Will handstripping make Oreo's skin worse?

[Dawnflight1984]

Oreo is a mini schnauzer and by breed standards, her coat should be stripped. However I have been having her clipped her all these while because I never knew about stripping.

Recently she visited a very experienced groomer and she suggested that since Oreo is having so much problems with her skin (allergies, rashes and all), stripping may help her skin "breathe" and help with the skin issues. However, Oreo's vet feels that just the mere act of stripping her coat will aggravate her skin condition and make it worse than it is right now. Her view is, if it ain't broken, don't fix it, because while Oreo is very allergenic and she frequently breaks out in rashes and all, her coat is still extremely soft and shiny and her skin is soft and supple, not at all tough, oily and leathery like what one would expect of a dog with bad allergies like she does.

While I'm all for trying anything that will help Oreo itch less/ get fewer rash break outs/rely on antihistamines and steroids less, hand stripping takes all of 2 months and sets me back by $0.5k and if it doesn't work out, I end up with a dog with a harsh and itchy coat which I don't know how to manage (as opposed to a soft and itchy one which I've been managing fairly well all these while).

What do you think? Whose advice is more sound and is handstripping worth trying out?

[bendog]

Why on earth is hand stripping so expensive?
I have terriers who should all be hand stripped. But it only takes half an hour each and costs about £20 per dog.

Our one with allergies we don't strip because her previous owners clipped her and this makes hand stripping harder (the fur becomes soft rather than wiry like it should be - oreo is still young so this shouldnt be such a problem) and also because her skin is sore, so stripping would likely be a bit painful for her (if oreo s doesnt have sore red patches then she should be ok). However I do believe that clipping instead of stripping has made her allergies much worse. If the coat is designed to be stripped then clipping ruins it in my opinion.

[Dawnflight1984]

Why on earth is hand stripping so expensive?
I have terriers who should all be hand stripped. But it only takes half an hour each and costs about £20 per dog.

Our one with allergies we don't strip because her previous owners clipped her and this makes hand stripping harder (the fur becomes soft rather than wiry like it should be - oreo is still young so this shouldnt be such a problem) and also because her skin is sore, so stripping would likely be a bit painful for her (if oreo s doesnt have sore red patches then she should be ok). However I do believe that clipping instead of stripping has made her allergies much worse. If the coat is designed to be stripped then clipping ruins it in my opinion.

Wow! Where I stay, it seems only show dogs are stripped and no one ever mentioned it and lots of local owners don't even know what stripping is! Stripping takes almost all day and I will need to bring my dog to the groomer every other week for 5 sessions amounting to about $500! Her skin is an entire red patch but I don't know if she's sore actually...

[gwd]

Why on earth is hand stripping so expensive?
I have terriers who should all be hand stripped. But it only takes half an hour each and costs about £20 per dog.

Our one with allergies we don't strip because her previous owners clipped her and this makes hand stripping harder (the fur becomes soft rather than wiry like it should be - oreo is still young so this shouldnt be such a problem) and also because her skin is sore, so stripping would likely be a bit painful for her (if oreo s doesnt have sore red patches then she should be ok). However I do believe that clipping instead of stripping has made her allergies much worse. If the coat is designed to be stripped then clipping ruins it in my opinion.

i think you're confusing hand stripping with rolling a coat.........

here is a site that shows what handstripping consists of:

http://britmorschnauzers.com/handstrip.html

and yes, you take them down to bare skin!

and here is the same site re: rolling a coat

http://britmorschnauzers.com/rolling.html

and lastly, clipping:

http://britmorschnauzers.com/groom.html

[bendog]

Hmmmm... No experience with a full stripped schnauzer. In terriers stripping is just taking them down to the undercoat
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlQlxOq0iTo&sns=em
http://www.eabtc.co.uk/the-border-terri ... r-terrier/

Usually just stripping twice a year and a quick brush once in a blue moon sorts them out. Rolling has similar meaning and is just taking out long hairs when you see them, so the coat never gets completely blown.

i wouldn't be completely happy having a dog stripped right down to the skin. But I stand by the fact that clipping really ruins the coat of terriers at least.

Sashas coat having been clipped is actually much more high maintainence, it is soft, so matts easily and needs brushing often. It's not as good quality as the others, despite improving on raw, and this is not just down to her allergies but also because her coat has been ruined by clipping. I never saw it before she got clipped but now it is thin with virtually no undercoat whereas the others all have lovely thick wiry coats like they should.

[gwd]

But I stand by the fact that clipping really ruins the coat of terriers at least.

oh, i don't disagree at all. .......just wanted to explain why the cost and time could be different than what you're paying.

now i do support clipping if it's between that or nothing......clipped is far better than long and matted.......and i also clip back coat (even on my setters) when they got elderly and just couldn't be on the table for very long. ususally at that advanced age, their coat was crappy anyway. even then, i''d groom over a two day period so that my seniors had a bit of grooming, a break, (maybe even a nap).......and then back for another go at it. i wanted my old guys to still look neat and tidy but hand stripping and thining was just too much for them. but even with a smooth clippered back, they knew they looked good and they'd act like puppies for a day or so after i did them.