The most popular pomeranian haircut is the teddy bear cut, sometimes called the “boo cut” after the famous Instagram pom, where the coat is scissored into a soft, rounded shape with a plush round face. Groomably holds 438 pomeranian photos from Australian salons, 147 of them style-tagged, and the teddy bear cut accounts for 91 of those, or 62%, far more than any other style. But there’s a catch that most style guides skip past: the pomeranian is a double-coated breed, and cutting that coat too short can permanently damage it. So this guide covers the styles groomers actually do, and it’s equally about what not to ask for.
The double coat, and why it changes everything
A pomeranian’s coat is really two coats. Underneath is a dense, soft undercoat that insulates against both cold and heat. Over the top sit longer, coarser guard hairs that give the pom its puffball silhouette and shield the skin from sun and weather. The two layers grow on different cycles, and poms also “blow” their undercoat seasonally, shedding great drifts of fluff. That’s normal, and brushing handles it.
Here’s the problem. Clip a double coat short and the soft undercoat often grows back quickly while the guard hairs come back slowly, patchily, or in some dogs not at all. The result is post-clipping alopecia: a fuzzy, woolly, sometimes bald coat that never returns to what it was. Not every shaved pom ends up with it, but there’s no way to know in advance whether yours will, and by the time you find out, it’s too late. We’ve written a full explanation in should you shave a double-coated dog, and it’s worth reading before you book anything short.
The good news: every style below can be done safely, because they’re built on scissoring and shaping the outer coat rather than clipping down to the skin. The key is length. Keep it, and the coat keeps working.
1. The teddy bear cut (the “boo cut”)
This is the pomeranian style, and the numbers on the pomeranian breed page back it up. Nearly two-thirds of style-tagged pom photos on Groomably are teddy bear cuts.
Done properly, the teddy bear cut is a scissored shape, not a clip-down. The groomer trims the outer coat into a rounded, even outline, shapes the face and ears into that soft plush-toy circle, and tidies the legs and tail to match. Crucially, generous length stays on the body: the guard hairs are shortened and shaped, never removed. The dog comes out looking like a stuffed toy, but the double coat underneath is still intact and doing its job.
Where it goes wrong is when someone asks for a “really short teddy bear cut” and the clippers come out. A tight clip on a pom is a shave with a friendlier name, and it carries the alopecia risk described above. A good groomer will refuse or talk you into more length. Let them.
What to ask the groomer: “A teddy bear cut, scissored, keeping plenty of length. Rounded face, tidy the legs and tail, but please don’t clip the body short.” Bring a photo, read our teddy bear cut guide first, and browse real examples at pomeranian teddy bear cuts from Australian salons.
Maintenance: Moderate. The rounded shape softens as the coat grows, so expect a re-shape every six to eight weeks. Between grooms, brush a few times a week down to the skin, especially behind the ears and around the chest ruff where the undercoat packs in.
Suits which coat: Best on a pom with a full, healthy adult double coat. If your dog has had coat trouble before, patchiness, previous shaving, thinning with age, ask the groomer to go conservative on length.
A teddy bear cut on a black pom — note the coat is shaped, not taken down. Photo: Paw Points Grooming, Moorabbin VIC — via Groomably
The pomeranian teddy bear cut, in detail
The teddy bear cut is so dominant on this breed that it gets its own section. Here’s what 91 real examples tell us about doing it well.
It’s the pom’s cut more than almost any other breed’s. Those 91 pomeranian teddy bear cuts come from 81 different Australian salons. Nearly every groomer who works on poms does this cut, and nobody owns it. Among the 22 dog breeds with at least 30 style-tagged photos on Groomably, the pomeranian ranks 4th for teddy bear share at 62%. Only the bichon frise (84%), poodle (73%) and maltipoo (69%) rank higher, all of them curly or wavy, non-shedding coats. The pom is the only double-coated breed near the top of that list. That matters, because the cut has to be done differently on a pom than on a poodle.
Scissored, not clipped. On a poodle or bichon, a teddy bear cut can be clipped to length and then shaped. On a pom, the good versions are scissored. The groomer works with the coat’s natural stand-off, trimming the outer guard hair into a round outline while leaving the dense undercoat underneath intact. That’s what gives the pom teddy bear its plush, puffball look. It’s also why the cut is safe on this breed in a way a body clip isn’t (see the double-coat section above). If a salon’s photos of pom teddy bear cuts look flat and close to the skin, that’s a clip, and it’s worth asking another groomer.
Length is a trade-off you set. A longer teddy bear (the “boo” look) is rounder and fluffier but needs more brushing. A shorter one is easier to live with day to day, but go too short and you lose the outline and risk the coat. A practical brief is “as short as you can go while still scissoring, no clippers on the body.”
The face and ears. The signature is the round head. The ruff is blended into the face, the muzzle shaped soft, and the ears trimmed into small rounded points so they sit inside the circle rather than poking out of it. That’s what makes a pom look like a toy bear rather than a small fox.
A scissored pom teddy bear cut, round from every angle. Photo: Petitude Grooming, Newington NSW — via Groomably
The finishing touch. Poms are the most accessorised teddy bear breed in our data. A bow or bow tie shows up in 17 of the 91 pom teddy bear photos (19%), against 6 of 44 on yorkies.
How often. Every six to ten weeks for most poms, with a proper deshedding bath-and-blow-dry built in. That’s the part that keeps the undercoat healthy under the shape. Expect to brush right through to the skin a few times a week, and daily when the coat blows.
The same cut on a black coat, where the round outline shows best. Photo: Crackin Dog Grooming, Ascot Vale VIC — via Groomably
To compare dozens more, the pomeranian teddy bear cut page collects real examples from Australian salons.
2. The lion cut
The lion cut is the old-school pomeranian style: full mane on the face, chest and shoulders, shorter body and hindquarters, a pom-pom on the tail tip. On a pom’s naturally big front ruff it looks dramatic and, honestly, pretty great.
But it comes with the teddy bear cut’s warning, doubled. The clipped areas are exactly where post-clipping alopecia shows up, and on a lion cut those areas are large and very visible. If the rear and body don’t grow back properly, you’re left with a permanently half-dressed dog. Some groomers will do the “clipped” sections with real length left on, scissored rather than shaved, which keeps the silhouette while lowering the risk. That’s the version to ask for.
What to ask the groomer: “A lion cut, but leave real length on the body, don’t take it down to the skin.” Have the alopecia conversation openly. A groomer who waves the concern away is not the groomer for this breed.
Maintenance: The mane needs regular brushing or it matts against the shorter body. The rest is easy day to day, but you’re committed: growing back to full coat takes many months, if it comes back fully at all.
Suits which coat: Only a dense, healthy adult coat, and only an owner who understands the trade-off. Not for puppies, seniors, or any pom with a history of coat problems.
3. The natural trim (the tidy)
The safest option, and the one many experienced pom owners settle on. Nothing about the coat’s structure is touched. The groomer deshedds the undercoat with a proper bath and blow-dry, trims the feet and paw pads, does a sanitary trim, neatens the ears and tail, and lightly shapes any straggly outline. The dog keeps its full natural puffball and loses the scruff.
This is essentially what a bath-and-dry or full groom appointment delivers, and each accounts for 24 of the style-tagged pom photos on Groomably. It’s not the style that gets photographed for Instagram, but it’s the one that keeps the coat healthiest for the longest.
What to ask the groomer: “A natural tidy, deshed, feet, sanitary, light shaping only, no clipping.” Easy brief, hard to get wrong.
Maintenance: The groom itself is low-fuss, but the natural coat needs the most home brushing of any style here, several times a week, and daily during a seasonal coat blow, or the undercoat mats into a felt layer against the skin.
Suits which coat: Every pomeranian, at every age. If in doubt, this is the answer.
Before and after a full groom — most of the visible change is the deshed and blow-dry, not length off. Photo: Wiggle Butts Pet Co, Berwick VIC — via Groomably
What about a pomeranian puppy?
A pom puppy’s first appointment isn’t a haircut at all. The adult double coat hasn’t come in yet — poms go through a famously scruffy “puppy uglies” phase somewhere between four and ten months — and there is nothing there worth cutting. Book a short, gentle introduction instead: bath, blow-dry, feet, nails, plenty of treats. Anything sold to you as a “pomeranian puppy cut” should be a tidy, not a style. Our guide to a puppy’s first groom covers what that appointment should actually involve.
A pom puppy after a first tidy — feet, face and nails, coat left alone. Photo: Petopia Studio Dog Grooming & Daycare, Marrickville NSW — via Groomably
4. Creative touches
Poms are natural show-offs, and groomers know it. Creative grooming makes up 16 of the style-tagged pomeranian photos on Groomably, about 11%, more than you might expect. On a pom this usually means accessories and finishing touches, bows, bandanas, a tutu for the photo, a touch of pet-safe colour on the ears or tail, rather than sculpting the coat itself. Exactly as it should be on this breed: the creativity goes on the dog, not into the clippers.
Photo: A & S Dog Grooming, Carseldine QLD — via Groomably
What to ask the groomer: Ring ahead. Not every salon does creative work, and pet-safe colour is a specialty service. Ask what products they use and how long the colour lasts.
Maintenance: Whatever the underlying trim needs. Colour fades over a few washes; accessories come off at bedtime.
Suits which coat: Any pom whose owner enjoys the theatre of it. The dog, being a pom, almost certainly does.
What not to do: “just shave him for summer”
Every groomer who works on poms hears it in December: “Can you shave him right down? He’s so hot.” It feels kind. It’s the single worst thing you can ask for on this breed.
That double coat is the dog’s insulation in both directions. The undercoat traps a layer of air that buffers heat as well as cold, and the guard hairs shield the skin from sunburn. Shave it off and you’ve removed the dog’s climate control and sun protection in one pass, and rolled the dice on post-clipping alopecia. A shaved pom in an Australian summer is hotter, more sunburn-prone, and possibly ruined for life, coat-wise.
If your pom struggles in the heat, the answer is a thorough deshed and blow-out, which strips the loose undercoat and lets air move through the coat again, plus shade, water and walking at cooler hours. The full reasoning is in should you shave a double-coated dog. If a groomer suggests shaving your pom without a medical reason, find another groomer.
Quick comparison
| Style | How it’s done | Alopecia risk | Groom frequency | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Teddy bear (boo) | Scissored, generous length | Low if length is kept | 6–8 weeks | Full adult coats |
| Lion cut | Mane + shorter rear | Higher on clipped areas | 6–8 weeks | Healthy coats, informed owners |
| Natural trim | Deshed + tidy only | None | 8+ weeks | Every pom |
| Creative touches | Accessories, pet-safe colour | None (no coat change) | As desired | Show-offs |
| Shave-down | Don’t | The whole point | Never | No pomeranian |
Choosing honestly
The honest ranking is simple: the natural trim is the healthiest choice, the teddy bear cut is the happy middle ground where style meets safety, and the lion cut is for owners who’ve weighed the risk with open eyes. The shave-down isn’t on the list at all.
Whatever you choose, book with someone who knows double coats, and expect a good groomer to push back if you ask for too much off. That push-back is expertise, not attitude. Browse real pomeranian grooms on the breed page or the wider grooming gallery before your appointment, check how often you should groom your dog to plan your schedule, and see our dog grooming cost guide for what to budget. Your pom will forgive you for skipping the shave. Their coat will thank you for the rest of its life.
