Grooming tips?

[zoomer]

Does anyone have any grooming tips to share? Would you be willing to write down a list of the stuff you use? What do you do when you're grooming your dog? Are there any special supplies' you use? Are there any special things you do when you groom your dog that most/some people don't do? Do you have any methods when clipping your dogs' toenails? Do you trim your dogs fur and whiskers? Where do you trim fur? What do you use to clean their ears? What kind of soap do you use when giving your dog a bath? Is it a special or expensive kind of soap? Do you use conditioner on your dog? Is it a special dog conditionor? For long-haired dogs do you give them a full hair cut? Do you ever paint your dog's nails? Do you brush your dogs teeth?

The list of stuff I use:
-Slicker Brush
-Soft Bristle Brush
-Zoom Groom
-Oatmeal Dog Shampoo
-Sensitive Scalp Conditionor
-Baby Oil
-Cotton Ball
-Toliet Paper
-Scissors
-Toenail Clippers
-Pink Nail Polish (only for Georgia )
-Dog Tooth Brush
-Dog Tooth Paste

I guess I groom my dogs all the same way, but I'll use Georgia as an example. When I groom Georgia, I use a Zoom Groom, and flick it down her fur to losen up any hair, then I use a soft slicker brush to get down to the undercoat and remove how down there, and to remove all the lose hair, I use a soft bristle brush. When clipping her toenails I remove any nail polish I might've put on her nails and take her paw in my hand, and clip right in front of the pink. She behaves very well. I do trim her fur and whiskers. I trim her whiskers until they aren't visible. I trim the fur around her pads, the fur that stick out on the back of her legs. the fur in between her pads, the fur along side her ears, in her ears, and the tip of her tail so the fur doesn't stick out. I use baby oil on a cotton ball or a peice of toliet paper to clean her ears. When giving her a bath I use Oatmeal Dog Shampoo but sometimes I'll use flea shampoo from the veteranarian. I'll use a soft conditionor made for sensitive scalps on the fur on her back, I don't rub it in to her skin, I just use it on the top of her fur to make her soft. I brush her teeth with a special dog tooth brush and dog tooth paste. After all of that is done, I paint only Georgia's toenails pink.

[Lori Jordan]

I'd keep doing what your doing,I usually cut Lacy Rump lol the hair get so long i trim it sometimes,Maggy too it gets overwhelming,And as too Molly i take her to a Groomers once a month.She is too hard to Bathe and she gets a cute little Bandana everytime,The girls down there all love her.More so in the winter she goes only because the drool soaks her paws and chest no matter how much you wipe her,The fur is still hard.

[buttercup132]

I trim her whiskers until they aren't visible

Dont dogs need their whiskers..
I also dont suggest using flea shampoo unless they actually have fleas. When I was working at Pet Valu it said on the back of ALL the bottles of flea shampoo no to use unless they have fleas. And it dosent prevent against them so I dont know why you would use it.

If you brush up it loosens the fur better, then rbush down. I also recomend a dog curry comb (its actually a brush though not a comb) especially since you hgave short haired dogs it works really well on removing hairs and dead skin.

[lute]

dogs don't "need" their whiskers. cats do.

i don't have time right now to list everything i use. i will later.

[binka_nugget]

Brushes I use:

matbreaker
slicker brush
undercoat rake
pin brush

I start off with the slicker brush, then the matbreaker (for Kai) or the undercoat rake (for Kaedyn). Kai's coat is really thick so I find the matbreaker does a better job of getting out the undercoat. Kaedyn's coat is much thinner so the undercoat rake works fine on him. After that, I finish them off with a pin brush.

I don't use any special supplies.. but I've considered buying shampoo by the gallon and getting a grooming table to make things easier on me.

I trim Kai and Kae's whiskers just cause I like the neater look [they do absolutely fine without whiskers. I know groomers who trim whiskers.. Shelteez2 is one of them. My dogs are doing just fine balancing without them]. I trim fur occasionally.. it's usually from their ear, paws or by their bum... because it gets kinda messy. I never do more than a trim though. A Sheltie without a long coat just doesn't look right. Their ears very rarely need cleaning but when they do, I have this liquid for cleaning ears.

Right now I use Mane N Tail shampoo and conditioner on them.. mainly because I use it on myself so I never have to worry about running out of shampoo for them. I'm about to place an order on PetEdge for 5 gallons of either BioGroom or Top Performance. I'll also be ordering creme rinse for them.

As for teeth, I haven't brushed them in years. They get raw meaty bones daily so it's one less thing I have to worry about.

[dab_20]

For Molli I use a slicker brush and comb. For Sam I use a slicker brush and a soft bristle brush.

When I groom Molli I use the slicker brush to get small mats out and I go over her fur a couple times. Then I use the small comb to get her paws and legs. Then I use a wipe for dogs, kinda like baby wipes, and wipe her tear stains to get the gunk off. I also wipe her mouth because sometimes she's got food and bits of sticks in her fur from chewing them outside. I use doggy tooth paste and tooth brush to brush her teeth. When I give her baths I groom her with the slicker brush and use tearless puppy shampoo. (not sure what brand...)

When Sam has a cocker cut (medium length feathering on ears, legs, tummy) I use the slicker brush on the longer parts of his fur. Then on his back, I lightly go over with a slicker brush and use a soft bristle brush afterwords. Then I take a doggy wipe and wipe the gunk from his eyes off. Same thing with baths as Molli. I haven't started brushing his teeth on a regular basis yet... but I will soon. When Sam gets a haircut, the groomer has to cut his eye lashes a little because they are like 4 inches long! His long eye lashes make his eyes really pretty, though.

I don't cut my dogs fur... we take them to a groomer. They get their whiskers trimmed.

[Vette]

Wow.. i use a very limited supply of stuff.

the only stuff i use is ---

-Slicker Brush
-Premium dog shampoo
-Scissors
-Dog nail clippers
-Warm water
-Sink or tub to put him into
-Dirty shirt(to dry him off with) LOL
-Windmer hairdryer(even on hot days i still blowdry him)

-Time

ive been told i do things backwords.. but its always have i groomed my dog. i first trim his nails. then i brush him,, and if i feel hes in need of haircut he gets a quick furcut.. and then he gets the bath.. then i dry him off the best i can with a shirt or towl,, and quickly brush him while hes still wet and then blow dry and brush at the sametime. then i finish up on his furcut.

[wolfsoul]

For Visa I bathe her in Nature's Specialties Lavenderm shampoo, and I use Nature's Specialties Plum Silky on her head and face. Then I blowdry her. Then I clip the ends off of her nails, trim her pads and feet, and take the tips off of her hocks and pasterns and brush them outwards. Thgen she's all done.

If she's shedding, I will do all of that as well as brush her with a slicker brush and poodle comb, take a matbreaker though her (it removes the undercoat) and card her with a #40 clipper blade. I never brush her unless she's sheding as she doesn't need it.

[Tollers-n-Dobes]

What do you do when you're grooming your dog? Are there any special supplies' you use?

Here's a list of everything I use on Tango and what I do with each:

- Thinning shears (for the ears & paws)
- Regular scissors (for paws also, just for tidying up a bit around the edges and evening out the bottom...using a clipper would be easier, but I don't have one)
- Slicker brush (only during the winter, she barely has an undercoat in the summer)
- Pin brush (I only use it on her tail, it does nothing for the rest of her body since her coat is so thin)
- Metal combination comb (wide toothed on one end, narrow on the other...used on her entire body)
- Undercoat rake (used during 'shedding season' to get rid of her winter coat faster, it cuts my time way back and is easier on the skin than the slicker)
- Zoom Groom (For the bath, it's wonderful at lathering up the shampoo, and Tango loves it)
- Spray bottle (with water inside, plus a bit of dog conditioner. Simply for when her static is acting up, making it hard to brush her properly)
- Shampoo & conditioner (I use all different things, right now I'm using Fresh & Clean, but Lambert Kay but I like to try all different brands so when i go into a pet specialty store or a dog show I'll usually pick up something else)

I'm not sure whether I'm missing anything or not, but I *think* that's all. I've also used a stripper on her and a shedding blade but I don't use those often, only when she's shedding badly. I don't brush my dogs' teeth anymore, they don't need it. If there is a bit of plaque, I do have a dental pick that I scrape it off with.

On Winston & Tia I use a hound glove (I think thats what its called anyway) and on Morgan I use the same comb I use on Tango, a shedding blade and the slicker brush.
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Are there any special things you do when you groom your dog that most/some people don't do?
I have absolutely no idea, to be honest. I've never watched anyone else groom their dog before..

Do you have any methods when clipping your dogs' toenails?
I don't do their nails myself, a friend uses her dremel on them (I don't have one of my won, but if I did, I'd do them myself). When they get their nails done they lay flat on their side on her grooming table.

Do you trim your dogs fur and whiskers? Where do you trim fur?
I don't trim whiskers, I like whiskers for some reason. I trimmed Tango's once and thought she look weird. On Tango, I trim her leg feathers, her paws, her ears, her chest, her tail (only a bit, just to keep it looking good) and I think thats all. On Morgan, I trim her paws and her longer hairs on her back legs. Tia & Winston require no trimming at all.

What do you use to clean their ears?
Tango's ears never, ever get dirty so she rarely has them cleaned (I check all the time, she never needs it though). I've tried cleaning them a couple times just to see if maybe they were dirty and I just wasn't seeing it but they weren't. I use a cotton ball & some rubbing alcohol...cleans them well. I also use q-tips if they're really dirty, which they rarely are. We have a bottle of cleaning solution from the vet but it doesn't work as well.

What kind of soap do you use when giving your dog a bath? Is it a special or expensive kind of soap?
I'm assuming you mean shampoo (not soap). Right now I'm using Lambert Kay Fresh & Clean Oatmeal and Baking Soda shampoo but as I said already, I'm always trying new stuff. Fresh & Clean is the only shampoo available at Petsmart that I actually like but when I go to pet specialty stores or dog shows I'll pick something else up usually. Not anything expensive in my opinion, but maybe to some it would be.

Do you use conditioner on your dog? Is it a special dog conditioner?
Always. Helps cut back static for Tango and makes them nice and soft. It is dog conditioner, but I'm not sure if its anything special. As with shampoo, I'm always getting different brands.

For long-haired dogs do you give them a full hair cut?
I just trim Tango a bit.

Do you ever paint your dog's nails?
No, never.

Do you brush your dogs teeth?
Not any more. I used to, but they get raw bones once a week (sometimes twcice) and they get/keep their teeth really clean. If there is plaque, I use a dental pick to get it off. Works much better than brushing them.

[DrKym]

I used to groom proffessionally(many many many yrs ago 1979) how awful is this? I do squat the cocker goes once a week for a brush and ear check and full deal every 4 weeks(hangs head in shame) and the dobe went once to get a bath and nail trim. Kitties go once a month for new nail covers