Flat Ironing..

[jmm]

Any dog I keep in coat is ironed after being bathed and dried. Ironing seals the coat, decreases matting between baths, and helps keep the ends in good shape. You will find most people keeping a dog in show coat iron fairly regularly.

[CloudClan]

Originally Posted by aprilb

Eva's coat is very puffy...and when I cut the length, it just gets puffier..I use the Spectrum Ten and the Moisturizing Tresseme on her...her coat is just so thick...I was wondering if flat ironing would do any good in making her coat lie flatter, or should I try something else? I do not want to do anything to damage or dry out her coat...

Nearly all show Maltese are flat ironed for show days (and Yorkies as well). I say nearly because this is a relatively recent thing and folks who have been showing more than 20+ years sometimes do not. For a wavy or poofy coat, flat ironing is a life-saver, but even for a correct coat it is part of how you achieve that perfect polish you see on those show coats.

Flat ironing can do damage if done too often or at too high a heat setting. There are ways to protect the coat (thermal protectors like one that Tresseme makes or the smoothing milk from Garnier). And it takes practice but the dogs generally do learn to hold still for the process. I am always stressed when I flat iron puppies, but my older dogs know the routine.

Honestly though, I would not Flat Iron a pet on a regular basis. Maybe for a special occasion or photo shoot, I could see getting out my flat iron. But I would normally try getting as straight a set with the blow dryer first. Truly that is where the best results often come anyway, during the brushing and blow drying process a lot of poof can be settled. Do you have a really good quality hands free blow dryer that you can use when you brush? If you do not, I would get that before I got a flat iron.

As for the best flat irons. Yes, look for ceramic plates. Most everyone I know uses the Chi brand. I have a Sedu which was another top quality flat iron recommended to me.

[aprilb]

I do use a good hands-free dryer and brush as I dry..she doesn't mat much as long as I keep up with her daily grooming. I am still on the fence about ironing..but I may give it a try..thanks to all of you for your wonderful advice and help..I willl check out the youtube video...

[mysugarbears]

When Riley was in coat i flat ironed after each bath since his coat would poof out especially his back end, i used the smoothing milk when i ironed. Like in the PP video i would put a comb in his hair near his skin and i also put clips in his hair to hold parts of the hair out of the way that weren't getting ironed at that moment, i didn't have a problem with damage and i had less matting, he had a gorgeous silk coat.

[TLR]

Originally Posted by Sylie

I used the coconut oil the way you would use PP Silk cream... about a half teaspoon rubbed into my hands then through her coat, then brushing. Yes, it will leave a residue, but I only used it once, not daily. Many products I have used worked great at first, but just didn't work after a short while. So, the jury is out on the coconut oil applied topically. It is also supposed to be good for dogs to eat a small amount everyday. It is worth a try.

I haven't used the coconut oil topically, but I do give Ben about a 1/2 teaspoone to eat every morning. He loves it. If you give it to them start out with about 1/4 teaspoone and slowly increase. They say to give one teaspoone for about every ten pounds.

[Lacie's Mom]

Originally Posted by bellaratamaltese

If you have a lot of matting, flat ironing can help prevent those mats. Marina's jrs dog Lucy has been in full coat for 5 years and has been flat ironed at least 2x a week for those 5 years and there is no significant damage from it. She has a very poofy coat if it's not flat ironed but with ironing, it lays down nicely.

Pretty much any flat iron will do with ceramic plates. I personally like using the 1" iron but I know some exhibitors use the 1.5". I can make you a quick video of how I flat iron, the 'quick' way, LOL. Otherwise, I do it in layers. I usually put Garnier Fructis smoothing milk (or something similar) on the coat before I flat iron to protect it a bit more.

I flat iron any fluff that I have in coat to avoid Mats. When I was showing my Lhasa, Gambler, he was flat ironed about 2-3x a week plus every show on the weekends and he had gorgeous coat.

April -- it will make it look less puffy as it will flatten it somewhat. I, too, flat iron in layers and use a 1.5" iron.