Curly and Wavy Coated Puppies: What the Grooming Really Costs

A curly or wavy coat is the largest ongoing cost of owning most dogs in this showroom, and the one buyers underestimate. Plan on a standing groomer appointment every six to eight weeks, plus brushing between, for the life of the dog. In a cross, how curly is a range, not a promise.

What the standards actually say about curl

Two breeds sit behind almost every curly coat here, and the purebred parents have written standards. The Poodle standard calls the coat “curly: of naturally harsh texture, dense throughout”. Harsh is the word to hold on to. That standard puts the Toy at “10 inches or under” and the Miniature at “15 inches or under, with a minimum height in excess of 10 inches”, with no weight for any variety. See our Poodle size chart.

The Bichon Frise standard describes something different: a soft undercoat under a coarser curling outer coat that springs back when patted, scissored to the natural outline. The spring-back is a texture test you can do with your hand; the scissoring is a grooming instruction written into the breed’s own document. That standard gives 9½ to 11½ inches primary preference, never over 12 nor under 9, and no weight at all.

In a cross, curl is a range

Maltipoo, Cavapoo, Cockapoo, Shih Poo, Yorkipoo, Schnoodle, Bichon Poo, Havapoo, Cotonpoo, Lhasapoo, Cavapoochon, Shichon and Cavachon are marketplace names. No registry recognises any of them and none has a written standard, so nothing about the coat is specified anywhere. It is inherited, and inheritance is not tidy.

A first-generation litter can produce tight curl, loose wave and nearly straight hair from the same two parents. Texture also changes as the puppy matures, so the coat you meet at eight weeks is often not the coat you groom later. Nobody can read an adult coat off a photograph, and we will not try.

Where a Poodle is one parent, ask which variety, every time. Where the second parent brings its own undercoat — the Bichon, or on a Shih Poo or Shichon the Shih Tzu, whose standard reads “luxurious, double-coated, dense, long, and flowing” — the coat can behave like neither parent. A Cotonpoo has a Coton de Tulear parent whose cotton-textured coat is its defining feature; we publish no size figure for the Coton, because we could not source one we trust. For the Lhasapoo we have no sourced clause for the Lhasa Apso parent either, so we leave it blank. See Poodle mixes.

• PoodleMeet them
• Bichon FriseMeet them
• MaltipooMeet them
• CavapooMeet them
• CockapooMeet them
• Shih PooMeet them
• YorkipooMeet them
• SchnoodleMeet them
• Bichon PooMeet them
• HavapooMeet them

What the grooming really costs

Budget for this before you choose a puppy.

• A professional appointment every six to eight weeks, for the life of the dog. Not a one-off.
• Brushing between appointments, down to the skin rather than over the top. A brush that skims the surface leaves a mat forming under it.
• The usual hiding places checked every time: behind the ears, the armpits, the base of the tail, the back legs.
• A harder stretch while the puppy coat gives way to the adult one, when the dog suddenly mats faster.
• An honest conversation with the groomer about length. A shorter clip costs less time at home.

Skip enough weeks and the decision stops being yours. A coat matted to the skin cannot be brushed out without hurting the dog, so the groomer’s only humane option is to take it off short and start again.

These coats are generally low-shedding, a grooming fact and nothing more: loose hair stays in the coat instead of landing on your floor. That is precisely why it mats. Less on the sofa means more in the dog, and it has to come out with a brush. Our low-shedding breeds page covers what that does and does not mean.

Georgia adds its own work. Humidity puts moisture into a coat that holds it, and red clay needs rinsing out properly; a damp coat left to dry packed together is the start of a mat. Where a cross has inherited an undercoat, shaving it for the heat is not the fix — that undercoat is part of how the dog regulates temperature. Brushing it out is what helps.

On temperament, the Poodle standard describes a dog “carrying himself proudly, very active, intelligent” — a breed, not the puppy in front of you. Individual dogs vary. For the Lawrenceville showroom now, see available puppies by breed.

Common questions

Will my puppy’s coat be curly or wavy?

There is no way to promise either. These crosses have no written standard, littermates can carry very different textures, and the coat changes as the dog matures. Feel it in person, and assume it may not stay that way.

How often does a curly coat need a groomer?

Every six to eight weeks is the working figure, with brushing at home between visits. Some coats need more. Treat it as a standing cost for life.

Do curly-coated dogs shed?

Most shed little onto the floor, because loose hair is held in the coat. It still comes out of the dog, with a brush rather than on its own. Low shedding and low maintenance are different things.

Can I just keep the coat clipped short?

Many owners do, and it genuinely reduces the brushing. Two cautions: it changes how the dog looks, and where a cross carries an undercoat a very short shave is unwise, since that undercoat helps regulate temperature.