Intro and Question

[Aurie]

Hi I am new to the forum. I am a brand new RN and we just moved our family to NE Louisiana from Ohio. Talk about culture shock

I have 3 human kids and 3 four legs BeagleX = Maggie, CollieX = Sara, and SiameseX = Gandolf.

Maggie and my youngest human child:
http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2005-...4_edited_1.JPG

Sara with same child. Sara is about 10/12 weeks old here:
http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2005-...ramarcysit.JPG

Gandolf as a kitten. His markings aren't evident yet:
http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2005-...5/FH000026.JPG

Here is my question: Sara is the first long haired dog I have ever owned. We had mutts that were mostly hound or terriors of some sort as a child. As an adult, I had GSDs until they passed and then we got Maggie. I have never dealt with the long hair issue and not sure where to start.

Sara is getting close to 4 months old now. She still has quite a bit of baby fuzz. I am bathing her about once every 10 days. I have never bathed my other dogs as much cause they didn't seem to get as dirty or hold as much dirt. And well Sara has white feet, dirt shows up quick. I just don't want to dry out her skin or fur.

Also, what kind of brushes will I need? I don't remember anyone brushing our dogs when I was a kid. I brushed our shepherds weekly with a shedding blade.

Also what kind of grooming schedule do you use?

TIA

[lute]

HI TIA! WELCOME TO PT! your pets are lovely!

a shedding blade won't do any good on a long haired dog. i suggest making a trip to your local petstore to buy these products.

a slicker brush-
link here

a shedding comb-
link here

you can also go here . this explains what brushes you'll need and what they do.


i only bathe my dogs about 1-2 times a month. i have a siberian husky with a very white coat. she gets dirty easily. maybe buy some baby wipes or a damp rag to try and get the dirt off instead of always jumping to the tub. it can be hard on the puppy's skin and coat.

[Aurie]

Thanks! I had gotten a slicker brush already. I just didn't know if it was too much for now or if it would be enough for later when her coat is much thicker. I will continue on with it and get a shedding comb. I know I don't need that now, but I can already tell where she is going to have her fur mat up.

Thank you for the additional link as well!!!

Finally I go by Aurie, online. TIA = Thanks In Advance

So Thanks for the welcome and the info! I really appreciate it!

[lute]

oh sorry, Aurie.

you'll be using these grooming tools the dog's whole life so you want to brush him out now and get him use to being handled and brushed.

[zoomer]

Hi, Welcome to PT! I have 3 dogs, Alaska, Georgia, and Buddy. My name is Makayla. I would suggest brushes the 2 Lexie suggested.

[mustlovedogs]

Hello! Welcome to Pet Talk! I hope you have a great time here. I have two dogs, Ellie Mae and Rascal. Enjoy your time here!

[Sevaede]

Welcome!

Your dogs and kitty are beautiful! I just wanted to pop in, say hello, and mention that I'm from Shreveport.

I do not know as much about grooming as I do about other things. I'd go with what Lexie/lute suggested.

Have fun!,
Angelique

[Aurie]

Thank you all for the nice welcome. I am taking Sara to her first vet appointment to get her on heartworm prevention/rabies vac. I do the rest of my own vacs and deworming. So, she is getting settled in real good. I will talk to the groomers there. I have a feeling I may need a bit a help with her coat from time to time.

I am going to be using Sara as a therapy dog. I just finished my nursing degree and have been offered a job in a nursing home. I LOVE working in that kind of environment. The nursing home I worked at in Ohio had a resident Golden Retriever. The residents responded so well to him. Of course it wasn't always positive. But Riley ALWAYS gave people something to talk about.

So, I want to take that experince to where I will be working. Sara is extremely smart. I have taken her into a nursing home twice. She has done fantastic each time. She never once flinched at the chairs or the old people. She was a bit nervous around oxygen machines and the clanging noises of the kitchen. But that was on the first visit. Her second, she barely noticed those noises. I don't stay long, because I don't want to wear her out, but I think those were good first exposures!

Angelique, how do you deal with the bugs down here? I thought it would be the heat that would get to me. But I just am not dealing well with the bugs. My daughter has gotten caught in fire ant hills, twice. There are huge roaches, mosquitos, and flies... GAH flies everywhere!

I believe part of the fly problem of where I am at is probably because of the dog problem

It seems like nearly everyone in this neighborhood has at least two dogs. There are 6 pit bulls on this one block, 3 of which get loose a good deal of the time. The other 3 are chained to trees in the back of their yards. MOST all the dogs are chained in the backyard, run loose or are in kennels in the back of the yards. There are only 4 dogs that are kept inside as their primary residence, our two, one across the street and one two houses down. You can literally smell dog feces when you go into our back yard.....

I have seen more dogs running loose either because they got loose or were dumped in this one area over 3 weeks then I have seen in my entire life. I have seen 8 dogs that I would guess with 90% certainty as being abandoned. They were skinning, no collar, running as if looking for something...

Well that went a total different direction then where I started. I am just having a hard time coping here It really seems to be so much different then where I am from. I am trying. Perhaps if I can meet some other responsible doggie people down here, I might start feeling more like I am at home.

I did contact the Ouachita Valley Dog Training Club. I am waiting on them to respond. I want to get Sara into some puppy classes and some help with an issue I am having with Maggie.

Well, I better sign off or I could go on and on with another tangent about Maggie

Thanks again for the welcome and thanks too if you read through that whole post :lol

[Rachel]

As she grows older, she may develop both an outer coat and under coat. The under coat will be what can get matted. The comb with the rotating teeth is wonderful, but you will want to get one with the teeth spaced maybe a bit wider apart as she matures. Same with a regular comb (where the teeth don't rotate.). A dematting tool is also handy to have on hand.

Sometimes you can get some combs at the dollar store. Good way to try out different ones until you see what works best.

I would be a bit concerned that you may be bathing her too much. How about just giving her a *foot bath* when those feet get dirty. I use a plastic dish pan and take one foot at a time and swish it around it water with just a tad of soap in it. Also as she matures be careful that she doesn't have any mats in the undercoat before you bath her. Those mats can tighten up and pull on the skin. It is hard to predict just what type of a coat she will have even with being long haired. You will just have to wait and see and try different techniques. Do get her used to being groomed now while she is a puppy and be gentle so she doesn't dread it.

[KYS]

Welcome to Pet talk.

Your pictures are precious.

[GreyhoundGirl]

Hi, You'll enjoy PT, it's really great.

i have a problem, though... i can't figure out how to start threads, can anyone help me, i thought there was a button, but i can't find it anymore...