Why should you groom your pet?

Grooming is an important part of pet health and hygiene! How often you take your pet to the groomer is dependent on a few different factors, including your pet’s species, breed, size, and type of fur. Grooming has many health benefits for your pet, which vary between animals and breeds.

Some grooming rituals you can do at home, while others need professional treatment. The most common advice is that if you aren’t sure what you’re doing, take your pet to the pros! If you have years of experience, however, there are grooming treatments for your pets that you can tackle in the comfort of your own home. 

Cats 

While cats are self-grooming animals, they still need a little extra TLC. Luckily, grooming your cat can be done at home! If you decide to groom your cat on your own, however, make sure you’re extremely careful and do your research beforehand to ensure your cat’s safety. 

It’s recommended that long-haired cats are groomed once every day, while short-haired cats are groomed once every 2-3 days. 

Brushing your cat comes with many health benefits, including: detangling, keeping away mats, and promoting a healthier coat. 

Dogs 

Dogs, unlike cats, are not quite as self-sufficient in the area of self-grooming. They do, to an extent, clean themselves, but many dogs (especially with undercoats) need a little more attention when it comes to grooming. 

Short-Haired Dogs

Short-haired dogs need less frequent bathing, and generally only need the occasional bath. For short-haired dogs that shed a lot, once a month is a great place to start. 

If you have a short-haired dog that sheds a lot, you can take them to the groomer to get a brushing treatment. This involves a “low-shed” service, meaning the groomer will give your dog a basic deshedding brush treatment. Fortunately, this is easy to do at home: all you need is a great deshedding brush or tool. Regularly brushing your dog is very healthy, as it stimulates growth in the hair follicles and reduces dry skin. 

For those dogs that do shed a lot, you’ll be needing a brush to pick up after all the fur they’ve left around the house! Lilly Brush Co. has brushes designed specially for these specific needs; the best tools for short-haired pets are the Mini Pet Hair Detailer and the Mighty Pet Hair Detailer. 

Be very careful not to bathe your dog too frequently; too much bath time will dry out your pup’s skin and leave them itching and shedding. A good set schedule for bathing is once a month, or whenever they start to stink! 

Dogs with Undercoats 

Undercoats are a protective measure your dog’s fur takes against its environment. Their long overcoat protects them from sun, parasites, dirt, and moisture, while the undercoat keeps them warm during the winter. During the hot summer months, the undercoat sheds because it isn’t necessary for their protection at that time of year. 

Be cautious while grooming dogs with undercoats! It’s tempting to shave or de-shed their undercoat yourself, but dogs need to undergo the natural process on their own– otherwise, you’re putting your dog at risk for developing heatstroke and sunburn. 

Dogs with undercoats need to be groomed about four times a year. For this, you can either take them to a professional who will know the limits of shedding undercoats, or you can carefully groom away the dead layers of fur with a brush like the FURminator. 

Long-Haired Dogs

Long-haired dogs are the most prone to developing mats. While you may have the urge to cut them out yourself, you should take your dog to a professional to do so. Mats lie dangerously close to the skin, and if you’re not careful, you could end up hurting your dog. For dealing with mats, professionals are the best way to go. 

The tufts of fur sticking out in various places do require frequent trimming, but that aside, long-haired dogs generally need the same general grooming as the dog types listed above: monthly bathing, occasional grooming, and careful attention.

Alexa Highsmith

Writing Specialist at Lilly Brush Co.

The post How Often Should You Take Your Pet to the Groomer? appeared first on Lilly Brush.

Cleaning their ears

Keeping your dog’s ears clean is vital for their health and comfort. The frequency that their ears need to be cleaned varies by breed. Some dogs have floppy ears which naturally help protect the insides from dirt and other bacterias, while others have erect ears that easily become infiltrated with dirt and grime. The hairier your dog’s ears are, the more common it is for bacteria to build up and cause infections. Some dogs love getting their ears cleaned, but many do not. Be sure to have treats nearby to encourage your dog to let you groom them properly. Here’s how it’s done.

What you need:

• Veterinarian recommended Ear Cleaner
• Cotton balls or pads
• Tweezers
• Towel
• Treats

What to do:

• Allow your dog to inspect the bottle of ear cleaner you are using
  • Dogs are often more comfortable with something once they’ve smelled it
• Gently pull their ear out and away from their head, allowing access to their ear canal
• Fill their ear canal with the ear cleaner, and gently massage the base of the ear for about 20 seconds
• At this point your dog will likely want to shake it’s head, pat the ear dry with a towel to reduce the mess
• If your dog has exceptionally hairy ears, use tweezers to pluck away the excess hair that can causes blockages within their ear canal
  • How to here
• Wrap a cotton pad around your index finger and gently wipe the inside of their ear clean
  • Do not reach further than you can see, this can harm the dog’s canal
  • Only use a cotton swab if necessary 
• Give them a treat and repeat on the other ear!

Pugs

Pugs are a very unique breed due to the fact that their facial folds need to be cleaned regularly. As Pugs were a creation of generations worth of dog breeding, they do not have a natural way to clean these wrinkles themselves. Here’s an easy guide to keeping those wrinkles clean and infection free. 

What you need:

• Soft cloth/Unscented baby wipes
• Coconut Oil or Unscented Lotion
• Small Training Treats
• Dry cloth

What to do:

• Gently peel apart your pug’s wrinkles and wipe them clean
• Be very cautious around the eyes and nose
  • This is the purpose of unscented wipes
• Be sure to dry the fold thoroughly to avoid bacteria growth
• Apply Coconut oil, an unscented lotion such as Aquaphor to any dry, cracked, or irritated parts of their skin
• Praise with treats and repeat every few weeks!

We hope this was helpful and informative to help you keep your dogs clean and infection free!

Sincerely,

The Lilly Brush Team

Elsie Hamilton

old.lillybrush.com

The post How to Clean Your Dog’s Ears (and Your Pug’s Face!) appeared first on Lilly Brush.