Water swells the hair shaft and locks tangles in place. Spending five minutes with a wide-tooth comb before you turn on the tap is the difference between a clean dog and a matted one. The exact sequence, coat by coat.
Marta Reis
Marta has groomed small curly dogs in Porto for eleven years. She co-wrote the Curlpup Curl Care Guide and looks after four Toy Poodles of her own — one of whom objectively hates bath day.
More from the Journal
How often should a Cavapoo actually be bathed?
The "every 4–6 weeks" rule you’ll find everywhere was written for Labrador-density coats. Cavapoo curl porosity changes the equation — and bathing too often is the single most common reason coats start to mat faster, not slower.
Reading your puppy’s first coat change
Between 6 and 14 months, most Poodles and Doodles trade their soft puppy fluff for adult curl. The transition window is narrow — and missing it is how most owners end up with a shaved dog they didn’t want.