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Pomeranian Haircut Styles – Expert Groomer Explains

Short and sporty, thick and fluffy, and everything in between. Pom’s thick malleable fur offers us multiple fashionable styles.

Katlin Primrose, a master groomer, walks us through various Pomeranian haircut styles.

Standard vs Exotic Hairstyles

This article explains the main Pomeranian haircut styles that any good dog groomer will know and understand. (See our picture guide on 31 grooming styles and trims)

But the internet has a way of creating new styles and terminology that us groomers haven’t heard of. Asking your groomer for a “fox” or “lamb” style may not translate well. Some of these new terms don’t exist in our day-to-day work / training.

That doesn’t mean we can’t do it, we just need to better understand what you want. The best thing you can do is bring in a picture and ask us to replicate it.

For most groomers this actually adds a little excitement to our day. So don’t be afraid to challenge us a little.

Two Important Notes About Pom Coats:

There’s two important things to remember when grooming a Pomeranian’s coat:

1. Pom’s need regular brushing

Your Pom is a double-coated breed that is prone to matting. Deep brushing will keep them from developing painful tangles, and will make grooming much easier.

2. Clipping will damage their coat over time.

Haircuts such as a teddy bear cut, kennel cut, lion cut, or shave down can cause permanent coat damage overtime. Usually leading to  ‘clumpy’ hair texture. The only way to completely avoid this is to only use longer hairstyles.


1. Ungroomed

ungroomed

Yes, ‘ungroomed’ can be certainly be a style. Some owners just prefer long, thick coats. However this style requires the most amount of care and maintenance.

Pomeranian’s are prone to matting. Overtime matting will continue to pull tighter and tighter, bruising the skin and causing severe discomfort.

If you prefer a longer coat then a daily brushing routine is required. But remember, you must brush all the way down to the skin. We recommend a long pinned brush to reach deep tangles.

ungroomed pom

Note the paws, belly, ears, and bum are overgrown.

Remember: if matting becomes severe then a Vet may recommend a complete shave down. Shaving a Pom has several negative side effects. We certainly want to avoid this, and we can with proper daily maintenance.


2. Natural Trim (Tidy)

The natural or “tidy” is exactly that. We just tidy up the paws, bum, and ears (along with some loose ends) but strive to keep that lush and natural look.

Natural trim on a pom

Grooming Technique:

  • Very lightly trimmed with thinners in a scooping motion “dusting the ends off” to keep the very natural pom look.
  • Short cute feet and ears that look “cartoonish”
  • Short around bum to keep things tidy
  • Longer belly, but boys may have a shorter trim in the crotch
  • Top of head and neck blended to tame excess hair
  • Chest trimmed and thinned to help with ease of brushing

3. Show Trim

Show Trim

For those who love a longer, more natural coats, but cleaned up to give a ‘polished’ finish. The show cut is the standard groom for Pom’s appearing in dog shows. Although it’s very popular among everyday Pomeranian owners.

Grooming Technique:

  • The show cut is achieved using scissoring techniques.
  • The bum hair is thinned down and a small area is trimmed so it doesn’t collect poop.
  • The tail is trimmed to look like a fan (in the show ring it’s hair-sprayed up).
  • The chest is trimmed to a natural smooth bulb shape and the feet are trimmed to be cute and cat-like.
  • Ears are trimmed close in the Pomeranian pattern.

4. Puppy Cut

We sometimes call this the Shiba-Inu style in our shop become it follows some of the same principles.

Puppy Cut diagram on a Pom

Grooming Technique:

  • Longer scissored “mane” to create a cuter look
  • Short over bum for angulation
  • Poofy tail in balance with chest and head
  • Bum often scissored extremely sharp and round to create a “peach”.

5. Hand Scissor

A hand scissor (like the title describes) is a custom trim using scissoring techniques. You can achieve a much tighter and shorter trim without shaving. Shaving can leave long term damage to their coat, which is why scissoring is often favored. 

A hand scissor is quite similar to the puppy cut, however it outlines the shape of the dog better and is slightly shorter.

Hand scissor diagram on pom

Grooming Technique:

  • The bum and chest are trimmed up and nicely rounded.
  • Paws are scissored short.
  • Ears rounded.
  • The belly is also trimmed a bit shorter.
  • Length is left on the tail and rounded.
  • Our goal is to achieve a shorter trim while keeping the Pomeranian look, and without damaging the hair.

6. Teddy Bear

teddy bear cut

The Teddy Bear (sometimes referred to as ‘Fox’) is a very popular groom among several different breeds,

It’s an excellent low maintenance trim. Some clipping is involved, however it will not cause as much damage as shorter grooms. Overtime it may still cause permanent coat damage.

Teddy Bear style diagram on pom

Grooming Technique:

The idea here is to mimic a stuffed teddy bear:

  • Approx 1/2″ to 1″ long throughout the body, and shaped to look foxy and cute.
  • Soft rounded ears.
  • Head is spherical with shortened neckline to accentuate the head.
  • Tail is trimmed to look like a brush.
  • Legs are same length throughout so they have a thick ‘tube’ look.

7. Kennel Cut / Boo Cut

kennel cut

Next to a shave down, this is the most damaging cut you can do to Pomeranian hair. Kennel Cuts are recommended for people who are not physically able to brush their Pom, or their dog is old and needs to stay sanitary.

Kennel Cut diagram on pom

Grooming Technique:

  • Short all over with a rounded head and classic pom ears.
  • A small amount of length is left on the tail, with a brush look.

This clip is very short. In fact, your groomer may ask you to sign a form understanding this cut will damage their coat. 


8. Shaved / Partly Shaved / Lion Cut

Generally we don’t recommend shaving (partly or in full) your doubled-coated dog unless advised by your vet. There are a few reasons for this:

Shaving can impact your dog’s health and happiness

A dogs coat is their natural barrier against the elements. It provides UV protection, provides warmth in the winter, and insulates them from excessive heat in the summer.

Some owners mistakenly believe that shaving their shedding (double coated) dog will not only relieve their own allergies, but help their dog in hot weather. In reality this practice is a determinate to the health of your dog.

Their Coat May never be the same – Alopecia

Shaving doubled-coated breeds will eventually cause permanent coat damage. Hair will grow in with an unsightly ‘clumpy’ texture. There’s no going back to their soft, fluffy coat.

Shaving too close to the skin may also cause permanent hair loss, a condition called Alopecia. Again, there is no going back once this condition has triggered.

In my time as a professional groomer I have had clients come to me with previously shaved poms in hopes that I might have a solution for fur regrowth. Unfortunately, there is little I can do.

So please avoid shaving as much as possible.


Interested in more grooming styles? Check out our picture guide on Poodle haircut styles and trims.

Photo of author

Katlin Primrose

​​Katlin is ​a Certified Master Groomer (PIGA) and a registered Veterinarian Tech Assistant (working in emergency, exotics, and general practice). You can also find her in the show ring with her dogs, winning awards in rally obedience and show grooming with the Canadian Kennel Club. You might say she's multi-talented when it comes to pets.

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