Contrary to some beliefs hand-stripping should not hurt your dog, indeed if done properly and at the correct time most dogs will doze off on the groomers table.

A wire-haired/double coated dog grows both guard hairs and undercoat.  The guard hairs are the beautifully coloured, shiny and slightly coarser hairs.  The undercoat is the fluffy, shorter hair that you are more likely to find lying around your hone.  Handstripping over clipping also helps maintain the thermal properties of the coat.

A dog’s hair has a distinct life cycle and when these guard hairs have let go from the pores is the time to strip those hairs.  This is done by hand by using fingers, a pomace stone or a stripping or “carding” knife, which is a special blunt knife that is not used to cut the hair at all, indeed a groomer should very regularly check the hair that is removed to check that the root is attached so as to avoid cost “funk”.  The coat should then be properly “carded”which is done with a “carding knife” that removes the excess undercoat, opening up the hair to allow the skin to breath, thus reducing the risk of skin diseases and fungal infections.