Prepare your dog's coat for summer
Caring for a dog's coat is as important as walking, feeding or playing. Each of these activities improves the health, condition and well-being of our pets. Grooming, is not just dictated by aesthetics, giving the coat a beautiful and shiny look, but is an essential part of looking after the health and hygiene of both dog and owner. Thanks to regular grooming, our pets do not shed their hair as intensely and do not leave it in every nook and cranny of the house and on every surface, be it a sofa, armchair or carpet.
The coat performs several important functions, which include protection from the sun, moisture and cold, preventing abrasions and injuries during walks or play, and ensuring proper thermoregulation. An important role is played by the undercoat, which is a layer of older and denser hair underneath the fresh covering coat.
Dogs change their coat twice a year, in spring and autumn, to adjust their thermoregulation to the weather conditions. This process is called shedding and during this process, the hair can come out in whole clumps and if the dog's coat is not properly groomed, it causes knots that can result in serious consequences for our pet's health. Therefore, the frequency of your dog's combing is important.
Dog skin diseases
Dogs, like humans, can suffer from skin diseases. Some are caused by genetic factors, others by poor diet, parasites, bacteria or lack of proper hygiene. In any case, a sign of disease that should draw the owner's attention is excessive scratching, a dull and dry coat or hair loss.
If you notice such symptoms, contact your vet, who will be able to select the appropriate treatment after studying your dog's condition, medical history and previous diet. In addition to the treatments recommended by the vet, considerable relief will be provided by combing our pet to relieve itching, remove dead hair and help to distribute sebum, the dog's skin secretion that forms a natural protective barrier against bacteria and viruses. This is why caring for the coat is so important, especially in the summer when the temperature encourages the proliferation of microorganisms and parasites.
How do you look after your dog's coat properly?
In order for our pet to enjoy a healthy and beautiful coat, grooming should take place according to the type and length of the coat, as well as the season. The important thing is how and with what to groom your dog? Dogs with shorter and coarser coats can be combed less frequently, e.g. 1 - 2 times a week. Long-haired breeds, on the other hand, should ideally be combed daily, but if you don't have the time, then at least 3 - 4 times a week. The frequency should be higher in spring and autumn when shedding occurs. Apart from the frequency of combing, each coat requires a different tool to achieve the right effect.
Regardless of the type of coat, brushing should be associated with a pleasant ritual for our pet, so it is advisable to be calm, patient and gentle and regular when doing so. Brushing your dog should be done in a comfortable position and in one fixed place to develop the habit and reduce stress.
It is best to start with one area on the body and, once combed, move on to the next. If you come across any tangles, pause for a moment and try to gently comb them out with a comb. Care must be taken not to pull too hard, so as not to pull the dog's hair out. If the knot cannot be combed out, it can be trimmed with scissors. It is also worth checking the skin for ticks; if there are any, they can be removed with a special hooks, that will safely remove them.
Combing a short-haired dog
The least effort is required to groom a dog with a short coat, but this does not mean that it does not need attention. For the most part, combing 1 - 2 times a week is sufficient, but during the moulting period it is best to care for the coat even daily. This is because short-haired breeds have more pile hair, which is harder and can easily dig into carpet or upholstery and is more difficult to remove. It is therefore worth taking the time to comb and save it for cleaning. For effective grooming of short hair, a simple brush or a glove with tabs, which combines the pleasant with the useful, i.e. stroking and grooming, so that the dog has a pleasant association with grooming.
Combing long-haired dogs
The long-haired breeds are the most in need of frequent grooming, as their coat tends to shed quickly and can hold a lot of dirt. Contrary to what you might think, such dogs should be bathed just as often as others and this should not be overdone as it can cause skin problems by removing the natural protective layer. In dogs with particularly long hair, it is necessary to trim it so that it does not fall over the eyes and interfere with normal functioning.
To effectively comb a long-haired dog, a larger set of utensils is required. A soft brush for combing will be useful, the best will be self-cleaning brush, which makes it easier to pick up hair, and wide-toothed comb. Dto comb out tangles you will need carding, and sometimes scissors, to remove tangled hair. It's also worth getting a trimmer or hair clippers, with which the coat can easily be shortened, especially in summer, providing our pet with relief on hot days.
Combing the coat of a rough-haired dog
Rough-haired dogs have a greater layer of undercoat than others, making it necessary to trim the pile hair, which exposes the fresh layer. A furminator and a good brush with which to comb out the dense undercoat are useful for this. The dead pile hair is quite easy to pull off, so the brushing glove will be ideal for this.
All dogs, despite being combed, will lose some hair on the carpet, sofa, armchair or clothes. To make it easier to keep your home clean, it is worth getting a special brush for removing hair from fabric and upholstery surfaces.
Regular brushing and bathing your dog
Dog owners should remember that, in addition to brushing, a dog's coat also requires bathing. This is one of the basic grooming procedures that should be carried out regardless of what type of coat our pet has. Bathing your dog should be done about once every three months and with the right shampoo.
Washing too often, or using the wrong shampoo, can cause an allergic reaction that makes the coat look worse. For this reason, regular brushing of your dog, following the above rules, is the main way to ensure the beautiful appearance and health of our friend.
