Grooming the Chinese Crested
The Chinese Crested comes in two varieties, Hairless and Powder-puff. The Hairless is the most unusual looking of the two. He is not completely hairless. He has a tuft on his head, called his "crest", a "plume" on his tail, and his feet are covered with hair, called his "socks". The skin should be soft to the touch, but may sometimes need moisturizing lotion. Outside, he needs lotion to keep him from getting sunburned.
Grooming Demand Rating for your Chinese Crested
Low Grooming Demand
Full Grooming Interval for your Chinese Crested
Every 6 - 8 Weeks
Maintenance Interval for your Chinese Crested
Groom Weekly
Usually I bath my dogs about every week or 10 days during the summer which include a daily feet and belly rinse. My show dogs get bathed every 3 or 4 days. Don't get alarmed! This is normal, but like a human some hairless dogs will get anywhere from no problem, to little problem, to lots of problems, to dead serious problems. It also has to do with bloodlines. Some bloodlines will tend to have such a lovely skin and some other will tend to have problems. My experience is that pimples (if they are to come) will start around the age of when their hormones are changing. This can happen as early as 4-5 months of age until the age of a year old. The best secret to avoid a big outbreak is to keep them clean. During their acne period a nice daily wipe with a warm damp face cloth is sometimes the best remedies. If the problem persist (and it can last for a few months) or gets worst, you may try a lotion like Benzol or a gentle scrub like Noxzema. Remember to keep the skin clean. Talk to your vet and he/she may suggest a mild antibiotics too. Sometime especially at a early age a Powder-puff is much easier to keep care of! One last thing but not the least, as most people know by now is that the hairless dog is not always as hairless as it seems. Some are naturally very hairless and as a result most of the time will not carry much sock or feather...most still have a nice crest . Some hairless come with hair growing up the legs and along the spine...at this point most people will shave the excess hair off the body...and I have a few hairy hairless ...most of the time those are the ones who will carry the long furnishings...these are the dogs everyone is attracted to... I find that my hairy hairless are more work to keep up for show than my powder-puffs...As a pet ask yourself if you want all that furnishing, and all the work that goes with shaving and grooming in order to make it look like it is a hairless. Sometime if you want a true hairless dog it is wise to compromise on the furnishing (not having long furnishings will still keep your dog's intelligence and health). A true hairless dog has a softer skin as comparison to a hairy hairless.
Powderpuff as are much easier to maintain they are fully coated and need weekly brushings.
