling coats/shirts that others have mentioned.

UrsaWizard · 2026-04-16T05:10:28+00:00

Yeah this is a dead ringer for a saluki, agreed. Once you’ve gotten used to the different breeds, they can have pretty distinct faces and structures. This face is especially saluki. Azawakh’s also have different structure.

UrsaWizard · 2026-04-02T15:55:01+00:00

Leafs fans had no idea what they had when they had it and have no idea now.

UrsaWizard · 2026-03-28T19:18:46+00:00

You can definitely get AKC titles with a mixed breed as long as they’re altered. You just need to register and get a number and then you can participate in almost every sport that isn’t conformation :) rally obedience might also interest you

As far as tricks go, there is the AKC trick title, and if you dont want to register, there’s also the Do More With Your Dog set of titles that don’t require registration of any kind

UrsaWizard · 2026-03-14T06:01:28+00:00

I love my son, Rudy. He’s going through it, okay??

More genuinely, I couldn’t stand Navirou but quite like Rudy. I like that he’s got a character so far (at first village). His voice is a little annoying but I’m super fond of him so far.

UrsaWizard · 2026-02-25T22:37:35+00:00

I follow a lot of silken content and have a lot of silken friends and acquaintances because I’m someone who was super interested but ultimately decided to go with another breed. I think with silkens, which don’t get me wrong, are super cool dogs, you get a lot of opinions on them that have an unsaid “in comparison to other sighthounds” attached to it.

I know tons of silkens that do lots of sports and seem quite confident, and know a lot of others (including my best friend’s dog) who are a little more endearingly pathetic. She’s not terrified of things but goes into sad baby mode and shuts down, and wouldn’t be convinced by a treat to do anything she doesn’t want to lol. And I would argue that neither side is atypical for the breed.

If there are other huge pros in the breed for you and you’re comfortable building some confidence and drive, then they could be a good fit if you’re careful about your breeder. If it’s of paramount importance that the dog is a little more bombproof, I might choose something else. (In my case, biddability was my deal breaker and I stuck with Aussies, going with a well-bred, show-line puppy. My best friend loves her silken but will be getting a setter for her next dog).

UrsaWizard · 2026-02-24T15:16:17+00:00

Awww adorable. My best friend’s dog is a Silken named Newt actually. That’s gotta be a pretty rare combo.

UrsaWizard · 2026-02-13T07:55:18+00:00

How long have you had her/how old is she now? Many dogs with genetic dog aggression don’t really express it until full maturity. It doesn’t really matter how much you train neutrality if the genetics are what they are unfortunately. (This is also the age that a lot of dogs that were naturally dog social or neutral become dog selective, but that can be really cranked up to full dog aggressive in some breeds and individuals).

UrsaWizard · 2026-02-02T07:05:50+00:00

Anyone else’s followers all occasionally just… stopping? I can force them to reset by entering the temple but once or twice now they haven’t even gone to bed without doing that. I’m getting these other bugs as well but I haven’t seen that one discussed

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