Dog grooming isn’t a canine luxury (although it might feel like it to the dog!) but very much a necessity. It’s a necessity not only to keep your dog beautiful, with his or her coat shining and lustrous, but also to keep him or her healthy. Your dog isn’t going to tell you when it’s time for him or her to be brushed—he or she won’t go pick up the brush when they notice that his or her coat is matted, or when there’s a grass awn or a sticker buried away somewhere you can’t see. So, knowing that your dog relies on you to help him or her keep clean, make sure to keep to a brushing schedule. Brush your dog’s hair at least once a week, check the dog’s ears, check the eyes, and keep them clean.
Grooming on command
Grooming needs to be a habit with your dog. The dog needs to sit still, needs to stay calm when you check him or her. Use your basic commands like sit and stay, keep the dog in position to be groomed. Make sure that the grooming time is fun and relaxing for the dog, so, at first, consider incorporating a few treats and telling the dog when they’ve done something well. Praise them for this time (the dog doesn’t realize that grooming is what’s actually best for him or her). Do this with regularity until the dog understands what it is you are actually doing.
Some breeds required more grooming than others. Siberian Huskies, for instance, do a lot of shedding, blowing their entire coats at least once yearly. Double coated breeds like the Labrador retriever continually shed, and the under hairs can get caught up, irritate the dog’s skin, make them itch incessantly.
It’s a good thing your dog has you as an owner, good thing there’s someone out there to take care of him or her. If you have any other grooming questions, or need professional grooming services—have you dog professionally brushed-out, soaped-up and bathed, nails trimmed—call Groomingdale’s today.
