Shih Tzu Haircuts: The 8 Best Styles, Explained by Groomers

Shih Tzus were bred to carry a floor-length coat, and the coat has never gotten the memo that most of them are pets now. It is a true double coat, a dense, soft undercoat beneath a long outer coat, that grows continuously and mats from the skin outward if it isn't brushed to the skin. Add a flat face with large, prominent eyes that hair loves to poke, and the haircut you choose for a Shih Tzu is as much a health decision as a style one. This guide covers the 8 cuts groomers actually do on the breed, with the lengths and eye-care details behind each. (The breed name gets written a dozen ways. Shih Tzu, shih-tzu, shitzu, shihtzu, and every one of them lands on the same dog and the same coat problem.) For the full routine, bathing, drying, tools, and costs, see our Shih Tzu grooming guide.

Shih Tzu Haircut Styles at a Glance

1. The Puppy Cut: the Everyday Default

An even ½ to 1 inch over the body (a #1 or #2 comb over a #30 blade), legs scissored to match, ears and tail left slightly fuller, and the face tidied short with the inner eye corners cleared. On a Shih Tzu this cut does double duty: it removes the bulk of the mat-prone undercoat length and it gets hair away from the eyes without requiring a topknot.

It is the cut most pet Shih Tzus should wear, and the one groomers recommend to every new owner who is honest about their brushing time. Salon terminology varies wildly here, our puppy cut guide untangles what the name means from salon to salon and how to specify what you actually want.

2. The Teddy Bear Cut

The same manageable body, ½ to 1 inch, with the head scissored into a full circle: rounded cheeks, a plush chin, and ears blended into the ball of the face. The Shih Tzu's broad, short-muzzled head takes a round scissored face better than almost any breed, which is why the teddy bear look practically belongs to it.

Know what the round face costs you: fuller hair around the mouth catches food and water (Shih Tzus are enthusiastic, messy drinkers), and the cheeks need combing every other day to stay plush instead of clumpy. A stainless comb and thirty seconds after meals goes a long way.

3. The Summer Cut

A smooth ⅜ to ½ inch all over, typically a #4F blade or a #0 comb, with the face kept short and neat and the tail plume usually spared. The Shih Tzu's dense undercoat holds heat and takes ages to dry; this cut fixes both, and it stretches home maintenance to a single weekly brushing.

Because the breed is flat-faced and heat-intolerant to begin with, a summer cut is genuinely functional here, not just cosmetic. Keep at least ⅜ inch for sun protection, and remember that no haircut replaces shade and water for a brachycephalic dog in July.

4. The Show Coat with Topknot

The full historical glory: a floor-length, flowing double coat parted down the spine, with the headfall banded into the breed's signature topknot. Nothing is clipped: the coat is maintained with daily line brushing (down to the skin, layer by layer), a bath and conditioner every one to two weeks, and a topknot re-banded daily to keep hair off the eyes.

This coat is a lifestyle. Miss three days of brushing and the undercoat starts felting at the friction points; miss a week and you are booking a dematting session or a restart. Before committing, read our matting prevention guide, it explains exactly where and how double coats fail, and the show coat fails everywhere at once.

5. The Lion Cut

The body goes short, ⅜ to ½ inch, while a full mane is left over the head, neck, and chest, with a plumed tail for balance. It suits the Shih Tzu historically (the name translates roughly to "lion dog") and practically: the mat-prone torso, armpits, and britches are clipped to an easy length while the drama stays up front where it photographs.

The mane is still long coat and still mats, especially where the collar sits. Comb it through three to four times a week and consider a harness instead of a collar to protect the neck coat.

6. The Practical Pet Topknot

A hybrid style for owners who love the topknot but not the show coat: the body wears a ½ to ¾ inch puppy cut while the crown hair alone is grown long enough to band up and out of the eyes. You get the iconic Shih Tzu silhouette from the shoulders up and a wash-and-wear dog from the shoulders down.

The honest requirement: someone at home must re-band that topknot daily with coated bands, and comb it out fully before re-tying to prevent a mat forming at the base. If nobody will, choose a short face style instead: a neglected topknot becomes a tight knot pulling on the skin.

7. Face Styles: Round Face vs Topknot, and the Eye Question

On a Shih Tzu the face style is a health decision. Those large, prominent eyes sit in shallow sockets, and stray hair causes real irritation and ulcers, not just tears:

• Short round face: muzzle and cheeks scissored into a circle, the inner corners of the eyes cleared close, a short visor above. Groomer-maintained every 4 to 6 weeks, no daily work.
• Topknot: headfall grown past the awkward stage and banded up daily. Elegant, traditional, and an actual daily commitment.
• The rule either way: never leave the eye area half-grown and unmanaged. In-between hair points straight at the cornea on this face shape.

Daily eye-corner wipes prevent the moisture buildup and staining the breed is known for. Our Shih Tzu grooming walkthrough covers safe scissor work around the eyes in detail, it is the one place on this breed where technique genuinely matters most.

8. The Smoothie: the Short Reset

When the undercoat has felted to the skin, or when an owner simply wants the lowest-maintenance version of the breed, the coat comes off short with a #7F or #10 blade, face and tail scissored to a neat, natural minimum. Groomers call it a smoothie because that is what the dog looks like: smooth, clean lines, huge eyes suddenly the star of the face.

On a matted dog this is the humane call, clipping beneath the mats takes minutes, dematting a felted double coat takes hours and hurts. The coat regrows fully in two to three months, at which point every other style on this list is back on the table.

Low-Maintenance Shih Tzu Haircuts, Ranked

Most owners arrive asking which cut looks best. The better question is which cut you can keep looking good, because a Shih Tzu's double coat punishes optimism. Ranked from least to most work at home:

1. Smoothie (#7F to #10). Effectively zero brushing. A weekly once-over with a comb and you are done. The trade-off is that you lose the breed's silhouette entirely for two to three months.
2. Summer cut (⅜, ½ in). One brushing a week. This is the sweet spot for most busy households, short enough to stay ahead of the undercoat, long enough to still read as a Shih Tzu.
3. Puppy cut (½ to 1 in). Two to three brushings a week. The everyday default, and the shortest cut that still looks deliberately styled rather than shaved.
4. Teddy bear (½ to 1 in, round face). Three to four brushings a week, plus a quick comb of the cheeks after meals. The plush face is what costs you the extra time.
5. Lion cut. The body is easy; the mane is not. Budget three to four combing sessions a week for the neck and chest alone.
6. Show coat. Daily line brushing, non-negotiable. This is a hobby, not a haircut.

One honest note that applies to every row above: the length you leave is only half the equation. A ½-inch coat brushed twice a week stays comfortable; the same ½-inch coat brushed never will still mat at the armpits and behind the ears within about six weeks. The cut buys you margin, not immunity.

Puppy Cut vs Teddy Bear Cut: What Actually Differs

These two names cause more pickup-time disappointment than every other style combined, because on a Shih Tzu the body length is often identical. The difference lives entirely above the neck:

• Puppy cut: one even length over the body, with the face tidied short and practical, muzzle trimmed close, eye corners cleared, no particular shape.
• Teddy bear cut: the same body length, but the head is hand-scissored into a deliberate circle, rounded cheeks, a plush chin, ears blended into the ball of the face.

So the teddy bear is a puppy cut with a styled head. It costs more scissor time (and usually a few dollars more), and it costs you combing time at home, because a round face is only round while the cheek hair stays untangled. If you like the look but not the upkeep, ask for a puppy cut with "slightly rounded cheeks", a middle setting most groomers are happy to work to.

Which Shih Tzu Haircut Should You Choose?

• Minimal effort, maximum comfort: summer cut or smoothie.
• The classic look with manageable upkeep: puppy cut or teddy bear.
• Iconic topknot without the full coat: practical pet topknot.
• Drama for photos, sanity at home: lion cut.
• Daily brusher who loves the ritual: the full show coat.

Every one of these choices should start from the eyes and the undercoat, the two things that make Shih Tzu styling different from styling a silky-coated or curly-coated breed. For how these cuts compare across coat types, see our complete dog grooming styles guide.

What to Buy for Home Upkeep Between Grooms

Every cut on this list assumes some home routine, combing to the skin at the friction points, and a daily wipe at the eye corners. Three owner-grade tools cover all of it; if you want the professional-tier comparison, our slicker brush guide goes deeper.

For Groomers: Make Every Shih Tzu Visit Repeatable

Shih Tzu clients come with specifics, eye-corner sensitivity, a topknot the owner maintains (or says they do), a face shape they will absolutely notice if it changes. GroomBoard keeps each dog's full style record in the pet profile: blade and comb numbers, face style, eye-care notes, matting history, and behavior flags, so any groomer on the team delivers the same cut every visit. Automated SMS reminders keep clients rebooked on the 4 to 6 week cycle this coat cannot skip. See how it works as grooming salon software. Start your free 7-day trial →