[TikisMom]

I am looking for hints on overall grooming. From brushing (type of brush, wet or dry, type of conditioner) to bathing, blowdrying, ears and tearstains. What is your routine and what products do you prefer?

 

[Luvmypupster]

I bathe Bentley every 7-10 days and of course my shampoo and conditioner of choice is PetSilk. I also follow up with Liquid Silk , you use just a few drops and work it thru their hair before or after blow drying and I use Johnson and Johnsons No More Tangles. I use my own personal blow dryer. I clip his nails, pluck the hair out of his ears and about 1-2 times a month I treat him for tear stains. Hate to admit this but I'm not the best at daily brushing. I tend to skip days. I have an assortment of brushes I use and the ones I tend to use the most are people brushes sold in beauty supply store I have a few that wiork great, I also at times will use a slicker brush. Last but not least and I hate doing this is when I bathe him I sometimes have to empty his anal gland if he has been doing the butt scootin thing. Whats your routine?

 

[TikisMom]

I also give Tiki a bath about every 7 - 10 days. I am currently using Baby Magic, foaming baby shampoo..... I like it because it is easy to apply and I don't put to much on. For conditioner I use my products. I blow him dry with my dryer, he seems to like it and comes running when I do my own hair. I have to admit I don't clip his nails as often as I should because he fights it every time. His back ones are usualy fine as we walk outside 2 - 3 times a day, but the front should be done more often. I use scissors to clip him when he needs it, every 4 to 6 weeks. I keep the hair around his eyes fairly short (a visor cut?) and his body as long as I can. I dont cut his tail or legs at all. His feet need to be trimmed about every 2 weeks. I try to wash his face as needed, but once again he fights me on this so it doesn't happen as often as it should. I use a brush that is two sided, one side has brustles and the other pins, I also us a slicker brush. I try to brush him every other day. His fur is quite puffy, I may be drying it out because the fur closer to the skin is quite silky. I may give those silk products a try.

I haven't had to do the glands yet, I hope I never have to

 

[Luvmypupster]

Hope you don't have to because it yucky. I notced that in addition to him scooting he had a smell a day or so after baths. Had to have the vet show me how. Creepy!

 

[kit001]

Okay people, you have mentioned two things, I know nothing about....#! What is a slicker brush? #2 Emptying the anal gland?Huhhhhhhhhhhhhhh?????? lol

 

[TikisMom]

I'll answer the one on the slicker brush.....

The Soft brush is excellent for general grooming . It helps to remove mats and tangles more gently and also removes any loose hair. It usually has a wooden handle with a flat rectangular head and tiny, bent pins for brushing. Tiki prefers I use this when removing mats working from the end of the hair gently toward the skin. Does that make sence?

Tiki's Mom

 

[Luvmypupster]

Ewwwwwww... so I have to answer the second one? Ok , I blushing but here goes. Dogs have an anal gland, it usually empties or drains when they poop. Larger dog don't tend to have problems with this, it's usually the toy breeds that are prone to having problems. If you notice an odor south of the border or them scooting around on their bottoms, chances are that they may need to have some help in draining that gland. Most groomers do this when they a bathing your dog. I groom Bentley myself and I didn't want to have to run to the vet everytime he started scooting. It can become a big problem like infection or such. I had a vet show me how and Yikes! it was gross. You can go to Mar Vista Animal Medical Center at www.marvistavet.com and see see how to do it. Word of caution do this only under running water before you shampoo and DO NOT bend over to take a peek. It shoots out like a squished grape and it is foul! Can't believe THAT came out of my baby.

 

[kit001]

YUCK..can't say anything more

 

[Bellezza1212]

OMG! What? You're suppose to empty their anal gland? WOW! I can't even begin to imagine how to do this without my poor little Angel squealing. EEK!

Well, I bathe Angel as often as needed. I know that it's suppose to be once a week or so but if I don't like how she looks then she will get bathed. I shampoo her with puppy shampoo & conditioner her with my personal conditioner- thermasilk. Then I wrap her up in a couple towels for a little while. I pop her head out from the towels & start blow drying her from there. Before I blow dry I put an oil on her hair (like those that they sell at the beauty salon to make your hair shinier when you blow dry) and then I proceed to blow drying. I cut (very carefully) the hair around her eyes because she tears a lot. The hair gets in her eyes & she'll spend all day trying to get it out. I clip her nails whenever I see that there is a big distance between the quick & the ends of the nails. I also cut the hair on her paws about twice a month. I also cut the hair on her behind because stuff gets stuck on it if I don't. What else... oh yeah- I brush her teeth whenever I get a free moment. About every other day. I think that's about it... I do brush her hair with those metal brushes that help get the knots out. Okay.. that's about it...

 

[joe]

Originally posted by Luvmypupster@Aug 21 2003, 10:40 PM
them scooting around on their bottoms

Sampson does this from time to time, i had assumed he was scratching his butt

 

[Luvmypupster]

You don't have too, I'm sure some don't need it. Some have problems with it and a tip that they may need it is dragging their bottoms( or as my granddaughter would say "Bentley's wiping his butt" or an odor. The groomer or the vet can do the deed, or you can do it and save the money. It's creepy

. I don't want to talk about it anymore :lol: I just got done eating!