Belgian Sheepdog Grooming

About the Belgian Sheepdog

This page finishes an argument the site has been making since the Malinois and the Tervuren.

In most of the world these are one breed, the Belgian Shepherd, in four varieties separated only by coat: the Malinois is short coated and fawn, the Tervuren is long coated and fawn, the Groenendael, called the Belgian Sheepdog in the United States, is long coated and black, and the Laekenois is wire coated. Same origin, same build, same temperament, same working ability.

Four coats, four routines. A Malinois takes a curry mitt and ten minutes; this one takes line brushing every few days, a collarette that mats, and two enormous coat blows a year.

There is no clearer illustration that the coat is what decides the grooming, and the breed name is nearly irrelevant.

One breed, four coats, four jobs

Worth setting out plainly, because owners of one variety are frequently given advice meant for another.

The Malinois has a short hard coat with a dense undercoat. Ten minutes with a curry mitt weekly, heavy seasonal shedding, nothing to cut.

The Tervuren and the Belgian Sheepdog share a long straight outer coat over a dense undercoat, with a pronounced collarette around the neck, feathering on the backs of the legs and a plumed tail. Line brushing every two or three days, and the same two blows.

The Laekenois has a harsh, dry, tousled wire coat that is hand stripped or plucked rather than clipped, and looks unkempt by design.

The only difference between a Tervuren and a Belgian Sheepdog is color, and the grooming is identical. The black coat shows dandruff and dust more, and shows dust from a dirty brush, which is the one practical difference.

All four are the same dog underneath: intense, quick, sensitive, needing a job. None of that changes with the coat, and neither does the temperament advice at a salon.

The collarette, the britches and line brushing

The coat is long, straight and abundant, and it is not uniform. It is short on the head and the front of the legs, longer over the body, and longest around the neck and chest where it forms the collarette, on the backs of the thighs, and on the tail.

Those longest areas are where the mats form, and the collarette is the worst because it is deep and a collar sits in it.

Line brush every two or three days. Part the coat in a horizontal line, brush the hair below the parting down to the skin, move the parting up an inch and repeat, then prove it with a metal comb.

Take the collar off weekly and check underneath, since a collar in a deep collarette felts a band the owner never sees.

Behind and under the ears, the armpits and the britches are the other reliable failures.

The coat is not as mat prone as a Bearded Collie or a Briard, because the outer coat is straighter and harsher and sheds dirt well. It is still a real job on a long coated working dog that goes outdoors in all weather.

The blows, and never clipping

Belgian Sheepdogs shed year round and then blow the undercoat heavily twice a year, over several weeks.

Daily raking through it, and a bath with a high velocity blow out at the start. That combination shortens the blow considerably and takes a great deal of hair out of the house.

Do not clip. There is a dense undercoat, so clipping removes the protective outer coat and leaves the insulation, which does not cool the dog, and the long black outer coat frequently comes back patchy, brownish or permanently soft. On a black coated breed a badly regrown coat is very visible.

Trimming is limited to the hair between the pads, the sanitary area and neatening the hair around the feet and hocks.

Bathe every eight weeks or so, comb out fully first, rinse thoroughly and dry to the skin. A black coat shows shampoo residue as dullness and flaking, so rinsing matters more than usual.

Sunlight can bleach a black coat to a reddish cast over a summer, which is normal and grows out, though good condition and diet reduce it.

A sensitive working dog on a table

Belgians are intelligent, intense and notably sensitive, and that last word is the one that matters at a salon.

They read handling closely, they do not forgive rough or rushed treatment easily, and a bad experience can produce a dog that resists grooming for years. That is a bigger risk in this breed than the physical difficulty of the coat.

So: calm handling, no restraint battles, short sessions early, and a groomer who is willing to work slowly on the first visit rather than getting the job done at any cost.

They can also be reserved with strangers and reactive to other dogs, so a quiet slot is worth asking for.

Start in puppyhood, do a little at home constantly, and make the table an ordinary place.

These dogs need mental and physical work, and a Belgian that is under-exercised is a much harder dog to groom than one that has been running that morning. That is a legitimate thing to plan around rather than a joke.

What to tell your groomer

Say it is the long coated black variety, since Belgian Shepherd bookings can mean any of four very different coats.

Ask for line brushing with a comb check, and point out the collarette, under the collar, and the britches.

Say the coat is never clipped, and ask for pads, sanitary and feet tidied only.

Ask for thorough rinsing and drying to the skin, since a black coat shows residue.

Say the dog is sensitive and that a slow calm first visit is worth more than a finished groom.

Ask for a quiet slot, and mention how the dog is with other dogs.

Keeping the coat between grooms

Common Questions About the Belgian Sheepdog