Dog Grooming Basics

1) Bathing your dog

Did you know that it is normal for your dog to want to roll in smelly things? Many people believe this is instinctual behaviour, stemming from the days when your dog’s wild ancestors would mask their scent to help them sneak up on their prey. Wolves, for example, have been observed rolling in animal carcasses or the droppings of plant-eating animals, to conceal their own scent during the hunt.

If your dog loves water, bath time can be a fun activity, but for those who are flighty around water, grooming can be a bit of a battle. If it’s your dog’s first bath, introduce him slowly, first familiarising him with the bathroom or bathing area. Taking him into the area and then rewarding him with praise and treats will lead to him associating bath time with positive experiences.

It is extremely important to teach him that good things happen when bath time comes around, because this is going to be a regular occurrence, unless you’re willing to cough up the cash and take him to a groomer every time he gets a bit smelly!

Prepare in advance to ensure you have everything on hand before you start – you wouldn’t want to leave the bathroom (or even the side of the bath) in order to retrieve something you need, since you may come back to a drenched floor or a tipped over bucket! The essentials are:

– A good mild dog shampoo. Never use human products, because the pH level of a dog’s skin is about 7.5 where a human’s skin is about 5.5, on the standard pH scale from 0 to 14.

– A jug, for pouring water over your dog.

– Treats (and peanut butter / cream cheese).

– A towel that matches the size of your dog, i.e. small towel for a small dog, large towel / bath sheet for a big dog. You may require two towels if your dog has thick fur.

– Wear old clothes because this may turn into a bath for you too!

Call your dog into the bath area and reward him for coming. Don’t use his name when you call him, because if he dislikes bathing and you use his name, he may start to associate his name with undesirable or scary experiences, such as bathing, a trip to the vet, etc. Instead, just use your “come” cue, or make kissy or whistling sounds to get his attention. If this does not work, go to your dog, put on the collar and lead and walk him to the designated area, or walk around the garden a bit, then take him into the bathing area and reward. If your dog seems comfortable, continue on to bath time, otherwise, repeat this process until he is convinced that getting into the tub or coming near the hose is nothing to be wary of.

Once your dog is in the bathtub, you can smear some yummy (Xylitol-free) peanut butter or cream cheese, at about nose height, on the side of the bath that’s closest to you. This way, your dog will be distracted by licking it from the side of the bath, while you slowly pour lukewarm water over his body. Use a soft sponge to wet and gently clean your dog’s ears, head and muzzle. You can also use this sponge to clean under the corners of your dog’s eyes, but be careful not to get any shampoo into his eyes. Remember not to scare your dog by pouring a lot of water over his head at once, and to close his ears and cover his eyes with your hand when wetting his head with the wet sponge. Too much moisture in the ears can cause an outer ear infection. If using a shower head or hose, start the water slowly. Ensure the water is not too hot, remembering his skin is more sensitive than ours. Use slow gentle pressure so he gets used to it and just let him watch it at first. Don’t worry if he tries to play with the water or eat it, but do try to keep him calm by offering gentle encouragement if he seems a bit nervous! Praise and treat him for calm behaviour.

Lather your dog up with a small amount of shampoo in a gentle stroking motion, applying shampoo from his neck to his tail and washing his legs and paws last. Gently dig into your dog’s coat using your fingertips and massage the shampoo into his fur, ensuring you’re getting shampoo onto his skin as well. Shampoo residue can be irritating to your dog’s skin, so it’s vital he is rinsed thoroughly with clean, lukewarm water. Take the same precautions when rinsing the dog as you did when you were wetting him, ensuring you do not get any water and shampoo into the dog’s eyes and ears, by rinsing the head with a sponge.

If your dog becomes uncomfortable at any time during this process and is no longer responding to treats or praise, a short break and gentle stroking can calm him. Adding 2 drops of 100% pure, therapeutic grade Lavender essential oil to the bathwater, may also help to relax your dog.

2) Drying your dog

If it is a nice, sunny day, you can simply towel-dry your dog thoroughly and let him lie outside in the sun after you’ve brushed out his coat. Microfiber towels soak up more water without dripping too much, compared to regular towels. Using the towel, start at your dog’s head and neck, then dry his back and tummy and work your way to his hindquarters and tail, finally drying the legs and paws. Just make sure you rub firmly to get into and underneath the dog’s coat to dry the skin as much as possible.

If weather conditions are not ideal for drying naturally, and you do not have the heat pump (air conditioner) on or the fire burning, you may need to use a hairdryer. You would, however, need to systematically desensitize your dog to the hairdryer, as most dogs will have a mini panic attack the first time you try to use a hairdryer to dry them. Most modern hairdryers have 3 adjustable heat settings – cool, medium and warm/hot. Use the medium heat setting on your hairdryer and blow the air onto your dog’s coat, head and body from about 30cms away. Keep the hairdryer in constant motion by moving it back and forth to avoid blowing warm air onto one spot of your dog’s body. This is so you do not burn your dog’s sensitive skin. Do not blow air directly into your dog’s face – most dogs strongly dislike this and it could put your dog off the hairdryer completely, so rather set yourself up for success. To dry the head, ears and muzzle, ensure it is properly towel-dried, then blow the air from the hairdryer onto the dog’s head from above and slightly behind, again, keeping the dryer about 30cms away. Brush or pull your fingers through your dog’s coat as you dry him, to ensure that the undercoat and skin is also dry when you’re done.

Desensitizing your dog to a hairdryer

To ease your dog’s discomfort, you must gradually desensitize him to the hairdryer. The desensitizing phase can take as little as one to two sessions of about a minute each, to a few days, depending on how afraid your dog is of it. Don’t rush this and remain positive throughout, praising and treating your dog for calm behaviour. Because dogs hear so much better than we do, something that is loud to us is almost intolerable to them. Consider placing small cotton balls in the ears or using ear protection equipment that’s made specifically for dogs. Be sure not to push the cotton balls into the ear canal and remember to remove it after grooming.

Start with the dryer on the lowest speed setting with medium heat, pointed away from the dog. Have your dog in a small room, such as a bathroom and allow him to move away from the dryer if he wants to. Don’t make a big deal of it when he does. Have high-value treats with you and feed it to your dog, one at a time, while the dryer is running. As your dog gets more comfortable, move your hand with the treats closer to the dryer each time you offer him a treat, making sure you don’t blow the air into your dog’s eyes or ears.

Cover your dog’s ears and eyes, as well as his paws, when introducing the dryer. Keep initial desensitization sessions short. If your dog shows signs of unease, it is important to stay calm and not to scold or praise him, but to have a neutral response – instead, without saying anything, slowly move the dryer further away and end the training session as soon as your dog has relaxed and taken a treat or two, praising your dog as he takes the treats. This means that the session has ended on a positive note.

Once your dog is fine with the lowest speed setting on the hairdryer, repeat the same steps with the faster settings. Always keep the heat on the medium setting. Use your hand to move the dog’s fur around while drying, to be sure you are not burning his skin. If it feels too hot on your hand, then it is definitely too hot for your dog!

3) Brushing your dog

Grooming is something you want to start on when your dog is a puppy and the most accepting of new things, but if you didn’t (or you didn’t get your dog as a puppy), there are still ways you can train your dog to accept and even enjoy being brushed. To get him used to being brushed all over, it’s best practice to first ensure that you can touch him all over with your hands. If he isn’t already eagerly coming to you for tummy and chest rubs, or ear scratches, you should start regularly patting and touching his ears, muzzle, tail, belly, back, hindquarters, legs and paws gently before going in with a brush.

Attempt to do this while your dog is lying down and relaxing. Dogs tend to be more relaxed after eating or playing. Don’t do this after you’ve had a bad day at work, because it requires some patience and gentle encouragement! When you do start using a brush, you might have to start with short sessions and extend the duration as your dog becomes comfortable with being brushed. If your dog is very wary, you may even have to start “pretend brushing” with the back side of the brush – just to get him used to a novel item being rubbed on him. Alternate brush strokes with pats with your hand if necessary. Start on your dog’s chest and sides (ribs), then move up to the neck, back and hindquarters and finish off with his tail and legs.

The best way to prevent hair from popping up all over the house is by using a comb or slicker brush first to loosen and untangle hair, followed by a bristle or rubber brush which will brush out all the loose hair afterwards. If ever you walk your dog through long grass, ensure you give them a thorough brush afterwards, concentrating right down to his feet. Grass seeds can work its way into his coat, skin and ears causing infections and pain.

Brushing for different coats:

– Short smooth hair

Short-haired dogs with smooth coats require regular brushing because they moult. They are however easier to groom because they get fewer tangles or knots and you can usually get away with running over their coat with a comb and then a bristle brush just once a week.

– Short dense or fluffy hair

If your dog has short hair that is dense or fluffy, it may be prone to matting and will require at least a twice-weekly brush. The best way to remove small mattes or tangles is with a slicker brush, then using a bristle or rubber brush to pull away the loose hair. Be sure to brush all over including his tail to avoid unwanted mats from forming!

– Long hair

Long-haired dogs require a mix of grooming and trimming. If you can take your dog to the groomer for a regular trim (every 6 – 8 weeks), that should cover it as it’s only when the hair gets long that it starts to tangle and form mats. However, you can give them a thorough brush every two weeks to ensure the coat stays in a good condition, perhaps more often when they’re moulting.

If they aren’t getting regular trims they will need daily attention once the hair is longer. You’ll need a slicker brush to tease tangled hair out and then a bristle or rubber brush to brush out the loose hair. You may even have to cut through bigger mats with a scissors (cutting away from the dog) before attempting to brush through it with a slicker brush, however, this is best left to the professionals.

Sometimes mats can be combed out, but if left too long, it is impossible without seriously harming the dog, thus, the groomer may have to shave the dog completely. Matting is especially prevalent in long-haired dogs during seasonal shedding if the excessive hairs are not removed. Regular and frequent grooming, especially brushing, is absolutely necessary to not only prevent mats, but to keep your dog’s coat and skin healthy.

Severe matting can be extremely painful to your dog during brushing. Brushing only causes live hairs to be pulled out of the skin with excruciating pain. Even mild matting can cause your dog a great deal of pain. Matting can cut off blood supply to extremities and deny regular air circulation. Skin denied fresh air and stimulation from regular brushing becomes unhealthy. It can turn dark pink to red and open sores that emit foul odours can form on the dog’s skin. Even organic matter, like weeds and stickers, can become embedded in the skin. Mats have been known to contain stool of the pet and even fly larvae that further irritate the skin. Remember, sometimes these mats and their consequences can be completely hidden from view. Some severely matted pets may require the attention of a veterinarian.