Grooming a Glen of Imaal Terrier
The Glen of Imaal is a hairy dog so its coat must be tackled somehow. Stripping is a must for the showring but that is not essential for a companion animal. You can either book it in to the dog shop three times a year or why not do it yourself with a pair of scissors! Do which ever suits you because the dog is most important....and if you are never going to get round to brushing it regularly why not keep it short!
Trimming is NOT DIFFICULT but DOES need doing whether the animal is a potential Best of Breed winner or the forward in the local park football team.
The following is only a GUIDELINE to give some idea on where to START and then how to proceed. The best teacher is experience, practice and knowledge of the dog in front of you...don’t panic, it will always grow again.
PUPPY COAT: If the Glen is to be purely a companion it is not so essential to remove the puppy coat but a potential showdog needs it removing by twelve weeksish to allow the new coat through. When the puppy coat starts to “stand up” gently pull it out with the finger and thumb. On Wheaten Glens it is easy to judge the correct time as the new deeper coloured adult coat can be seen but coloured Glens are more difficult as they seem to keep their puppy coats longer and it is not so easy to see the new coat. Take all the hair from the neck, back and down the sides, as far as the elbows, of the body. Do not upset the pup by doing too much at once but you certainly need to start by twelve weeks if you hope to have the dog in the showring. Scissor round the ears and tail once a week; it will not need it but it will get the dog used to the found of scissors in the ear. Also start to pluck the inside of the ear, it is a lot easier to get a 10lb baby to behave rather than a 30lb+ adult.
ADULT COAT : This is a very profuse coat and unless taken care of will quickly hide all bodylines of the dog. For the showring you want to show the best features so start logically. Put the dog on the table and look at it, so many forget the first basic step. A Glen should have a decent neck, good body and well muscled hindquarters, these cannot be seen when covered with long hair so get rid of it! They should have broad skulls and not a narrow muzzle, hair can help in this department so remove accordingly. Glens have excellent bone so take more off the legs of a dog with heavy bone than you do one with lighter bone. Basic thoughts but so often forgotten.
Before
After
