How often should I brush a Berger Picard?

Weekly is a reasonable baseline for most of the year, moving to more frequent brushing during the spring and autumn undercoat blow when loose hair comes away faster than a weekly session can keep up with.

Do Berger Picards need professional grooming?

Not necessarily for basic maintenance, but hand-stripping to keep the wiry topcoat in correct condition is a specialist skill many owners choose to have done professionally every few months rather than attempting themselves without guidance.

Is the Berger Picard hypoallergenic?

No breed is truly hypoallergenic, including the Berger Picard. Its shedding is comparatively lower than many double-coated herding breeds, but it still produces dander and loose hair, so anyone with a diagnosed allergy should spend time with the breed first.

Does clipping a Berger Picard change its coat?

Repeated clipping can soften a wire coat's texture over time compared with hand-stripping, which removes hair at the root and tends to preserve the harsher, correct texture. Clipping is easier and more commonly done, but it is worth knowing the trade-off if coat texture matters to you.

Do Berger Picards shed?

Yes, Berger Picards shed, but their rough, tousled double coat sheds less noticeably than the smoother double coats of breeds like German Shepherds or Labradors. There is still a seasonal undercoat blow to manage, and the wiry topcoat has its own grooming needs that go beyond a quick brush.

What the Berger Picard coat is actually like

The breed carries a harsh, wiry outer coat over a finer undercoat, which is the combination that gives the Berger Picard its characteristic tousled, slightly unkempt look. That texture is also why loose hair tends to stay caught in the coat rather than falling visibly around the house the way a short, smooth coat does.

The undercoat still sheds seasonally, typically more noticeably in spring and autumn as the coat adjusts to the weather, and that is when owners tend to notice loose hair around the home even if daily shedding feels minimal the rest of the year.

What keeps it manageable

A weekly brush through with a suitable comb or slicker helps pull out loosening undercoat before it works its way into furniture and clothing, and it also keeps the wiry topcoat from matting, which can happen more easily than the smooth appearance might suggest.

Some wire-coated breeds, the Berger Picard among them, benefit from periodic hand-stripping rather than clipping, which removes dead outer hair at the root and helps maintain the correct harsh texture rather than softening it the way repeated clipping tends to. This is a specialist grooming technique worth learning about or having done professionally if you want to keep the coat in proper condition.

Is a Berger Picard a good choice for allergies?

No dog is genuinely hypoallergenic, and a Berger Picard's shedding, while lower than many double-coated breeds, still releases dander and loose hair into the home. Anyone with a diagnosed pet allergy should spend real time around the breed before committing, rather than assuming a wiry coat solves the problem.

For everyone else, the lower shedding relative to smooth double-coated breeds is a genuine practical upside, particularly if regular brushing is kept up rather than left until the coat is visibly matted or moulting heavily.

Keeping the shedding season manageable at home

During the heavier undercoat blow in spring and autumn, brushing outside rather than indoors keeps most of the loosened hair out of the house in the first place, which is far easier than vacuuming it out of carpets and soft furnishings afterwards.

A rubber curry brush or grooming mitt used over furniture and car seats picks up embedded hair that a vacuum alone struggles with, and washing bedding a little more often during the seasonal shed helps keep the amount of loose hair circulating around the home down to a manageable level.

Kit for this breed

Things we stock that owners commonly reach for here. Nothing on this page depends on you buying one.

Reusable Washable Puppy Training Pad

A quilted, machine-washable training pad that absorbs accidents and locks in moisture with a leak-resistant base. Reusable for puppy toilet training and senior dogs, in several bone and paw prints.

From£7.99

Microfibre Pet Drying Robe

A super-absorbent microfibre drying robe that soaks up the wet fast after baths, swims and walks.

From£10.99

Absorbent Microfibre Dog Drying Robe

A super-absorbent microfibre drying robe with a handy front pocket to dry your dog off fast.

From£13.99

Large Self-Cleaning Slicker Brush for Mats and Tangles

A self-cleaning slicker brush with fine, bead-tipped wire pins that gently lift loose undercoat, mats and tangles from short or long-haired pets. A one-click button releases the collected fur for fuss-free cleaning. Cat-ear shaped design.

£18.99

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Common questions

How often should I brush a Berger Picard?: Weekly is a reasonable baseline for most of the year, moving to more frequent brushing during the spring and autumn undercoat blow when loose hair comes away faster than a weekly session can keep up with.
Do Berger Picards need professional grooming?: Not necessarily for basic maintenance, but hand-stripping to keep the wiry topcoat in correct condition is a specialist skill many owners choose to have done professionally every few months rather than attempting themselves without guidance.
Is the Berger Picard hypoallergenic?: No breed is truly hypoallergenic, including the Berger Picard. Its shedding is comparatively lower than many double-coated herding breeds, but it still produces dander and loose hair, so anyone with a diagnosed allergy should spend time with the breed first.
Does clipping a Berger Picard change its coat?: Repeated clipping can soften a wire coat's texture over time compared with hand-stripping, which removes hair at the root and tends to preserve the harsher, correct texture. Clipping is easier and more commonly done, but it is worth knowing the trade-off if coat texture matters to you.

Sources

Written against guidance published by UK veterinary and welfare organisations. Always confirm specifics with your own vet.

Written by Matt Garnett, who runs Giddy Pets and is a lifelong pet owner — not a vet. This is general information, not veterinary advice, and it cannot replace an examination by the vet who knows your animal. How we write these guides.