I'll look into the shears later, although the scissors that came with the kit I ordered seem to work well enough (just time consuming, since this dog is well over 50 lbs.). But yes, the clippers weren't great alone, so I'll try the thinning out first. At least her back has now a 1 inch coat, so that ought to help with most of the heat absorption issues without leaving her vulnerable to any possible unseasonable cold (I waited until I didn't see any forecasts of sub-50 night temps for 10 days).