Dog Grooming Hints

by Barboni

Obviously, being a pet lover, you try your best to provide your little doggie with a very comfortable and cozy life. You show him your care and love, just as you do for any other family member. This includes his clothes, bed, accessories, food and all other things that are required for his living. It is, at the same time, really very important to groom him agreeably. It is necessary for you to keep him clean and spruced up. This can be done at ease with the help of some important grooming accessories, like a dog grooming brush, nail and hair clippers, shampoos, oils and other such products that help to maintain your dog’s coat healthy and clean.

A dog grooming brush is an important accessory required for your dog’s fur. The breed of a dog determines his fur size. Some dogs are blessed with long fur, while there are others that have short fur coat. There are breeds that have curly, wavy or straight hair. Your furry friends need your special attention. A dog grooming brush is quite similar to a comb made up of steel wire preferably with rubber tips. The brush helps to loosen your dog’s hair without causing any damage to your beloved skin or hair. For your little poodles, you can buy wire combs to groom their hairs, as they are comparatively smaller and delicate. It is therefore very important that the kind of brush you use should be comfortable to your dogs. The hair should not be pulled or it will cause pain to your dogs. The size of the comb or the dog grooming brush will totally depend on the size of your canine friends. Buying a larger comb for your huge hounds will be easy to use on them as you will be able to cover more areas while brushing. For the smaller ones, smaller brushes with soft bristles will be better, as it will be convenient to brush them behind the ears and in other delicate areas,

The main function of a dog grooming brush is to stimulate his skin and help him get rid of loose or bad hair. This will also help you to keep your home clean and free from fur. When you use clippers or scissors to trim your dog’s hair, he will look well groomed and neat, with a shiny coat. And maintaining the coat with the dog grooming brush will become easier. It will not only make him look debonair, but also show your care and love for him and your interest to keep him well maintained. A dog grooming brush is an important grooming accessory, so make sure to buy one when you go shopping for your pet. You can also search on the Internet to find out the detailed information about its availability and price range. A dog grooming brush comes in various styles and is easily available at any pet shop. Buy one keeping in mind the comfort and hygiene of your dog.

German resident Herr Louis Dobermann has been attributed to creating the intelligent and faithful companion known as the Doberman Pinscher. His employment of a tax collector and given he was responsible for stray dogs at a local dog pound, gave him a reason and a means to create a breed of dog that would be his protection from would-be robbers. His goal was to have a dog that was intelligent, intimidating but easy to maintain. This “man-made” dog became the Doberman Pinscher that is loved around the world.

The Doberman has a smooth and thick coat that lies close to the body. They are one of the easier breeds of dog to care for when grooming. The Doberman Pinscher needs bathed only when dirty or only once a month which will depend upon its lifestyle. Owners of the Doberman will tell you that a healthy Doberman rarely has a “doggy” odor if kept clean.

The coat should be brushed on a regular basis to remove excess hairs which will help control any shedding and should also be done before bathing. During a bathing session, avoid the dog’s eyes and ears. Cotton balls can be placed in the ears to help keep water out. After wetting the dog thoroughly, wash with a dog shampoo using either a sponge, bath mitt or your hand. Work from the rear to the head giving special attention to areas that tend to get extra dirty such as the bottom of the feet. Completely rinse any shampoo from the Doberman and dry with a heavy towel. A hand blow-dryer can be used to fully dry the Doberman. Brush the Doberman again after bathing.

The other areas that will need attending during a grooming session are the ears, eyes, teeth and toenails. The eyes and ears can be cleaned using a cotton ball or tissue that has been lightly dampened with water. There are ear cleaning products available but always place these solutions on the cotton ball and never pour into the ear. Q-tips are not recommended and the ear canal should always be avoided. Proper and frequent ear cleanings will help prevent infections and ear odors. The teeth should be cleaned regularly to prevent plaque and tarter build-up.

The Doberman will need its nails trimmed on a regular basis. If attempting this process yourself, be aware that the toenail has a “quick” and can hurt the dog or even bleed if cut into. If your dog has light colored nails, the quick is visible through the nail and easier to trim. Cut the toenail within 2 millimeters of the quick. Most Dobermans have dark nails which prevents the quick from being visible. Trim the nails in small cuts to minimize the chance of cutting into the quick. New equipment for dog nail trimming are available including nail grinders which file down the nails slowly rather than cutting. These new items may work better for the novice groomer.

The coat of the Doberman Pinscher is easy to care for and requires very little maintenance besides daily grooming to remove dead hairs. A damp cloth can be used for in-between bathing to clean dirty areas including the bottom of the feet. A well-maintained coat will exhibit a healthy shine, will be smooth and close fitting to the body and is one of the Dobermans most beautiful attributes.

Miniature Pinschers normally have short hair so they do not need to be groomed as often as other dog breeds. The one problem that people usually have with Miniature Pinschers are that they shed quite a bit. You end up with short but corse hairs all over the place and most Miniature Pinschers are black, so you have short black corse hair everywhere! It can become pretty overwhelming after a while if you do not know how to properly groom them. The best way to keep this potential mess at bay is to give your miniature Pinscher a bath with a desheeding shampoo. YOu need to make sure that you work it well into the hair and skin so that the undercoat is penetrated and you are able to get the most hair that will be faling out out before rinsing. This is one of the best ways to to keep them groomed because they are less likely to need major grooming as time goes by. The other item that I would suggest for you to get is a grooming glove. The combs are good to, but are usually for dog breeds with longer and thinner hair. The glove allows you to pet the dog or animal and get the excess fur instead of having to keep them still and rake a comb through their fur. Plus, the brisalls on the gloves are usually short and they will not cause harm to the skin as would a long bristalled comb. These 2 things are probably the best 2 items you can get for a Miniature Pinscher to keep them groomed. They don’t really need much more than that!

Some Miniature Pinschers have major issues with heir skin. Some have really bad dandruff while others may have what they call mange, which is caused by tiny mites on and under the skin. If your Miniature Pinscher have Dandruff, there are Shampoos out there especially made to fight dandruff, some say that oatmeal shampoo is one of the best you can give them and would be used in the place of your normal dog shampoo. After a few washings you should notice a reduction in the amount of dandruff that you see. If you suspect that your Miniature Pinscher has mange, you should go to the vet and have them examined. The vet should be able to tell you whether they do or not. If they do, you can get treatments that you put on the skin to kill the mites that cause the mange. The amount of time it takes to cure depends or the severity of the situation, but should not take long!

There maybe other problems that may cause your miniature Pinscher to smell even after freshly grooming and although it may be mange, you should have any other problems that you see looked at by your local vet. They would be able to tell you every thing that you need to know and may be able to work you through the process to fix the problem!

Some dogs may shed less hair, but there are no dogs that are completely allergen-free. My Mum is allergic to dogs so I am speaking from experience. For those who suffer from allergies you will know the discomfort that they can cause. It can make you sneeze, then your eyes may itch, the more you rub them the more they hurt but you need to rub them. Allergies can make you wheeze, all in all they are very unpleasant.

My Dad wanted a dog, my Mum was allergic so what did we do? We borrowed a toy poodle to see if she was allergic. They have wool not hair so they don`t shed. It didn`t seem to cause too many problems so off we went to buy a poodle.

Of course my Dad doesn`t like small dogs so we bought a big dog, a standard poodle. He was around 29 inches and black. Now it is true, poodles don`t shed as they have wool not fur. However the wool grows, it needs clipping. No dog hairs though so no allergies? Not quite true.

The poodle would need clipping about every six weeks. In this time he would need grooming or he would become tangled. Now he wasn`t a show dog, he was a pet. He didn`t have the extravagant coat of the show poodles, he was clipped quite close. He still became tangled if not groomed regularly. My Mum was unable to groom him as this would make her sneeze.

Dust would be the main problem here. Most people who are allergic to dogs are in fact allergic to dust also. When the dog`s wool became longer, he attracted more dust, therefore he was not allergen free. I must say though, it was much better for my Mum to have this dog than one who shed hair, but he still made her sneeze.

The other problem that my Mum had with this dog was his barking. I don`t mean it got on her nerves. What I do mean is, when he barked, his saliva would spray (very minute droplets that no-one could see). This would make my Mum sneeze and would cause irritation making her face itch. So you see, this allergy was nothing to do with shedding hair.

Anyway, my Dad then wanted a lurcher who was going to live outside, then outside at night, then she was allowed in the kitchen, then the whole house. My poor Mum. We picked a short haired lurcher who didn`t shed much. My Mum was still more allergic to the lurcher than the poodle. She would take anti-histamine tablets frequently. Whilst it was not unbearable for her, she did not enjoy it as it did make her suffer.

This short haired lurcher who didn`t shed much was groomed outside most days

When you see a dog on the street, the first thing you notice is how healthy it looks. Before you can even tell what the demeanor of the dog is like, it’s their coat that gets your attention first and foremost. And while it might seem like a superficial detail, the health of the coat of your dog can tell a lot about their overall physical condition. To make sure you’re keeping your dog and their coat healthy, here are some things to keep in mind.

Why It’s Important

It’s very important to keep the coat of your dog in good health for a number of reasons – some obvious, some not. Here are the ones that you need to keep in mind:

• Cleaning the coat will eliminate problems like fleas and ticks – When you take the time to clean the coat of your dog, you will notice when there are fleas or ticks that have taken hold. This will help prevent the diseases that these pests can create in your dog.
• Cleaning the coat will minimize the dirt and bacteria that your dog may get into – If you have a dog that likes to get into everything, taking the time to clean the coat will help prevent dirt and germ buildup that can lead to health problems.
• Cleaning the coat can help to remove painful burrs that may have gotten in the hairs
• Cleaning your dog will help to keep the coat full of shine and free of snarls and knotting

The more time you take to ensure that you are cleaning the coat of your dog, the more likely you are to be able to keep it healthy, rather than to have to deal with larger problems.

What You Need to Do to Prevent Problems

Depending on the coat your dog has, you might need to do a lot of maintenance for the coat or very little. Dogs with shorter coats don’t require a lot of brushing or cleansing, but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t do anything at all.

Here are several things that every dog owner can do to help create a healthy and shiny coat:

• Regular brushing – With a coarse brush, you will want to brush your dog’s coat at least once a week, more if they have longer hair. This will pull out any debris or tangles, making washing all the easier.
• Regular bathing – While most breeds do a good job of keeping themselves clean, others will require that you clean them on a more frequent basis. If your dog likes to get dirty in the mud, you will want to make sure you are using a good quality shampoo (as recommended by you vet) whenever the dog is dirty.
• Dry bathing – There are also ways to dry bathe your dog if that’s an easier option for you and for the breed of your dog. Again, talk with your vet first to see what they recommend for you.
• Flea baths and tick treatments – If your dog spends a lot of time outdoors, you will want to make sure they are getting preventative treatments via these kinds of medicated baths. Since they only have to be done occasionally, they are often a good investment of your time for the problems they will prevent.
• Grooming – You might want to take a longer haired dog to a professional groomer to help you with your dog’s coat. They can often trim and groom it to be in accordance with your desires in the look of the dog or in order to suit the breed’s needs in terms of coat management.

When to See the Vet

The coat of your dog can be a great indicator in terms of the overall health of your dog. Because you now know how to take care of it, you can begin to look for problems as you go through the various steps. Things like ticks and fleas can become major medical problems, so if you spot either on your dog, you should call your vet to see if there’s anything special you need to do. If you find a tick, for example, and there is a red ringed rash in the area, you might want to bring your dog in immediately to make sure there isn’t any sign of further infection.

You may also want to bring your dog into the vet if you have bathed the dog and yet they still give off an odor. This is generally a sign of a deeper bacterial infection in the dog that is manifesting itself through the smell. When you notice anything out o the ordinary, you will want to make sure you ask the vet.

Your dog’s coat is not just about their appearance, but good health always look good too.