09/04/2026
Apparently having a bath is exhausting when you’re Kipper.
Short coat does not mean no coat maintenance.
One misconception I hear fairly often is that short-haired, double-coated dogs don’t really need professional baths because they don’t have long hair, tangles or a haircut to maintain.
But underneath that sleek exterior is an entire second layer of coat.
A short double coat still continually accumulates:
• loose and compacted undercoat
• natural oils and sebum
• dead skin and dander
• dirt, pollen and environmental debris
A thorough bath does much more than make the dog smell nice.
Proper cleansing, conditioning and high-velocity drying help release dead undercoat, clean the skin beneath the coat and support normal coat turnover. The drying process is especially important with double coats because it separates the hair and physically moves loose undercoat that brushing alone may leave behind.
And no bathing a dog does not inherently “strip all the oils from their skin.”
Product choice, dilution, water temperature, thorough rinsing, conditioning and drying technique all matter. A well-designed grooming routine should support the skin barrier rather than simply degrease the coat.
Kipper may never need an elaborate haircut, but his coat still deserves intentional maintenance.
He has chosen to recover from that maintenance by being unconscious for the foreseeable future.
Addison Grooming Studio