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The purpose of Dog grooming is two-fold. First and foremost, it is about maintaining the health of your dog. And secondly, it is done to improve their appearance.
Regular grooming will reduce the incidence of health problems such as scratches and cuts and make you more aware of any issues you might miss if you were not grooming your dog regularly.
Keeping your dog well-groomed will help with general cleanliness. Your dog will smell less, which is a particularly issue for some breeds like Basset Hounds and Beagles. Also for dogs
that are heavy shedders of the hair, being groomed on a regular basis can keep their coat softer, cleaner and less likely to shed.
Spending time grooming will also have the added benefit of increasing the bond between you and your dog. They are a man’s best friend remember, so any, one-on-one time spent together will help with this bond.
We recommend grooming begins when your dog is a young puppy. This not only helps with bonding but also gets them use to grooming at an early age. If it was only introduced when the dog is older it might be difficult for them to get use to.
How often should your groom your dog?
This frequency of dog grooming will be determined by several factors. The breed of your dog, their hair type and activity level will impact this. For example, short haired dogs require less attention than longer haired dogs whose hair might get easily matted.
There are other factors as well. For example, if you dog has allergies or other underlining health problems can mean you need to groom your dog more.
The Benefits of Professional Dog Grooming
It is important to find a certified dog groomer and one that is familiar with your breed of dog. A professional dog grooming service will likely include:
A dog should be professionally groomed every four to six weeks. Unfortunately this may not always be possible often due to financial reasons. If this is the case a lot can be done by the dog-owner themselves.
Types of Dog Grooming
As noted above there are several different types of dog grooming. For example:
Hair removal
Whilst some hair removal is necessary for practical reasons (like keeping hair out of a dogs eyes) much is based on the preference of the owner. If you are showing your dog this will also be factor as you may have to adhere to certain requirements.
Bathing
Dogs can be washed in a bath, or sprayed with a shower or washed with a sponge from water in a bucket. Dogs should always be brushed first to get rid of an mats. The correct dog shampoo should be used and it is essential a dogs coat is fully rinsed and free from shampoo otherwise, like with humans. Their skin can become irritated and uncomfortable.
Most dogs do not require bathing often. Over-bathing can actually stripyour dog’s coat of its natural oils causing it to dry out.
Nail trimming
Keeping your dogs nails trimmed is an important part of their health. If nails are left to grow, they can curl over and make walking and running painful. If they remain untrimmed they can curl into the paw causing pain and infection.
Grooming products
There is a large array of dog grooming products available on the market.
For example:
Summary
Grooming is an integral part of the care of your Dog. Neglecting this can have significant consequences for your pet. It need not be expensive and a lot of grooming can be done by yourself which can in fact be an enjoyable time spent with your dog. If you have questions on dog grooming we recommend speaking with your vet or getting in touch with the Irish Professional Dog Groomers Association.
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