Contrary to what many people thing, a Chinese Crested’s grooming

takes a long time in most cases, except maybe for the true hairless. As

we explained before in the “General Information” section, many crested

are not completely hairless, like most people think. There are three

different varieties that are classified according to the quantity of body

hair. In this section, I’ll explain what I do to groom my Chinese Cresteds.

I’ll explain what I do with Engel, Gala and Powder (separately), being

each of a different variety.

Engel (True Hairless)

Engel is completely hairless, he only has a really little amount of little, thin hairs on his lower back

and neck. These little hairs come off easily when you pull them out with wax, depilatory machine or,

as I prefer to do it, pulling with your fingers. This might sound cruel, but being as thin as they are, they

don't even realizes what's happening.

First, after having pulled out all the little hairs, I use an electric clipper with blade #40 to shave his

muzzle, making an imaginary line from the corner of his eye, to the inferior corner of his ear and another

one between the eyes. These lines will mark the limit of the shaving. Don't shave far beyond the eyes,

nor beyond the line that goes from the eye to the ear.  Some people prefer to leave the ears hairy, other

prefer to shave them. Whatever you prefer, don't ever shave ears without previous experience, it's better

to take them to a dog salon. I prefer to cut the contour of the ears with

scissors and, for the inside, the electric clipper. Be really careful ‘cause

the ear may get between the blade  and you can cut out a piece of his

ear.

After shaving, it's time for bath. Be CAREFULL, check first if water's temperature is warm, not too hot

and too cold. Since it’s skin is exposed, it's really easy to burn them with the water if you are not too

careful.

Second, wash his skin (not the hair) with neutral soap. While there's still soap in the skin, rub it with an

exfoliant sponge (I use a mitten-like sponge). Don't rub too hard, it can hurt them. Then, rinse and put

some shampoo in their hair (oatmeal shampoos are good for the skin). If the dog spends a lot of time in

the outside and his hair is getting yellowish, I prefer not to use bleach, I just brush him with a normal

plastic soft brush (not a comb), which will whiten it's hair a little, then rinse.

Third, put some dog conditioner on dog's hair and brush with a comb (one made of metal and without the

little ball on top of the metal sticks). Brush perfectly while conditioner is still on, rinse completely.

Dry skin perfectly to avoid fungus. When drying hair, brush again once it’s moist but not wet, and let him

go so he can dry with natural air, but not before putting some body lotion in it's skin and giving him a treat

and lots of kisses for good behavior in the bath tub. It's always better to let him dry completely at normal

temperature than using a hair dryer because this damages the hair. It's also better to brush the hair when

it's moist, not completely dry. If the hair is damaged, you can put some Almond or Coconut oil mixed with

hot water in his hair, or you can try with human hair treatments such as Pantene Pro-V's or Ion's. Do

treatments just once a month or else you can damage the hair.

Gala (Hairy Hairless)

Follow the same procedure as with the True Hairless, but after shaving the muzzle and before bathing,

shave the whole body, careful not to shave the crest, nor the socks or the tail (look at pictures of CC's

to see where you should stop shaving). After leaving body hair as short as possible, apply some hair

removal cream, careful to avoid, cuts, scratches or allergies he might have. Let the cream act for 3

minutes. With a soft sponge and a little water from the tube, remove the cream, GENTLY rubbing to help

hair fall. Make sure to rinse cream completely, then continue with bath (as explained with Engel, but this

time without the exfoliant sponge because due to cream, skin is sensible). CAREFUL!! Many cresteds are

alergic to hair removal cream, specially those with light skin, like Gala. Instead of using cream, I use an

electric razor for men (for beard and mustache). Braun electric razors are good. It must NOT be the one

with 3 circles, because that one will take forever.

Powder (Powderpuff)

First, I shave his muzzle just like with the hairless. If his ears are up, I shave them too, if they are down I

leave them hairy (only powderpuffs are allowed to have dropped ears). Then, with a spray, I moisten his

hair with a mixture of water and conditioner, then I brush with the metal comb. Afterwards I bathe him just

as I bathe the hairless, but without the neutro soap, only dog shampoo and conditioner. Make sure to brush

his hair perfectly while the conditioner is on. After having brushed his hair again, rinse and cover him with

a towel. Leave him with the towel on for 10 mins, you can give

him lots of hugs and kisses while the 10 minutes pass. When he's

moist, not wet, brush again. If it's an ordinary bath, after the 10

minutes, let him go dry alone and brush every now and then till

he's completely dry. If it's a Show bath or you want him to look

specially good for an event or something, after the 10 minutes,

dry with hair drier while brushing his hair. If it's too spongy, put

on some hair oil (not too much) and brush. If the hair is too curly,

even though that’s not normal, use a hair straightener. Be careful

not to burn the hair. Remember to do the line following the middle

of the nose, to the tail, in the middle of the body, brush the hair one last time, and ready. It's not difficult

to groom powderpuffs, the difficult thing is to keep the hair healthy, being careful with the sun, giving him

a monthly treatment and brushing DAILY. Try not to use the hair dryer or hair straightener too much. There

are also some dog shampoos and conditioners that help repair hair.