Dirty dog at dog show

[juliepoudrier]

Re: Cutting out mats. I actually bought a set of clippers (for several reasons, including shaving bellies and cleaning areas around wounds) and I use those to remove mats behind ears. The hair there is so fine that it does tangle easily, and because I'm guilty of not grooming as often as a should (though I use the undercoat rake fairly often and it does a great job, but the dogs HATE it), the rougher coats, namely Phoebe and Ranger tend to get matted behind the ears.

 

I'm less likely to accidentally cut skin shaving a mat vs. cutting it out (ask my sheep the truth of that, lol!), and as much as it hurts when a tangle is pulled on my own head, I try not to just comb them out, at least not in the most tender areas. If the dog jerks unexpectedly or something, I'm also less likely to do damage with a pair of electric clippers.

 

As someone noted, it's virtually impossible to tell that I have shaved a dog behind the ears, and the act of shaving means that it does take a while to grow out and get tangled again.....

 

The exception is the guard dogs, as the ones I have don't tolerate the sound of electric clippers. I just discovered a big hunk of matter fur on Min's croup, so this weekend, I'll go up to that pasture with a good pair of scissors (the same ones I use on sheep) and give her a trim. But in that case, I'll be cutting her hair more like I shear a sheep.

 

Oh, and something that hasn't been mentioned about bathing, but which makes a big difference to me. I don't have a raised tub. I can bathe maybe two dogs before my back gets to the point where I can barely stand straight. So for practical, save my poor aching back reasons, I don't bathe all that often, and if I do bathe I have to spread it out over several days to do them all, or I'd need some serious narcotics....

 

J.

[ShoresDog]

My dogs' white fur is often brilliant sparkly-blue-white. I sort of bathe them. That is, after they've been in the ocean, I dunk them in a big tub of water from the hose to get the sand and salt out before they come in the house. I change the tub water perhaps every third or fourth day, and I don't use soap, so I suppose it doesn't count as a true bath. But the salt water must bleach their fur, just as it does the surfer's blonde locks. When they are out in the country for herding (yeah, Kristi!), they look embarrassingly clean compared to the local dogs, whose white parts are, say, "cream." But of course, they are that brilliant white for only about five minutes, as we're having the usual dry and dusty summer weather.

 

*I say "embarrassingly" because if a dog is too clean, it suggests it never gets to do anything interesting!

[terrecar]

Regarding combing out mats, I am referring to those that are not too tight. I do cut them out if they would require an inordinate amount of coddling and cooing...<-----okay that was sarcastic but not directed at anyone

 

I like to brush/groom my dog, and surprisingly, she seems to enjoy laying in my lap and getting brushed. Well, except for the choke-hold...

 

I like the clipper idea. I have not used it behind Hannah's ears, but I may just do that in the winter when her coat is heavier.

 

 

ETA: I do confess to having bathed Hannah--with real shampoo and everything at a self-serve dog wash--only once since I've had her, but I have hosed her down a few times.

Edited August 4, 2012 by terrecar

[terrecar]

This is a very YOUNG Nicky picture (about a year and a half) but it's clear enough. Photo by Robin French:

 

 

Nicky is certainly a looker!

[Sue R]

The few mats we get (behind Dan's and Megan's ears, in Celt's and Megan's butt feathers or on their bellies) are either worked out by hand if they are small enough or cut out if they are not worth fingering out. We don't get too many, mainly now when they are shedding, and it's amazing how quickly an ear mat can develop on Dan (who has no undercoat to speak of but who has very soft hair behind his ears).

 

These are definitely low-maintenance dogs, both the two medium rough-coats (one with more undercoat than the other) and the long-coated one with almost no undercoat. They shed the dirt, hose off easily, and don't get greasy. I can get more hair off my son's family Sheltie in one grooming than I get off all my dogs all summer...

 

PS - For what it's worth, in the OP's first post, I thought the sarcasm was directed at the OP by the show products salesperson - and, yes, I thought it was funny! I guess I just missed where there was any us-versus-them (among ourselves) in general.

 

You may bathe, I may not, who cares?

[frisbeegirl]

Thanks Sue,

 

That is exactly where they are on Keeva, ears and butt feathers.

 

Will need to do more brushing when she shedds in early summer.

 

I will try to work them out. Don't like cutting them unless i have to.

[terrecar]

For what it's worth, I was joking about the choke-hold. Hannah will get up if/when she has had enough. She is more of a lay at your feet or out and about dog; not overly affectionate, and that is fine with me. I like it that she is not needy.

 

My dog hates baths, my back hurts if I bend over too much, so I am fortunate that these dogs seem to repel (even fishy) odors.

 

That comment to the OP by the 'chalk vendor' is typical of what I've seen, and I guess I would rather see someone blow it off and laugh about it than become bitchy like I do offended. It's healthier!

Edited August 3, 2012 by terrecar

[SecretBC]

My dogs get an actual bath once in a blue moon -- Basically only when they've rolled in something dead. Occasionally I'll take them to the local do-it-yourself dog wash in the middle of winter when they get really muddy and I don't want it in my tub.

 

In the summer they swim LOTS and get hosed off in the yard nearly daily to cool them off after playing fetch or frisbee. It amazes me how white and sparkly Secret stays with zero effort.

 

[rushdoggie]

Having an assortment of flurfy dogs, if I find a mat thats not too close to the skin nor too tight I will use this.

 

 

I find that most of my Border Collies have had very water and dirt repellent coats that need minimal washing (which is a sensible coat for a working dog), but I did have one girlie who got smelly and also matted easily. I also like a dog who smells clean as they sleep on the furniture, so if they do get a little smelly I bathe them. My Papillons do tangle if they get too dirty, and they somehow get debris (seeds, grass, etc) in their coats, so a quick wash keeps them easier to groom. Its handy they fit in the sink.

[Maralynn]

I just cut mats out too.

 

I actually ended up trimming off all the fluff from Kenzi's back legs this summer. I was at the farm with no good source of outdoor running water and she came up caked in mud and burrs after one run in the woods

 

:blink:

 

There was no way I wanted to bring her through the house and wash all the junk off in the bathtub so I crated her until she dried and brushed her out with a dry shampoo. Everything looked great except that long hair was still matted and gross. So instead of trying to work it all out I just cut it all off - two minutes and it was gone.

 

I was actually surprised how quickly/well she cleaned up. I was getting ready to take her to the local groomer but was just waiting until they opened for the day.

[Sue R]

Burrs! Now those are another story - we have burdock here, and occasional cocklebur. When I'm not lucky, I get a dog that runs through a burdock plant with ripe burrs, and then it's a hand-working fest to remove the burrs, but only if the dog is dry because it just doesn't work when they are wet. Once the hands remove what they can, then I use a rake or comb, depending on which works better for what I have to remove.

 

We get these little seeds that are kind of football-shaped and covered with tiny bristles. They don't cause much trouble and tend mostly to get tangled behind the ears, especially Megan's ears. Maybe she's just that certain height or maybe it's because she has tipped ears and that makes the behind-the-ears fluff more "accessible" to the seeds. They are easy to remove if I get them out quickly but, if I don't, they seem to provide a "nucleus" for a little mat to develop.

 

In burdock season, I envy my friends with short-coated dogs! Dan's magnificent tail (his flag-like tail has hairs up to 8" long) is a burdock magnet although his coat texture does make it relatively easy to remove them. Celt's softer, slightly wavy coat and ostrich-plume-like tail can be a challenge in burdock removal, especially the butt hairs and tail.

 

Fortunately, burdocks are primarily a seasonal issue...

[bcnewe2]

In general, my (2) dogs get a bath once a week in the summer and especially Maggie after she comes home from her lesson at the ranch. I do this primarily to keep as much dirt as possible out of the house. But also because I'm kind of prissy that way.

 

I also vacuum out the truck and wipe down the interior every week. When the number of dead bugs on the front end exceeds my tolerance level, it goes to the car wash.

 

 

I only wish I had that prissy issue! I've been walking around for a few weeks picking up huge bunnies of hair, I've brushed and brushed and sweep and sweep...I think it's coming from under the beds or some other dogs! It's killing me!

 

Matts....I cut them out but oh so carefully. If I can't get them with the scissors I use a beard trimmer for the ones behind the ears. One time I was out of town and DH tried to cut one off Jazz. It was bad, he accidentally whacked off the skin too. He was mortified that he hurt his girl. That's when I got the beard trimmer.

 

Mick's hair is wavey and old age thick. OMDog the matts he comes up with on his feathers. He usually walks around with hardly any back leg hair, I'm always cutting it off trying to get all the matts off. He's a huge mess. If I bathe him he'd go roll in something right after. He likes his odoriferous self!

 

I also use show sheen (or something like it) to help keep the static down when brushing them. They smell good for days after. Just can't use it in the kitchen as it turns any slick surface into a ice skating rink quickly!

 

OH YEAH...I thought getting a smoothie would lessen the hair a tiny bit...NOT! Faye is shedding more then the long coats! The short hair sticks to everything, worse then the long hair!

[frisbeegirl]

Ok, So this morning after our 15 acre boarder patrol. Boy is it hot at 7am.

Keeva jumps in the pond. So I am thinking she is already wet and messy why not try to clean up these matts.

 

OMG (dont forget she is 11 months) she thought we were wrestling and playing. She kept climbing on my lab while I was sitting on the floor.

 

After getting her to sit still for a few minutes I was able to cut out the small white matts around the collar.

 

But, the soft flat matts behind the ears I am afraid to cut them by myself. I do not want to cut her.

 

As of this morning we have a flat matt befind each ear (maybe I will see about rushdoggie's suggestion)

but a clump behind her tramp stamp. (that is the white stripe across her a..).

 

Will need to call in backup for this job.

[Gideon's girl]

Many years ago, I used to...I'm finally ready to admit it...show a Saluki. There, I said it. Chalk was used to cover rust or grass stains on the legs.

 

As for mats, I'm a little OCD tactilely, so I can't stand to pet mats. I finger comb behind ears every couple days, and my dogs love having their butt ruff scratched vigorously, so I suppose you could say I finger comb that too. I only use a brush on them enough that they accept that it is a possibility.

[MommaLove]

Burrs! Now those are another story - we have burdock here, and occasional cocklebur. When I'm not lucky, I get a dog that runs through a burdock plant with ripe burrs, and then it's a hand-working fest to remove the burrs, but only if the dog is dry because it just doesn't work when they are wet. Once the hands remove what they can, then I use a rake or comb, depending on which works better for what I have to remove.

 

 

Did someone say "burrs"?

 

[songsparrow]

But, the soft flat matts behind the ears I am afraid to cut them by myself. I do not want to cut her.

 

If there are mats behind the ears, close to the skin, I start by cutting into the mat itself. Maybe cut half of the mat off, in that felt safe, or just the edge if it was really close to the skin. Anything that I was certain would not catch the skin. That would usually let me tease the mat apart sideways (so I'm not yanking on it) to open it up a bit, and some bits might come off. I'd continue to snip off little bits at a time as I felt safe, and continue to tease the mat apart. I never cut the skin using this technique (if you can call it that ). I only cut the skin once when I was overconfident and wacked off a big mat in one go - I thought I had more space above the skin than I did. I still feel awful about that!

 

I love that BC fur is so self cleaning and low maintenance! With my last BC, we got questions all the time about how did we keep his white parts so white. When I'd sheepishly answer that we didn't do anything at all, they just stayed that way, I don't think the other people believed me!

 

The biggest issue we had with my last dog were his dew claws. We didn't need to trim his regular claws, as they wore down naturally. But his dew claws were prone to getting caught, and they would break way back and bleed. This happened enough (with resulting trips to the vet) that I considered having them removed.

 

And Skye is shedding like crazy right now, too, I can't keep up. What type of brushes do people use during high-shed periods? Does anyone use the Furminator?

[beachdogz]

People tell me all the time that their breed doesn't smell, or their dog doesn't smell like dog... It's usually not true, all animals (and people for that matter) smell, you are just accustomed to it!

 

I used to think my house didn't smell like dog, and then one day I realized that with three dogs, it did and I was just used to the smell. This may belong under coffee break with vacuums and such, but I recently bought both an Airwick and a Glade dispenser - the kind that squirt. One for the house and one for the kennel. I placed the one in the house in the DR (between the kitchen and LR) which is centrally traveled. I LOVE them. You program them to whatever minute-interval you want, and they spray a burst of fragrance. The refills are about $5 and last about a month. I am willing to pay that so that when someone stops by unexpectedly, I don't have to worry about dog-smell.

[beachdogz]

And Skye is shedding like crazy right now, too, I can't keep up. What type of brushes do people use during high-shed periods? Does anyone use the Furminator?

 

Pin brush and LOTS of arm power.

[terrecar]

Pin brush and LOTS of arm power.

 

Don't forget the choke-hold!

 

And Skye is shedding like crazy right now, too, I can't keep up. What type of brushes do people use during high-shed periods? Does anyone use the Furminator?

 

My daughter has one of those things for her greyhounds and I used it on Hannah once. I could not believe the amounts of undercoat it pulled out. I think if you want to minimize hair balls blowing across the floor, that would be a good start.

 

ETA: Please read Julie's warning below about the Furminator.

Edited August 5, 2012 by terrecar

[Rudy99]

We had never taken our smooth-coat Rudy to a groomer until quite late in his life. He wasn't a swimmer but he never failed to immerse himself daily in a cool brook on walks. (running up and down ravines to retrieve is hard work!)

As he grew older, he began to pant (it was probably the start of his adrenal gland tumor that caused his death at 12 but visits to ourvet did not discover anything), we thought it was the heat, and we decided to take him to a groomer. When we picked him up, we had a different dog--a medium rough coated dog minus many bags of fur. (Seven sticks in my mind but I'm not sure it could really have been that much.) I never really thought he was a smooth coat but that's what his ABCA papers said. He looked cute but I never thought I'd lose him looking so different. Of course--I never thought I'd lose him at all. Sweet boy.

 

[juliepoudrier]

If you choose to use a Furminator be aware that a number of people here have noted that it seems to cut the coats on their dogs. So don't be surprised if that happens.

 

J.

[terrecar]

If you choose to use a Furminator be aware that a number of people here have noted that it seems to cut the coats on their dogs. So don't be surprised if that happens.

 

J.

 

Yikes, I had no idea. I think I'll stick with the pin brush.

 

ETA: Oh wait, you said cut the coats and I read it as cut the dog. Good grief I am 'cutting' myself off from posting now.

Edited August 5, 2012 by terrecar

[songsparrow]

Thanks for the warning! I googled it and it seems that it's easy to overgroom and irritate the skin with the Furminator, too. I'll stick with my comb or pin brush, too. A groomer I took Skye to once actually advised using just a comb, and not a pin brush - he said the pin brush irritates their skin. I guess I can see that I'm more likely to put pressure on the pin brush than I am with the comb.

 

Has anyone tried the Kong ZoomGroom? It has nubby rubber teeth; it says it feels like a massage to the dog. I might try that.

[Liz P]

I've used a product similar to the Kong Zoom Groom to lather the dogs during a bath. It does seem to help strip more dead fur, but then I lost it and never bothered to buy another. I think I tried it once on a dry dog, but it just seemed to irritate them. I think you really need to have shampoo on them for it to work and feel good.

[Maralynn]

I use a pin brush for general grooming. In the spring I'll use a shedding blade or a furminator once or twice a week to help deal with the excess shedding. Both pull out quite a bit of undercoat in a short amount of time. I haven't had any issue with either when used in this limited manner, but I wouldn't use them every day.

 

From what I've seen of the zoom groom, I'd think it would work best on short hair dogs.