Grooming Your Own Dog

Why is grooming important?

Finding a dog to become a new friend or part of your family is the easy part. However, dogs, like humans, need more than just their daily walk and a bit of attention when we feel like giving it. Grooming your own dog is an important part of the relationship between owners and their dogs. The following will briefly highlight some of the forms of grooming and provide some short tips on how on how to keep your dog looking nice and healthy. The time you dedicate to grooming your four-legged friend can bring you closer, and save you spending money on expensive private groomers.

Invest in a grooming kit

There are different ways to help your dog maintain its hygiene. Before you can do anything however, you have to equip yourself with few tools. Don’t be overwhelmed. Of course, there are hundreds of clippers, combs, brushes, scissors, shampoos and even more specialized pieces of equipment out there. Starting with a grooming kit is the best way to introduce yourself to the tools of grooming. When it comes to choosing a kit, it can be wiser to invest a little bit more money for more durable tools. Sometimes we are inclined to buy cheaper tools and replace them when they break. Investing in good grooming kit at the beginning can save you time and money in the long term. There are different grooming kits available for different kinds of dogs with individual needs. Make sure you inform yourself as to which grooming kit will serve your dog best, and don’t be afraid to ask for help before purchasing.

Find a suitable grooming space

Grooming can sometimes be a messy business. For smaller dogs, grooming is easiest on top of an old table (make sure to cover it beforehand to avoid any scratches on the table surface). On the other hand, the only possibility for larger and heavier dogs is to groom them on the ground. Designate a space in a room or area easy that will be easy to clean afterwards. The practice would be to prepare all the necessary tools before you start grooming, so that they can be in easy reach of your hand. Needless breaks could confuse your dog and prompt it to move.

Regular Brushing

Dog grooming doesn’t just mean keeping an eye on the length of your dog’s hair. Keeping hair in good condition by removing dirt, helping the spread of natural oils in the coat and preventing skin irritation and matting goes a long way to keeping your dog looking and feeling its best. Not only can regularly using a brush or comb be relaxing and soothing for both you and your dog, it provides an excellent opportunity to check for fleas while your dog is nice and calm. Make sure to think about the individual needs of your dog when it comes to using appropriate brushes.

Have a bathing strategy

After grooming, most of us want to give our dog a nice bath, and it is good to get your dog used to baths from young age. Smaller dogs can often fit into even a smaller sink, while larger dogs require a more substantial bathing space, typically a larger bath. As with grooming, preparing things for the bath beforehand is best. You should definitely avoid using human shampoo, but opt rather for specialized dog shampoos for optimal pH balance. While in the bath, it is useful to use a facecloth, especially around the airs, to remove any dirt from the face. Always bathe the dog from head to body, moving water away from the face as it gets dirtier, to avoid any skin irritations.

Nail clipping as a part of grooming

As well as cutting, shaving or trimming hair, and bathing your dog, clipping their toenails is another important aspect of grooming. However, be sure to be extra careful when clipping nails. Use appropriate sized clippers and make sure not to press them to close to the skin, or too hard.

Dental care

Taking care of your dogs teeth is one the most important part of maintaining its hygiene. Begin by getting your dog used to the taste of toothpaste, but applying small amounts to your finger, and getting your dog to lick it off. The next step is to get your dog used to the feel of a brush against its teeth; go slowly with this, and be firm but gentle. Start gradually by brushing only a few teeth until the dog gets used to the process. Finally, you can clean your dog’s teeth thoroughly by brushing tooth by tooth.

Treat your dog!

Making every grooming session fun and relaxed for your dog should always be a top priority. Being touched and handled, including in sensitive areas around the ears, tail and belly, can be challenging at first – especially if your dog is the excitable type. Make sure to praise your dog after a grooming session, and even offer a treat when it’s all over! You and your dog will benefit from grooming your own dog.

This is a post by Ashley Williamson. Ashley is a freelance writer and a full time pet lover. When she is not working she likes to travel and do yoga. If you have any question feel free to leave a comment.

Almost nothing is more exciting for a family than adding a new pet to the household. However, adjustment to a new pet is not always an easy process – especially if your family already owns a pet. Sometimes, pets can show hostility or aggression towards one another, leaving the owner feeling relatively helpless, and eager to resolve the tension between his or her pets. However, there are some key steps to take early on in terms of facilitating a friendship between your cat and dog. By being clear about boundaries and by displaying equal love for all of the animals under your roof, you will be able to set your pets up for a lifetime of friendship and companionship.

Introduce your puppy to your cat

Canine-Feline Tensions: Where Do the Jealousies Come from?

Most cats are upset by the addition of a new pet to a household, whether it be another kitten, a puppy, or another animal. This hostility is driven by a cat’s innate sensitive personality, as these pets are especially keen on sensing favouritism for other animals. Dogs tend to be friendlier towards kittens and other pets, but sometimes poor relationships can form during the first few weeks of pets getting acquainted with one another. Pets in general do not like to share food, toys, or litter boxes with one another, as they like to feel in control of their own space. Cats tend to demonstrate a heightened need for personal space and caring attention to remain happy, yet dogs deserve just as much attention and care as their feline friends in order to develop healthy relationships with people and other animals.

Serving as an Observant Owner: How to Facilitate Friendship Between Your Cat and Dog

One of the best ways to prevent hostility between your pets is to carefully observe and document their behaviours with one another. Does one pet have a tendency to physically attack the other? Are there any threats, made through hissing, barking, meowing, or arched postures, that are made by one pet to intimidate the other? The most troubled pet relationships are the ones that are not monitored properly by the owner, since ignoring the problem simply allows it to continue to escalate, as it sends a message to your pets that this kind of aggressive behaviour is permissible under your roof.

Keep a record of these instances in a small journal, which is a practice that will help you to pick out patterns to report to a veterinarian if the tensions persist. Flowing these dangerous behaviours and understanding the situations in which they most likely occur is one of your key responsibilities as a pet owner. Remember that any atypical behaviour by one of your pets may be the result of a developing medical condition, which can lead to outbursts or impatience in your pet as the symptoms get worse. Of course, if any scratching, biting, or other injury occurs, be sure to bring both pets to the veterinarian to be checked for infection or transmission of parasites or disease.

Remember, however, that there is a big difference between mean-spirited aggression and play aggression – the former being dangerous for your pets as they become hostile and violent  with one another, the latter as a necessary relatively safe behaviour that is crucial in helping your pets develop a friendship with one another. Play aggression is fun for pets extremely healthy, as it helps pets to maintain a strong emotional sense of well-being, allows them to learn how to set boundaries, and provides a medium that creates a long-lasting, positive bond between the animals. However, it can be extremely difficult to tell the difference between mean-spirited aggression and play aggression. For more information on how to recognize the difference, speak to a specialist at your local veterinary hospital who can indicate what to look for so that you can effectively monitor your pets’ budding friendship.

Separate Spaces, Equal Attention: Making Sure Each Pet Feels Loved – So That They Don’t Hate Each Other

Dividing your attention between two pets can be an extremely daunting task, especially since most family members and friends will be especially excited to meet the new addition to your household. Your older pet can certainly sense this excitement, and can feel rejected or ignored, leading to lashing out against the pet or the owner in the future. This can be mitigated by ensuring each pet feels that they have equal attention and space in your home. For example, separate bowls of pet food should be provided for each animal, and they should be located in separate areas with plenty of space in between them so that one pet cannot prevent the other from eating by blocking the food. Each pet should have its own bed, where it can comfortably relax without competition from the other pet. Furthermore, family members should take extra time to play with and cuddle each pet separately, so that both pets feel included and welcomed as part of the family.

This is a post by Ashley Williamson. Ashley is a freelance writer and a full time pet lover. When she is not working she likes to travel and do yoga. If you have any question feel free to leave a comment.

If you have ever wondered if  online dog training courses are for you, I found an excellent blog post on the “Online Courses” blog. It talks about online learning in general, but much of what is included can be applied to E-Training for Dogs courses.

The post is titled: Challenge Your Online Learning Expectations  and includes the following three pieces.

Here is the link to the blog post –  https://www.onlinecollegecourses.com/online-learning-expectations.

The resource provides the realities of online college programs and what students need to know about them.