Newbie questions..

[MadeToFly]

How often does one take their dog to the groomers?
And what is the minimum age for a dog to go to one?

Neither dog (7, and 6 months) has gone to a dog groomer. I usually just brush, bath, dry and then brush again and it generally seems to keep this managable.

The older dog has a shorter coat that is just fine with the current bath routine however the younger one has a long coat that I often have to carefully check to make sure there's no mats. And yet, no matter how much I brush her coat it always looks rough and all over the place. So I've been debating taking her to a groomer but am wondering if its worth it?

Also, how often do you bathe your dog? The older is terrified of baths and I've never been able to figure out why. I was always careful to introduce it slowly, gently and with tons of praise. Yet if you say the word "bath" he cowers and actually starts shaking like a leaf. So I often avoid bathing him much based on the stress level it causes.

The younger one, however, doesn't seem phased by it at all except for when I need to use the shower head. The noise unnerves her but otherwise she's fine with it so I try to bath her more often. Yet now with the winter here I'm paranoid of bathing them just incase I accidently miss some moisture in their coat - I don't want them sick!

 

[Dekka]

My dogs never go to a groomer. I can bathe and brush them myself.

IME a dog whos coat looks bad you need to look at the diet vs the coat care. A healthy coat comes from the inside out.

 

[AllieMackie]

What Dekka said, for one. The uality of food fed has a huge effect on overall coat health, amount of shed, etc.

Also, depends highly on the breed. Certain types of coats should be groomed regularily, others don't need to be groomed at all, aside from an occasional bath/brush (my dog falls into the latter category).

 

[MadeToFly]

Then speaking in general of Maddie's coat, is there something I could do to make it look better? We tried all sorts of food but we've found she's actually gotten sick on the higher quality foods like Blue Buffalo. So we vary between the new Authority food (no corn, woo!) and the new Iams for puppies (NOT the smart puppy stuff) as those seem to be her favourites and they don't make her sick or anything. Is there maybe something I could throw ontop of her food to help with her coat? Our other dog gets fish oil as he's prone to 'hot spots' (I think that's what it's called?).

There's also a place a few blocks over from me that offers do-it-yourself bathing. Depending on the size of your dog (I know mediums are $20) they offer a tub to use with all natural shampoos, towels, apron for you, as well as a blow drying station, and they clean up your mess afterwards. I think it's really neat.
Anyone's opinions on this? I've been contemplating taking Maddie!
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[Dekka]

I would avoid Iams.. I know LOADS of dogs who have horrid coats on Iams. (I have pics of what it did to Snip when I got some free samples and used it as training treats!) Try and see if you can find a better food that she will do well on. Its simpler and healthier in the long run that doing lots of supplementation. Though in the mean time you could toss in the oil.

 

[Dog Connections]

I have never taken my dog to the groomer. Like you I brush her a few times a week and clip her nails twice a month. As far as bath goes. May be 4 a year unless she rolls into something really smelly!!!!
Her coat is beautiful and shiny. She is going to be nine next month. I feed her a combination of home made food, kipples and raw. Never together but alternate.
I think a variety of foods is good. Of course it is all meat or fish base. So for example I would go raw food in the morning and homemade in the evening. Usually it is 3/4 homemade and raw and 1/4 kipples.

If your dog has dry skin, salmon or cod liver oil could help.

 

[D'tailsDogGrooming]

As a groomer I would agree that food quality is huge in the look of your dog's coat. Many people think groomers can wave a magic wand and make their dog's coat perfect, but I apparently didn't receive mine in my grooming kit lol! But frequency of grooming etc is dependent on the breed, coat type and length. Take a look at my blog for specific info and winter bathing is no big deal as long as you get them dry. You can bathe weekly if you use a high quality shampoo and conditioner. Feel free to PM me with any specific questions.

 

[MadeToFly]

Thanks guys!
D'tails - I might shoot you some questions sometime when I come up with a good list. Your blog is very interesting/helpful too!

I try to keep my pup on the new Authority kibble food as it's loaded with real meat (not by-products and no corn) and same with their wet food. Sometimes they do run out so we have to pick up the Iams food that is the best out of them all (I do realize that's not saying much!) Anything by Blue Buffalo seems to make her sick though. And homemade/raw is just too expensive for me at the moment.

 

[oakash]

Well, everyone else pretty much covered it. Though, we aren't feeding the most highest quality and my dog has super shiny and soft fur. She does get mats though and we have been having a problem with that lately.