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Wednesday, July 29, 2015 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Paw
Prints
Jodi Schneider McNamee
Columnist
The importance of
grooming your pet
You’ve been busier than
normal and haven’t had time
to groom or brush your long-
haired Shetland sheepdog in
quite a while. You’ve started
to notice that he’s been
scratching a lot, even though
he’s already been treated for
fleas and ticks. So you decide
to bring him for a visit to the
groomer, and what she dis-
covers after bathing your
furry friend is an underlying
skin condition causing him to
feel very uncomfortable and
itchy.
Grooming isn’t a canine
luxury, it’s a necessity — and
you don’t have to break the
bank to keep Fido groomed.
Grooming is essential to
the health and comfort of
your pet; it allows you as a
responsible pet parent to spot
health problems before they
become serious, or even life-
threatening. Grooming on
a regular basis allows you
to look and feel for lumps,
bumps, and injuries.
Brushing helps to remove
dirt and loose, dead hair
and helps prevent mats and
tangles.
Dirt and oils can accu-
mulate under mats and cause
painful skin infections. And
that the mats themselves
can be painful as they pull
the skin underneath. Severe
matting can even affect your
furry friend’s ability to see,
walk, and eat normally.
If you find a mat in your
pooch’s hair, do not pull on
it. Pulling can be painful.
There are special brushes and
combs available to help split
the mat up.
With some dog breeds,
grooming is a little more
involved. Breeds such as
collies, Alaskan malamutes,
etc. are “double-coated”
which means they have a
downy undercoat underneath
a harsher layer of long hair,
and the down can mat like a
layer of felt against the skin
if left untended.
Each breed is differ-
ent and some dogs — like
a short-haired terrier —
will be easy compared to a
curly haired poodle. Some
folks prefer to hire a profes-
sional groomer because they
don’t have the time to do it
themselves.
Many dogs benefit from
an occasional bath that
goes along with brushing to
remove dirt and excess skin
oils that can sometimes cause
skin conditions and unpleas-
ant odors.
Another part of groom-
ing that is important for your
furry friend is nail-trim-
ming. Keeping Fido’s nails
trimmed can help avoid some
painful conditions such as
torn or overgrown nails. Just
like with brushing, trimming
his nails gives you an oppor-
tunity to examine the area for
problems like cracked pads,
swelling or injuries.
Most dogs benefit from
having their ears cleaned on
a regular basis, but that takes
practice for the pet parent, so
talk to your veterinarian if
you suspect any ear problems
such as ear mites, cheat grass
or possible infection.
Brushing your pet’s teeth
is also a part of grooming.
Although many pet parents
don’t realize it, brushing your
dog’s teeth regularly can go a
long way in preventing peri-
odontal disease. According to
the ASPCA, periodontal dis-
ease is being recognized as a
widespread problem in pets.
Some dogs seem to
naturally enjoy the feeling
of being brushed. Others,
however, find it uncomfort-
able. You can usually tell the
dog that doesn’t like being
groomed, because when your
furry friend sees the brush
coming, his ears will go back
and he may try to hide from
you.
The easiest way to train
your dog to endure the
grooming process is to start
when he is still a puppy,
although that is not always
possible because you may
adopt an adult dog.
Grooming should be a
relaxing time for both you
and your dog. It can become
a special time that you both
share together.
If your furry friend
doesn’t like being brushed,
you may need to help change
the way he feels about
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photo by Jodi schneider McnaMee
a collie needs to be groomed on a regular basis.
grooming so that he can tol-
erate it better and even begin
to enjoy it.
Start by going to a quiet
area with him, a place where
he enjoys being, such as out-
doors on the porch. Bring a
handful of extra tasty treats
along with his brush. Try
speaking softly to your dog;
slowly and gently stroke him
with the brush in a non-sen-
sitive area.
Cats usually groom them-
selves, but a weekly brushing
for a short-haired cat or daily
grooming for a long-haired
cat is also important.