Applying a Professional Finishing Spray for Shine and Protection on Your Dog's Coat

A finishing spray is the final touch for a well-groomed dog. These sprays add shine, protect the coat, and can make daily brushing easier. They are a simple way to enhance your dog’s natural beauty and keep their coat healthy.

Why Use a Finishing Spray?

Finishing sprays offer several benefits. They can add moisture and shine to a dry or dull coat. Some sprays also provide a barrier against UV rays, heat, and environmental stress. For show dogs, specific finishing sprays can create texture, add volume, or give a radiant glow. For everyday use, a good spray can help detangle and condition the coat, making brushing smoother.

When to Use Finishing Sprays

You can use finishing sprays in different ways, depending on your dog’s needs and your grooming routine.

• For daily brushing: A light leave-in hydration spray can help condition the coat and prevent static. Sprays like Fortaleza Spray or Jealousy are good choices for this. Jealousy is a concentrated hydration spray, suitable for daily brushing of straight coats.
• After a bath: Once your dog’s coat is towel-blotted, apply a hydration spray before drying. You can choose from Desire, Fortaleza Spray, or Jealousy. Desire is a keratin leave-in that hydrates and strengthens. Jealousy is the most concentrated of these hydration sprays.
• Before a show: Show-day styling sprays are used to achieve specific looks. Flattery provides professional texture with a UV barrier, and is sprayed on after the bath before drying, then again when the coat is nearly dry. For a glitter-like radiance, Envy is sprayed right before entering the ring. If you are flat-ironing the coat, Revenge provides essential heat protection and also shields against UV and chemical stress.

Choosing the Right Finishing Spray

The Starfire’s Canine Care line offers several sprays, each with a specific purpose. You can explore all options on our sprays collection page.

• For light daily hydration and conditioning: Fortaleza Spray is a light leave-in suitable for wet or dry coats. It is your everyday maintenance spray between baths.
• For concentrated hydration and anti-frizz: Jealousy is the most concentrated hydration spray. It features anti-frizz technology and promotes intense rejuvenation, especially for over-processed coats.
• For strengthening and hydrating with keratin: Desire is a keratin leave-in that helps bring back strength and flexibility to weakened strands.
• For show-day texture and UV protection: Flattery adds texture, volume, and shine with its keratin-infused formula. It offers resilient support for styling control and a UV barrier.
• For heat and chemical protection: Revenge shields against heat, chemicals, friction, pollution, and UV rays, securing nutrients within the hair after treatments.
• For a radiant show-ring finish: Envy is a lightweight finishing mist that provides quick conditioning and a glitter-like radiance before the ring. It also offers UV protection and acts as an odor absorber.

If you are unsure which hydration spray to choose, you can compare Fortaleza Spray vs Jealousy or Jealousy vs Desire.

How to Apply a Finishing Spray

Applying a finishing spray is straightforward. The key is even coverage without oversaturating the coat.

1. Prepare the coat: Ensure your dog’s coat is clean and either dry or damp, depending on the spray’s instructions. For example, after a bath and cold rinse, blot the coat with a Big Size Microfiber Towel before applying a hydration spray.
2. Hold at a distance: Hold the spray bottle several inches away from the coat. This helps create a fine mist for even distribution.
3. Spray evenly: Lightly mist the coat, moving the bottle to cover all areas. Avoid spraying too much in one spot. For curly coats, spray Jealousy right after the cold rinse and again while combing with a Professional Combs wide-tooth comb.
4. Brush through: After applying, gently brush the spray through the coat using a suitable brush. A Small Size Metallic Brush with Extra Long Tines works well for smaller areas or dense coats, while a Big Size Metallic Brush is good for larger dogs. This helps distribute the product and detangle the coat.
5. Layer for show prep: If using Flattery for show preparation, spray it after the bath and before drying, then again when the coat is nearly dry. Follow with Pride pomade on specific areas for control and volume, if desired.

What you need

• Fortaleza Spray: for light daily hydration and conditioning.
• Jealousy: for concentrated hydration, especially on straight coats or after a cold rinse on curls.
• Desire: for strengthening and hydrating with keratin after a bath.
• Flattery: for professional texture and UV protection on show days.
• Revenge: for heat, UV, and chemical protection.
• Envy: for a glitter-like radiance right before entering the ring.
• Big Size Microfiber Towel: to blot the coat before applying sprays.
• Small Size Metallic Brush with Extra Long Tines or Big Size Metallic Brush: to distribute the spray and brush the coat.
• Professional Combs: especially a wide-tooth comb for curly coats when applying Jealousy.

For a routine built specifically for your dog, visit our Grooming Advisor.