Helps puppies get used to grooming as they get older
Puppies should be groomed at around 12 weeks, or one week after their second vaccination, so they can be introduced to the sounds and smells in the salon, as well as being bathed, brushed, dried, having their nails clipped, ears cleaned and clipped/trimmed. A bath and brush with an eye trim is usually recommended for their first groom as introducing the clippers on their first visit can be stressful for some puppies.
Brushing them at home not only helps you bond with your puppy, but it also helps reduce matting in breeds such as Shih Tzus, Bichons and Cockapoos. Brushing also helps remove any shedding hair, in breeds such as Huskys, Akitas and German Shepards. Also, using our high volocity dryers means we are able to remove the majority of the dead, shedding hair from your dog.
Introducing dogs to the salon slowly can be helpful
By bringing your dog in for a groom every 6-12 weeks, it gets them into a routine and causes them less stress when they do come in, even if it is only for a bath, brush and blow dry instead of a full groom.
Bringing nervous dogs into the salon can be very stressful for them and the best way to help them become used to coming into a grooming salon is to introduce things to them gradually. Starting with just a bath and blow dry then over the course of a few weeks or months, depending on the dog and what they're comfortable with, slowly work up to a full groom.
This helps the dog become used to the sounds and smells inside the salon, and used to the sensation of the dryers and clippers, much like when grooming puppies. Dogs can become stressed and sometimes nip or bite if they are nervous or stressed.
Regular grooming helps prevent matting in your dogs
If a dogs coat is not well maintained and becomes matted, there is a chance they would have to be clipped quite short. This is because brushing out matts can be extremely painful for your dog and can cause the skin underneath to because sore, brush rash/brush burn. Dogs that have a longer coat need to be groomed at least every 6-8 weeks to ensure the coat is clean and free from knots.
Some breeds; Shih Tzus, Bichons, Lhasa Apsos, sometimes have hair that grows inside their ears which needs to be removed. This is done by pulling the hair out by hand. If the hair isn't removed it can grow further into the ear canal and cause problems such as ear infections and matting in the ear canal.
Cleaning your dogs ears regularly is also importantRemoving the dirt from inside them helps reduce the chances of infection or the ears smelling. Breeds such as Springer Spaniels and Cocker Spaniels, with low hanging ears that drag along the ground and because their ear canals are covered, warm, moist air can get trapped inside, they need to be cleaned more frequently, around once a week.
Nail clipping is important to keep on top of
Some larger breeds can ware their nails down themselves and pavement walking can help keep your dogs nails filed down. However, when a dogs nails grow too long it can become extremely uncomfortable for your dog to walk. There is also a chance of the nails curling and growing into your dogs pad. Nail clipping comes with every full groom. However, nails can only be cut so short, as each nail has a vein inside of it, the quick, and if this is caught it can hurt your dog. We usually recommended not clipping your dogs nails at home just incase this happens.
To look out for any possible health issues
While your dog is being groomed, we are also able to give them a basic health check, making sure there is no redness in ears, no weaping eyes, any skin irritations or even hot spots and ticks. Also, it is important to always inform your groomer if your dog has any medical conditions or skin irritations, this is so the correct shampoo can be used on dogs with sensative skin, or dogs with arthritus are able to sit down throughout their groom.