Grooming your puppy regularly is about more than just keeping him or her looking and smelling nice (although those are important benefits too!) Grooming is important for maintaining your puppy’s overall physical health.
Groom Your Puppy While Still Young
Your dog needs to learn to tolerate grooming when he or she is a puppy. If you wait to begin grooming sessions when your dog is older, he or she may make it almost impossible to complete grooming routines, especially nail clipping and ear cleaning.
What About Long-Haired Breeds?
Long-haired breeds are especially in need of early exposure to grooming. Their long hair requires more intense grooming sessions than short-haired breeds. Their fur will need to be brushed daily and they need to learn to stand still from a young age. Of course, dogs with short hair need grooming as well.
Brush Your Dog’s Fur Daily
Daily fur brushing is essential for all breeds, not just when the puppy is young but throughout his/her life. Brushing the fur will help remove dead hair, dirt and dandruff. Regular brushing also helps to distribute the natural oils in the dog’s fur. As you brush your puppy, the natural oils will be spread throughout the fur, giving the coat a healthy sheen.
How Old is Old Enough for Grooming?
You can begin grooming your puppy when she is as young as 3 weeks old. Experienced pet owners will often begin getting their puppy used to grooming tools and being handled (such as touching the paws and ears) even earlier so that they tolerate grooming better when they get older.
Check Your Puppy for Abnormalities
Daily grooming gives you the opportunity to check your pet for any physical abnormalities. This includes:
- Skin problems like ticks, fleas or dry patches
- Broken or brittle nails
- Cracked or bleeding paw pads (click here to learn more about how to care for these)
- Crooked, cracked or loose teeth, infection or abscess or gum disease
- Incessant scratching of the ear, discharge, odor, redness or swelling in the ear
- Discharge from the eyes, incessant tearing, red or white linings or visible third eyelid
- Anything abnormal that looks like it could be a problem.
When found early, many of these common health problems can be treated right away, before they have a chance to become more serious (and treatment is more expensive).
Grooming Builds a Bond Between You and Your Puppy
Grooming keeps your puppy healthy and used to being handled. Daily grooming gives you and your puppy time that is set aside for just the two of you to focus on your puppy, strengthening the bond between you. Going to a professional groomer helps your puppy become familiar with your groomer as well as get used to the sounds, sensations and smells of the grooming salon.
Canine Campus Offers Premier Grooming for Puppies and Dogs
Our top-notch groomer, Chris Wirick, specializes in breed-specific haircuts and the Furminator process for shedding dogs. Chris also offers stand-alone nail trims/dremels, ear cleaning, teeth brushing and anal gland expression. She loves puppies and will be happy to start your puppy out right with tender loving care. Give us a call at 719-448-9600 to schedule your dog’s grooming appointment today! Learn more here
I found it interesting how you mentioned how you can begin grooming your puppy when she is as young as three weeks old. My wife and I are in the process of adopting our first dog and we want to make sure she can live her best, healthiest life possible. I will be sure to keep this in mind as we continue searching for a dog grooming service!
Great article! I think this article exposes many of the home grooming techniques many dog owners overlook. I will definitely add these tips to my own dog grooming routine.
I love that you mention that it build a bond between you and your puppy, I absolutely agree with that. It’s interesting that you mention you start grooming the puppy as early as 3 weeks old, I never thought about grooming that early but I agree with you that it does make sense. Nevertheless, great writeup!
Thanks for stopping by the Canine Campus blog!