Brushing
Brushing your dog’s coat on a regular basis benefits your dog in many ways and is highly recommended. Taking care of your dog’s coat will help keep it in good condition by removing loose fur, removing dirt, and spreading natural oils around throughout your dog’s coat. The type of hair that your dog has will determine how often your dog’s coat should be brushed. If you have a dog that has long/thick hair, they will need daily brushing. A slicker brush will remove tangles from long hair and a bristle brush will remove dead hair. If you have a dog that has medium length hair, they may be more likely to have knotted or tangled hair and should be brushed 3 to 4 times weekly. Dogs with short, smooth hair need to be brushed less frequently—about 1 or 2 times a week. Short haired dogs need a rubber brush to loosen dirt and dead skin, and then a short bristle brush to remove dead hair.
Ears
A dog’s ears can be the perfect hang out spot for bacteria if they’re not kept clean. Because of this, it is important to give your dog a gentle ear cleaning every week if possible. The first step to cleaning your dog’s ears is to choose an earwash that is made specifically for a dog or cat ear cleaning. Next, get your dog into a position that is comfortable for both of you. Your dog won’t want to stay in a position that is uncomfortable, and you want to be positioned so you can easily clean your dog’s ears. Once you both are in a comfortable position, soak a cotton ball in the ear wash solution. The cotton ball should be wet, but not dripping wet. If you find the cotton ball dripping, wring it out. Gently rub down the inside of your dog’s ear canal in a gentle twisting, circular motion. Once your dog gets over the initial newness of this, they will most likely enjoy it a lot! Next, use a new cotton ball damp with ear cleaning solution and carefully run it along any areas along the cartilage of the ear and inner flap to wick away wax and dirt buildup.
Bathing
The frequency of baths you give your dog will depend upon the type and length of hair that they have. Dogs with long hair need to be bathed more often than dogs with short smooth coats. Other factors that affect how often you should give your dog a bath include the weather (people usually bathe their dogs more often in the summertime) and how often they go outside. Choose a mild shampoo for dogs. Using dish soap or human shampoo can dry your dog’s skin out which can lead to further problems. Before giving your dog a bath it is always a good idea to give him a good brushing. This will remove excess hair and help prevent your drain from becoming clogged. Fill the bathtub (or sink) to about the level of your dog’s knees. Use a spray hose or a cup or pitcher to thoroughly wet your dog. Carefully massage the shampoo into your dog’s coat starting from the back and working your way forward. Very gently wet your dogs head, face, and ears and lather those areas as well. Be extremely cautious as not to get any shampoo in your dog’s ears, nose, or eyes. Next rinse your dog off very thoroughly. Leaving shampoo on your dog’s skin can cause irritation to the skin. Once you have rinsed your dog off completely, you can dry him with a large towel to get rid of excess water followed by a hair dryer. If you chose to dry your dog with a hair dryer, be sure to keep the heat at a comfortable temperature and to keep it a safe distance from your dog’s skin. It is also a good idea to have eye wash for your dog to rinse their eyes after the bath. Only use eye wash specifically for dogs or cats and never use eye drops for humans!
Grooming Between Baths
There are also options for keeping your dog looking clean and smelling fresh in between baths as well. Pet grooming wipes are a great way to keep Fido clean in between baths. Also there are leave in spray on coat and skin conditioners as well as a multitude of pet body sprays and colognes! * Only use products made for our furry four legged pals as human products almost always contain alcohol and other ingredients that will dry your pets skin and coat out and could cause serious irritation.*
Nail Clipping
A good rule of thumb for gauging when your dog is ready for a nail trim is by whether or not you can hear their nails clicking as they walk across the floor. If you can, it is probably a good idea to give Fido a nail trim. Since most dogs aren’t the biggest fans of getting their nails clipped, the first step to clipping their nails is to make sure your dog is comfortable. To do this, you will need to make your dog comfortable with you touching their feet. You can do this touching their paws lightly (this is always a good thing to do even if you are not trimming the nails as it will allow the dog to feel as comfortable when your groomer needs to trim the feet and nails!). As they grow accustomed to this, you can begin to apply a little bit of pressure to their paws and nails. Once they have grown used to this, you can move on to beginning to trim their nails. Make sure to get a pair of nail clippers that are suited to your dogs size, small, medium or large and also pick up "Qwick Stop" which is a styptic powder that you can apply if you cut back too far and your pets nail bleeds. If you find yourself without any styptic powder, you can use flour as it will act as a clotting agent if in a tight spot! Watch the nails for re bleeding if your pet walks on a surface that may dislodge the powder for a few hours after the nail trim if the quick has been nicked. Before using a nail clipper on your dog, carefully read the instructions so that there are no questions on how the clippers are to be used. Avoid cutting the area known as the quick which is painful and can cause bleeding in dogs. On white nails the quick is distinguished as the pink section, but it is more difficult to see in darker nails and if you are unsure you can always bring your pet to PPB&B to have a quick nail trim and no appointment is needed for this service.
Dental Care
Dental care is extremely important in dogs. Although people loosely throw around the term “dog breath”, dogs should not have dog breath! To help ensure that your dog maintains his oral health, it is recommended to take a look at your dog’s teeth between vet visits. Notify your vet if you find anything out of the normal like halitosis, otherwise known as bad breath or “dog breath”, inflamed, red, or bleeding gums, pain when chewing, or anything else that might appear to be out of the usual. To aid in preventing dental disease in dogs, one of the things you can do is to brush your dog’s teeth with a finger bush (made especially for brushing dog’s teeth) and dog toothpaste (human toothpaste can make dogs sick). Brushing should be daily or every other day. Brushing your dog’s teeth and keeping your dog up to date with his vet visits is the best thing you can do to maintain his dental health.
We will cover these tips in more depth over the coming weeks and months and also get you in the know when it comes to the best tools to use as well as breed specifics and our feline friends!
Also, watch for grooming and bath special's to be announced from Pampered Pets Bed and Biscuit on facebook as well as Twitter and email if you have signed up for this option!
Have a furry and fun day!
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Give your pet a scratch behind the ear from us
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Pampered Pets Bed and Biscuit!
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