I am a fairly straightforward groomer, and I like my dogs to be "natural" and to look like they were born to look. I love the creative craft, but it is not for me. Just not my cup of tea, so I guess I pay no attention to the new trends in grooming for the most part. So, call me out of the loop or a stick in the mud, but it caught me completely by surprise when I found out people were actually using feather extensions and colored hair pieces in client dog's hair at their grooming salons! And bead work as well!
Who KNEW that this new trend in human hair was seeping over into the dog world? Ok, who knew it was a trend in human hair (other than while at the beach)? Not me. I had no clue. Maybe I am getting old? I don't know. So imagine my surprise when I started seeing posts about this subject on Petgroomer and Facebook! People have been asking how to put them in, where to buy them, and how long they last, how much to charge and many other questions, so I was asked to try to gather information on this subject and come up with answers. I have no idea about these myself, but I knew who to ask! SO here goes.
Hair extensions are common in the show world. I knew that the show poodles have them quite often in their topknots, so I decided to start there with my research. Extensions are most common in poodles, but I have heard shih-tzu breeders use them sometimes as well. I asked Cheryl Percell and Sue Zecco about how to make "wiggies" as they are called and it was pretty straightforward. You make wiggies using hair from a dog that is being cut down. You section off pieces of hair from the longest parts of the dogs hair, like in the neck area of a poodle that was being shown, and secure the pieces with rubber bands. Then you cut them off below the band, saving a "ponytail" of hair. You secure them with the bands in the topknots of the poodles deep in the hair so that they are not obviously present. You can reuse them, and they are fully washable and comb-able. People keep them wrapped in paper or plastic bags to keep them neat, and they can be used over and over again as long as they are cared for.
You would never want to do that in the shop, for obvious reasons, but in the show poodle world it is more common than you might think. I have even seen them used in grooming competitions when banding of the topknot was allowed prior to the competition. I saw a top winning poodle handler putting them in at a show and the difference in the poodle they were working on was tremendous.
So, the art of making wiggies has sort of transformed into colored extensions in dogs. I mean, the colored hair that you can get at most beauty supply houses is made in similar fashion to the wiggies. It is sewn together with fabric holding it together. You can cut it into smaller sections if you do not want really wide sections of color, but then HOW do you put the extensions into the hair?
Angela Kumpe explained it to me. "Extensions are held in by using either bands like you use on bows or using crimp beads, which are put in using a hair hook and crimping tool or needle nose pliers. The extension and a small piece of hair is placed in the crimp bead and the bead is then flattened using the crimping tool ."
All of the tools you need are available at most beauty supply stores and on Angela's website. Crimpers, beads, looper or hair hook. Sounds pretty easy, but it cannot be THAT easy! I tried it on a shih-tzu at my shop just for fun. Bought some hair extensions, cut them to size and then went to put them in, and it took 5 tries. Mom laughed at him, but she let them stay in. After a week we took them out because he gets two or three baths a week and they were looking rough, but he got lots of attention while they were in.
Photos provided by Nicole Kallish
You put feather extensions in the same way according to Lori Craig. She goes on to say she uses them in her shop and on her own dogs. "The feather extension will vary in how long the stay in place by what application is used to put them in, and how the dog reacts. Most dogs don't know they are even in there since they are so light, some may scratch at it as many do with bows. In my own personal dogs I have kept them in as long as a month then I got tired with the color and exchanged it. Using the crimp bead method they are not difficult to get out just use the pliers and maneuver the bead so it opens a bit more and pull out."
Dawn Omboy says it is really easy to make the feather extensions yourself. "you will need crimp beads, feathers, a crimping tool (small pliers) and either a small loop tool or hair hook. to make your own you can get the feathers and using a melting pot and keratin pellets dip the end of the feathers into the pot of melted pellets then roll between your fingers to create a tight point that will slide into the crimp bead. Use the hair tool to pull a small amount of hair through the bead, then push the feather into the bead, then with the crimp tool flatten the bead, that's it! most will stay in for weeks at a time and can be washed as the dog is. Removal is easy too use the crimp tool to open the bead back up and slide it out of the hair."
There has been some concern about the pet ingesting the crimping beads, and since they are either aluminum or copper that can be a concern. However, they are very small, and if they do come out they should pass easily if ingested by the pet. Advise owners of the possibility and have them watch their pet. Regular beads are usually plastic or bone and also are small and should pass easily if ingested.
It turns out that there are several places you can get the feather extensions already made (sounds much easier to me than making them!). Both Dawn and Angela have websites for creative grooming accessories and while I don't see the feather extensions listed on either site, they say they are coming. They have contact information on their websites. Another site that has them available for wholesale purchasing is PuppyLocks.
But what about those of us who are totally NOT creative and still want to offer these types of products to our clients? Tica Verret offers bows made with colored hair pieces already attached! So easy to put in and clients can take them out themselves if they want to, or reuse them if they decide to! SOme of her bows are made with rubber bands, some with barretes and some with hair clips. Something for everyone! She has step by step instructions in how to put them in hair available on her FaceBook page.
Angela and Lori both said they charge between $8 and $12 for extensions on clients. Tic's bows sell for an amount that would resell in that same price range. I can see charging $10-15 myself if I were to do them because it would take me much longer to do since I am not really used to doing it.
As for beadwork, it has been long popular with humans, so I can see how in dogs it would be fun to do. You use the bead looper and string the beads on, securing the end with a crimper bead or a rubber band. Most beauty supply houses and even dollar stores carry beads for little girls. I am lucky enough to have many ethnic supply houses around my area that carry many bead selections that are most often used on braids. They can be used in other ways I am discovering. I can see a poodle with a few in their ears, or a shih-tzu in coat with a couple of beaded strands.....I am not going to take it to the extreme that Angela did with her Model dog at the Atlanta Pet Fair but I have to admit it was pretty cool to see how this was done.
I have to say that MAYBE these girls have talked me into trying extensions.....maybe. I hope this opened your eyes to this trend as much as it did mine. Now, to run this by my clients.
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Posted by: frontline cats | February 22, 2012 at 08:42 PM