Bernedoodle grooming
Bernedoodle grooming in Gloucester, MA
A bernedoodle takes its black, white and rust coloring from the Bernese mountain dog and its texture from wherever the poodle genes landed. That mix decides where the coat mats, which cut it can carry, and how long you can stretch the gap between visits. Here is how we approach it at 210 Eastern Ave.
The coat
A bernedoodle coat can be straight, wavy or curly, and the curlier it is, the more loose hair it holds
Every bernedoodle starts from two very different coats. The American Kennel Club describes the Bernese mountain dog as double-coated, a longer outer coat over a woolly undercoat, shedding a fair amount and more in its two yearly shedding seasons, in a tricolor of jet black, clear white and rust. The poodle parent brings a dense, curly coat with very little shedding. A bernedoodle can land anywhere between them: a looser coat that drops some hair, a soft wave, or tight curls that keep whatever they catch.
Texture matters more than color. Hair that does not fall to the floor stays in the coat as loose strands, and those strands wrap around the hair that is still growing until the tangle tightens into a mat. On a wavy or curly bernedoodle the process never pauses, which is why brushing to the skin at home decides how the next appointment goes. The white blaze and paws show grime first; whitening shampoo at $8 brightens them during a bath.
- Behind and under the ears, where the ear leather rubs the hair beneath it
- Under the harness straps and the collar, pressed flat all day
- In the armpits and along the inside of the back legs
- At the base of the tail and the backs of the thighs, where the dog sits
Teddy bear or kennel
Teddy bear and kennel cuts are both custom haircuts in the full service; the difference is how much coat you keep
A teddy bear cut keeps a rounded, fuller face, longer ears and a body length you pick, so the dog looks soft and plush for the first weeks after a groom. A kennel cut takes the body short and close to one even length with a tidy face, leaving far less coat to brush and far less to collect sand and burrs. The bernedoodle has no AKC breed standard to follow, so neither cut is more correct; both are what our menu calls a custom haircut.
Which one suits your dog depends on the coat in front of us and the life the dog leads. Bring a photo to check-in, front and side if you have them, and after the coat assessment the groomer will tell you whether that length is realistic today. If the coat is matted close to the skin, a fuller teddy bear look may have to wait a cycle while the coat grows back evenly. There is no separate shave-down package: a very short clip is simply a custom haircut at your size price.
- Teddy bear: fuller face and ears, more brushing at home
- Kennel cut: short, even body that sheds sand and dries quickly
- Both: bath, blow-dry, brush-out and haircut in the full-service price
- Matted coat: the length is agreed at check-in, before any work starts
Six to eight weeks
Book every six to eight weeks; past that, de-matting at $15 per 20 minutes starts to pile up
Six to eight weeks is roughly how long a teddy bear or kennel length takes to grow out of shape and start tangling at the friction points. A longer teddy bear coat sits at the six-week end; a short kennel cut can usually stretch to eight. Wavy and curly coats need the shorter gap more than looser ones. The AKC suggests a professional groom every four to six weeks for the poodle parent, so a curly bernedoodle that takes after that side may need the same.
Skipping a cycle does not change your size price, but it adds time. De-matting is charged at $15 for every 20 minutes of careful mat removal, and a coat that comes in at twelve weeks with felt behind both ears and under the harness can need several of those blocks. Past a point, the kinder route is a shorter clip that lets the coat grow back evenly, because long de-matting pulls on the skin. You agree the figure at check-in, before the bath.
- 01
Groom day: full service at your weight band, then rebook at pick-up to take $5 off the next visit
- 02
Weeks one to three: line brush to the skin two or three times a week, harness line and ears first
- 03
Week three or four: an optional $10 face trim clears the eyes, muzzle and ears between grooms
- 04
Week five: run a metal comb through the friction points; a snag means a tangle has started
- 05
Weeks six to eight: the next full service, before the harness line and ears felt
Price by size
A bernedoodle pays the same as any dog of its weight: $75 to $120 for full service
Our grooming menu is priced by weight rather than breed, so there is no doodle surcharge. A standard bernedoodle in the 51 to 90 pound band pays $110 for the full service, and a big one over 90 pounds pays $120. Smaller bernedoodles bred from a miniature poodle usually fall into the $75 or $85 bands. The final figure is confirmed at check-in after the coat assessment, and an add-on only appears on the bill if you booked it or agreed to it.
For a wash and brush between haircuts, bath only runs $55 to $85 across the same bands, with a $95 rate for an extra-large dog with long hair, which a full-coated bernedoodle over 90 pounds often is. Useful add-ons are nail clipping at $16 and the face, sanitary and teeth add-ons at $10 each. Overnight guests on the Classic bundle save 10 percent on grooming, Deluxe guests 15 percent, and unlimited daycare members 15 percent.
| Bernedoodle weight | Bath only | Full service |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 25 lb | $55 | $75 |
| 26 to 50 lb | $65 | $85 |
| 51 to 90 lb | $75 | $110 |
| Over 90 lb | $85 | $120 |
| Over 90 lb with long hair | $95 | $120 |
| De-matting, if needed | $15 per 20 minutes | $15 per 20 minutes |
Between grooms
Between appointments, brush in layers to the skin and dry the coat fully after every swim
Line brushing is the habit that keeps a bernedoodle at its base price. Part the coat until skin shows, brush the layer above the part outward, comb it through, then move the part up and repeat. Our how-to on brushing a doodle between grooms covers the method and the tools in detail. Start at the harness line and behind the ears, because that is where a bernedoodle felts first, and finish with a comb that glides from skin to tip.
Cape Ann adds its own reasons. Gloucester opens Good Harbor to dogs on even-numbered days from October 1 to March 31 and Wingaersheek on odd-numbered days from October 1 to April 30, and salt water left to dry in a curly coat tightens every tangle. Rinse with fresh water and dry to the skin the same day. Tick season runs from about April to November, and a dense coat hides ticks well, so brushing after Ravenswood or Dogtown Common doubles as the tick check.
- Brush the harness line and ears every other day
- Rinse salt water out and dry to the skin after a beach day
- Take the harness off indoors so the coat under it can recover
- If the comb stops at the skin, book sooner rather than later
At Dogtown
The studio, and the day a groom can ride on
Full-service grooms priced by weight, plus the daycare day a bernedoodle groom can be added to.
Asked and answered
Questions people ask about this
Short, complete answers you can act on today. More in the full FAQ.
How much does a bernedoodle groom cost in Gloucester?
Should I choose a teddy bear cut or a kennel cut?
Why does my bernedoodle mat under the harness?
Do bernedoodles shed?
Can my bernedoodle be groomed during a daycare day?
More questions? Read the full FAQ
Sources
Rules and dates change. We re-check every beach, licensing and ordinance page each spring and fall; the source above is the current word.
Keep reading
Next step
Book the six-week groom.
Choose full service by your bernedoodle's weight online or in the Dogtown app, bring a photo of the cut you want, and rebook at pick-up for $5 off. No evaluation needed.
- 01Free evaluationWeekdays 6:30 – 9:30 AM
- 02Book a dayOnline, in the app or by phone
- 03Play, rest, repeatReport card at pick-up
