is my mom crazy? Is this safe?!

[Mayasmydobe]

Ok so my mom saw a pink poodle on the internet and decided that she wants to tint Fancy's hair for halloween. Just her ears, top notch and the little poof at the end of her tail. She wants it to be temporary.
So she sent me on a scavenger hunt last night and today to figure out how this can be done. I came up with two different methods that both seem to be really short term, will either just wash out with one wash or will fade in a few weeks.

method 1
Chalking.
You take non-toxic sidewalk chalk, soak it in water for a few minutes to soften it up a bit and then just color on the hair you want tinted, then you take a slicker brush and brush out the hair so that it distributes the color evenly and fluffs up the ear again.

Method 2
Blow-Pens
yes, the airbrush type markers that came out a few years ago.
Supposedly you just color the dog. This one seems cool becuase you can get stencils and make designs and stuff.

DO these methods seem safe?
More importantly.... do you guys think my mom is completely insane?

 

[squirtsmom]

That doesn't sound so bad. My mom had a beautiful chocolate poodle named I can't remember. She faded, so every month she would take two different loreal hair dyes, and dye her back to chocolate. At age five, she died from cancer of the skin, and something else I can't remember. Long time ago. I do think she was crazy. Your mom is just trying to make her look cute. Not too bad.

 

[Charliesmommy]

I would be hesitant to use either of those methods. I think I would just try some red food coloring.

 

[Mayasmydobe]

so do you think that tinting Fancy with either the chalk or the blow-pens could cause her to get sick?
Ifso I will absolutly NOT be coloring Fancy's hair....

 

[Mayasmydobe]

how fast would the red food coloring take to fade or wash away?
also I need somethng that I can control where on the dog it goes since she just wants her ears, topnotch and tail poof done...

 

[noludoru]

not sick, really, kids get that stuff on them all the time and don't get sick.. but hey you never know.

Try food coloring. You're slightly more limited, but you cans till dye her.

 

[houndlove]

What about red kool-aid?

 

[TheWonderPuppies]

tthey make dog hairdye they sell it at petsmart and petco but my friend just used Kool aide on her poodles and i know ppl who use chalk and just wash it out at the end of the night

 

[~Jessie~]

What about red kool-aid?

I was going to say that! lol

 

[Charliesmommy]

I don't know if it would make her sick or not, but I wouldn't put anything on my dog like chalk or ink, just in case.

You can use food coloring and if you add some vinegar to the water when you mix it, it will help set the color so it doesn't just come right out. Then you can sponge it on the areas you want.

I had a friend who did this to her peke and it worked very well and stayed that way for several days. I don't know what kind of food coloring she used but I know it was like a paste.

 

[Mayasmydobe]

hmm... do you guys know how fast it takes for the kool-aid to fade away? Also wouldnt it make her hair sticky?

 

[Charliesmommy]

Oh, and if you wash and dry the dog beforehand, the color will last longer.

 

[~Jessie~]

I don't think Koolaid will make her hair sticky... the packages don't contain sugar.

 

[Mayasmydobe]

Charliesmommy, I know exactly what kind of food coloring she used... I use it to color my frosting when I decorate cakes... probably either Americolor or Wilton...

 

[houndlove]

Kool-aid itself doesn't have sugar in it (you add that yourself when you make it). But I just did some googling and it seems it can be fairly permanent. So, oh well. I tried.

 

[noludoru]

You can make a solution of food coloring and brush it on with a bristled brush or paint brush. It'll stay on for at least a week, depending upon how many washings she gets.... the stuff usually stays on my arms about three days after I've done cooking (I'm messy) that requires it..... but I've never put it on my hair. I doubt it would stay permanently.

 

[Mayasmydobe]

thank you Hounds.... I had my concernes about that. I read that as well, and wanted second opinions...

So, what do you guys think?
I am thinking the chalk sounds ok.. it is non-toxic... I dont know... my mom really wants Fancy to have pink ears and stuff for halloween...

 

[noludoru]

Just check the label on the chalk, and maybe call the manufacturer and ask how safe it is to fit in your hair for a short period of time.

 

[SizzleDog]

Jennifer, check out Manic Panic at Sally Beauty Supply - it's mostly permanent, but it's the safest dye I've seen for dogs, and it's the only thing I'd use to dye a dog's coat.

 

[Mayasmydobe]

Sizzle... thats the thing... she does NOT want anything permanant.
She wants to be able to wash it right out if it looks bad.

I will talk to her about the manic panic though, incase she decides to "commit"