Drying a Large Dog Without Going Through Six Towels
Drying a Large Dog Without Going Through Six Towels
Blog Article
A wet German shepherd is not a wet terrier with the volume turned up. The coat holds water in layers, the dog shakes it out over everything, and the towel count climbs until someone gives up and reaches for the dryer.
Why Size Changes the Job
A towel sized for a terrier leaves a large dog's flank exposed. The groomer covers the same area twice with two small towels, which takes longer and uses more stock than one large one.
Coverage matters most on the back and the hindquarters, where the coat is thickest. A towel that reaches from shoulder to tail in one wrap does more work than three hand towels applied in sequence.
Large towels also make the shake manageable. A towel wrapped over the shoulders before the dog shakes catches the first burst, which is when most of the water leaves the coat.
That single move is worth more than any drier setting. Groomers who towel before the dog shakes finish a large breed in noticeably less time than those who start with the dryer.
Absorbency in a Nonwoven
Nonwoven towels absorb by capillary action through the fiber web, not by the looped pile of a terry towel. That makes the weight and the blend the deciding factors rather than the surface texture.
A heavier spunlace holds more water before it feels saturated, and saturation is the point at which a towel stops working and starts smearing water around.
Viscose absorbs well and feels soft against a dog that is already stressed. A blend with polyester adds strength for the wringing that happens on a big dog, and the usual ratios are 70% viscose with 30% polyester or 80% viscose with 20% polyester.
The Drying Sequence
Press, do not rub. Rubbing a wet coat tangles it and drives water deeper into the undercoat, which makes the dryer work harder.
Start at the back and work toward the legs, replacing the towel when it stops pulling water. A saturated towel left on the coat is worse than no towel, because it holds the moisture against the skin.
Finish the paws and the face with a smaller towel. Those areas need control rather than coverage, and a large towel gets in the way of both.
Double Coats and the Long Dry
Double-coated breeds hold water in the undercoat for hours. A towel removes the surface water and the dryer deals with the rest, and the split between the two is a matter of time rather than choice.
Towels that are too thin simply move the water from one part of the coat to another. A groomer who notices the coat still dripping after a full towel has been used is working with too light a stock.
The practical answer is a heavier towel for the first pass and a lighter one for the finishing wipe. Two weights in a grooming room is normal, and the range is laid out in large pet drying towels.
Stress and Handling
A dog that is cold and wet is a dog that struggles, and a struggling dog takes longer to dry. Warmth and speed are the same objective.
Work quickly with a towel over the back first, then the legs. Covering the dog before towelling reduces the shake reflex and keeps the groomer dry as a side benefit.
Keep the head clear. A towel over the face is the fastest way to turn a calm dog into a difficult one, and nothing about drying requires it.
Counting Towels Per Dog
A large double-coated dog can absorb three or four towels in a full groom. That number should be written into the service price rather than discovered at the end of the day.
Small dogs use one. Medium dogs use two. Writing those counts on the wall saves the argument about whether the stock is disappearing or being used.
Groomers who work with a fixed count also stop reaching for a second towel out of habit, which is where most of the waste sits.
Write the count next to the service on the price list. Owners accept a price that reflects the work and resist one that appears to change at the counter.
What Owners Notice
Owners judge a groom by how the dog behaves at pickup and how the coat feels. A dog that goes home damp and shivering reads as a rushed job, whatever the cut looks like.
A dry dog and a clean finish is the whole product. The towel is the cheapest part of getting there, and it is the part most grooming rooms under-buy.
The other thing owners notice is the car. A dog that comes home still damp leaves a smell in the back seat that lasts for days, and that smell belongs to the groom.
Sources
- Jaroll technical data sheet, spunlace nonwoven towels, 2026
- EDANA, nonwovens industry glossary