Anus hygiene

Shaving the area  around the anus is essential as feces can stuck to the fur when he goes potty and is difficult to clean.

Trimming your dogs' nails short

When your dog walks on the uncarpeted areas and produces a  " click click " sound ,

this show that it is the time to trim his nails .

By ingoring  their overgrown nails not only will cause broken nails which is very painful to them and will also bleed profusely.

Therefore trimming your dog’s nails short will make him more 
comfortable and at the same time   reduce  those scratches in your furnitures and wood floor.

Nails before trimmed

Nails after trimmed and filed

The pink area is the quick which is a vein that runs into the nail.

(older dogs tend to have longer quicks)

dewclaw nail is too long

Remedy when  accidentally cut  the quick and start to bleed:

I always advise owners who have  trimmed their dog's nail too short and it begins to bleed, 

by just applying some pressure and  cornstarch or styptic powder  to the tip of the nail, it will help to stop the bleeding.

Shedding

Dogs shed  their hair periodically . Shedding is a natural loss of loose old or damaged hairs of dog.

Hair loss is different from shedding. When a dog sheds, a new hair will grow,   
else, when a dog suffers from hair loss due to skin problem or allergies, no new hair grows or it grows very slowly

Undercoat hair removed from golden retriever

Normally for dogs which are double-coated like Huskies, border collie result in greater shedding compare to other breeds.

Poddle, yorkshire terrier, maltese etc shed very little as they have hair shafts with longer life span.

Shedding is unavoidable , in order to reduce the amount of loose hair all over your house, Grooming and regular brushing is  definitely essential. 

Brushing not only will help to  remove dead hairs from your dog , it will  also prevent those dead hairs from forming mats  that can eventually cause  skin problem. 

Owner has to take note that excessive shedding is abnormal. This could be due to skin problem , allergies or other health issues. Look up for their diet and check on their signs of illness.

                                               HAPPY   BRUSHING

Ears cleaning to avoid infection.

 Wax build up and excessive of inner hair are especially causes to ear problems.

Ear wax and debris can easily build up at external canal  if lacking of cleaning (see picture 1).

Too much inner hair will prevent adequate fresh air flow to the canal, hence will create a damp warm environment for the bacterias to grow. (see picture 2).

The combination of overgrowth hair which cause lack of ventilation air and wax accumulation is known as a condition of ear canker (serious infection). 

If you notice there is redness, foul smell , dark-coloured discharge from the ears, your dog mostly likely is affected with this condition.

picture 1 - wax build up

picture 2 - overgrowth of hair

Regular cleaning every 1 to 2 weeks is important for dogs .(Over cleaning can also cause irritation)

 Clean them with cotton ball damped with ear cleaner. 

Avoid using ear cleaners that contain alcohol which will cause irritation. 

See picture 3 for clean ear

picture 3 - ear being cleaned  at grooming session

Every week , take some time to to examine your dog’s ears for signs of irritation, infection, 

parasites.

The importance of trimming dog's paw

Reasons for trimming a dog’s paws:-

• Firstly, dirt, soil and various types of debris will trap in the fur , if not removed, it will cause irritation and hurt the dog's feet as he walks.

The hair at the paw before trimmed

Secondly, the long paw hair will cause them to slip on surface such as tile, wood. By keeping the paws  clean of hair, will give them better traction.

Clean paw - neater and tidier

Furthermore, the long paw hair tends to mat and cause them extremely uncomfortable and pain.

Therefore, it is important to trim the hair and clean the paw clean 

 in order to keep it healthy , comfortable, neater and tidier.