Why it's good to groom your pet regularly

Some say it's for looks, others say it's for hygiene, we say, it's for both!

Regularly grooming your pet, be it, a bath and blow dry to a summer or winter clip (yes, there's a big difference) there are some very important reasons for doing so.

Firstly, Hygiene:

All animals need to be groomed. In the wild, you see wolves grooming themselves and others in their pack. Grooming within a pack is thought to mean several things;

1. Reinforcement of social and 'pecking' orders within a pack
2. Courting a potential mate
3. If a member of the pack is injured, it is thought to bring that particular animal both physical and mental comfort.
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It also ensures diseases, fleas and other pests are kept at bay. By grooming their fellow pack mates, wolves enjoy a level of protection that a lone wolf will not.

Aspects of grooming your pet is reminiscent to the above. Not only will your pet feel better, but they will look better too.

By having your pet groomed regularly (dependant on breed this may be every 4-12 weeks), your pets health and wellbeing may benefit from the regular pampering. Benefits to having your dog groomed;

1. Bacteria on the surface of the skin and coat is removed

By removing bacteria from the surface of the skin and coat, the body's defences are not as taxed and potentially your pet may be able to fight off infection and disease more effectively.

2. Dry skin or other skin conditions 

This may be alleviated through specialised or medicinal shampoos or conditioners. By washing your pet in an appropriate shampoo whether that be standard, specialised (generally herbal based) or medicinal shampoos, skin conditions may be alleviated or through a regular regimen, no longer be evident. This also greatly improves your pets health by increasing your pets ability to fight of infection and disease more effectively.

3. Minimising matting of medium to long coats through regular brushing and de-shedding

Regular brushing and de-shedding minimises or removes matting from a pets coat. Matting generally occurs through several factors, namely;

• not effectively brushing your pets coat
• not rinsing your dogs coat after a swim in salt water
• running and playing! - dogs regularly become matted around their armpits and thighs

By removing matting, the skin can 'breathe'. This allows the body to self regulate more effectively, meaning they can soak up heat (in winter) and expel heat (in summer).

4. Looks and smells nice!

This one may seem obvious to some people, but some people who have had certain breeds may not be aware that not bathing your dog, or even excessive bathing (once or more a week) can have your dog smelling 'like a dog'. This 'wet dog' smell is the oil on the coat and skin of your dog, excreted from the sebaceous glands. If you wash your dog too much (ask Nick about what is considered too often for your particular dog; he takes into account, breed, skin and coat type and you and your dogs lifestyle/needs) the sebaceous glands work 'overtime' to replenish the skins natural oils on the skin and coat. If you don't wash your dog or often, the buildup of this oil can become overpowering.

5. A reduction in skin, eye, ears and nail infections

Similar to point 1, a regular groom, inclusive of a bath, assists in the reduction in any skin conditions. It is also seen to be a benefit to the eyes, ears and nails, helping to remove any bacteria or viral infections.

6. No hair in the eyes!

We have all had an eyelash in the eye at one time of another, but imagine if you had this for months? Dogs feel both emotionally and physically like we do, and unfortunately, their physiology greatly reduces their ability to remove any hair from their eyes. Remember we have fingers and can flush our eyes out with water or saline or even ask for help, they can't.

7. Removal of grass seeds and other 'hitchhikers' like fleas, ticks and mites 

A specialised shampoo is used if these are found on your dog. Please note: if a tick is found on your dog, we will NOT remove it, but notify you immediately to take your dog to the vet. By removing a tick under the wrong circumstances, may cause further harm to your dog than if it is removed by a non-vet.

The above list is long, but it could be much longer! If you want more information about the benefits of grooming your dog, feel free to talk to Nick during your next visit or feel free to give us a call on 03 8316 1056.

I touched on hygiene above, now lets discuss the second aspect of grooming your dog:

Socialisation and other forms of interacting with another human being

Socialising your dog comes in many forms, new visitors to the house, going for a walk or having a run in an off-leash dog park. It also comes in a form many people don't think about; visiting your friendly groomer.

As we know by now, Nick has a very special way with dogs and cats. It's almost a zen situation, he's at one with your pet. He feels and sees their emotions, body language and adjusts to the situation.

We are lucky enough to groom some amazing animals, from the Tabby and Ragdoll cat to Chihuahua's and Rottweilers. No two animals interactions are the same with Nick. There are many reasons for this and I'll touch on a few below:

1. Personality

There may be some defined personality traits of a particular breed, but this doesn't take into account the individuality of the pet being groomed. Like humans, each and every person has an individual personality.

2. Breed temperaments

There are many breeds of cat and dog out there, but none are identical. There are similarities and traits to others, but none are exactly the same. Take into account point 1 with any interaction with a cat or dog and you and your groomer are better equipped to understand your dog.

A dog that is primarily a lap dog e.g. King Charles Cavalier Spaniels or Papillon's are a toy or small breed and as such, they are lower to the ground and have a more fragile anatomy. This in part accounts for, at times, their timid nature or the potential to flee (and fast) at a potentially hostile situation.

Whereas a Rottweiler or Rhodesian Ridgeback, being a large, muscular breed, does not feel the need to be as protected by their human. This independence allows these larger dogs to play fight with more vigour and a more independent or sometimes stubborn nature.

3. Upbringing or traumatic events

I've placed these two into the same category for several reasons, being that the result of certain situations the dog perceives, may cause undesirable behaviours.

The upbringing of a dog can greatly affect its personality and how it reacts to certain situations. If you look at a dog that has been very well socialised from a young age, understands that it is NOT alpha (meaning you are alpha and you ensure the dog knows this through training and ensuring good habits are kept and bad are removed immediately), it will have a great all rounded secure, personality.

If we look at a dog that may have had a great upbringing, but situations haven't been favourable and they have moved into family before yours, that has not kept up with training, or even taught bad habits, you may see a remarkable shift in a dogs personality. This is also true with a dog that may have been abused.

An abused dog or a dog that is/was repeatedly told off for something, but we as humans aren't able to communicate the intent of the 'telling off', will confuse the dog. An example of this: If you tell your dog off for going to the toilet inside well after it happened, the dog will not know what it has done, nor will it understand what you want it to do in the future. On this note, if you rub your dogs nose in its 'business', it will not only dislike the situation, but also instil a fear in them (of you and potentially others) - they honestly don't know why you are upset and definitely do not understand why you are rubbing their face in it. This blog post isn't about how to train your dog, but how Nick sees and handles different situations.

When a dog comes to Nick, he can very quickly learn certain aspects of a dogs personality, and communicate with them on a level that many of us think is (honestly), nuts. He adjusts all aspects of his communication and how he approaches each dog to cater for any and all of these gorgeous personalities. Remember, even the most 'nasty' dog, deep down, just wants to a little bit of love and attention!

By regularly visiting your groomer, not only will your dog look and smell amazing, but your pet will also feel great and have a socialisation session that is second to none. There is not a better way for your pet to understand that Nick the groomer is there to pamper them, treat them with respect and earn their trust, than to visit him.

Nick produces superior results by ensuring the welfare of your pet is at the front of his mind for the entire 'spa' session and always, always enjoys his work. If you enjoy what you do, the results speak for themselves.

If you have any questions about how your pet is groomed, why something needs to be done or advice of the dog kind, feel free to ask Nick on your next visit, or when you make your booking by phone.

References:
RSPCA Victoria - Benefits of grooming
Nick Masters

Kira - a Staffy who was locked in a crate for a year

Recently, we had the privilege to groom a gorgeous two year old American Staffordshire Terrier (Amstaff or Staffy), who was locked in a crate for an entire year.

Her amazing new mum rescued her from one of Victoria's puppy farms when it was closed down in 2015/2016. Jo tells the story of her pain in seeing her little Kira, being unable to walk due to her hind legs simply not working.

Kira now has her forever home, but tragedy struck her again recently when her companion Staffy was bitten by a tiger snake in her own backyard. Since then, the family have moved to a more suitable residence further away from wetlands, minimising the risk of a snake bite. Since that day, Kira has been lost without her K9 friend.

Her friend was a special companion to her 'brother' an autistic child, who had their first Staffy trained to assist him in the event of an emergency or in general, companionship. So, as it turns out, multiple members of the family have lost a true friend.

When ilps learned of this heartbreak for Kira and family, I decided to write about her story; the real outcome of puppy farms and snake awareness.

In recent times, the Victorian Government has enacted several new laws that assist in the prevention of legal puppy farms. It has not, however, stopped backyard breeders exploiting any loophole that they may deem acceptable. I am strongly opposed to backyard breeders who flaunt the system and have no regard for the welfare of animals. I am NOT against a breeder who has the welfare of all animals concerned at the forefront of their minds at all times. I don't believe the Andrews Government is placing the right constraints on the right people. The current laws state that a maximum number of dogs are to be kept on a property at any one time. Sometimes this number, however hard you try, will be too few for some, both law abiding, and those that aren't.

Kira was one of the unfortunate few that were purely in a puppy farm to make money for their unscrupulous owners, but thankfully, her suffering, however long, was stopped. Kira still has scars of her incarceration to this day; no scars on the outside, but it is evident there are so many scars on the inside that it will take years, if at all, to heal.

ilps motto is built on compassion, and seeing a dog that should be so full of energy to see new people, but was subdued and scared, cemented our resolve to continue to help  all animals in anyway we can. Although she is an absolute love-bug, she doesn't hide her fear of the unknown.

When we met her for the first time - Jo, her mum, brought her in for a meeting first before her bath and blow dry - she walked then 'army crawled' up to us as we squatted and then sat to be at her level. She buried her gorgeous face into our arms and gave us love. She knew at this point, that we were not there to hurt her or take her away from her mum. This memory will stay with me forever.

When I spoke to Jo on the phone when making the appointment, she told me of her story and honestly, it broke my heart. I hadn't met either of them yet, but I truly felt for the both of them.

Her determination to survive has put her in great stead for leading a life that is full of happiness and love, but always with an eye open.

When she had her 'spa day' with us, we allowed her, like we do with all of the dogs we groom, to explore her surroundings. Her exploration only covered where we walked. She was next to us like glue, no more than 30cm away from us at any time. So, with this in mind, we walked her around the salon and showed her everything.

After her brief exploration, we lowered the bath (it's an awesome electronically controlled lifting bath ) to within 30cm of the ground and coaxed her in. This took sometime as to her, it may have resembled her gaol in her first year of life. We talked slowly and with gentle tones to assure her that we weren't putting her in anything to lock her up. After a little time, she jumped in herself!

We patted her and praised her for being such a good girl, then slowly raised the bath so as to not hurt our backs. Our next step was to show her the shower head and shampoo's.

Not surprisingly, as we had gained her trust at this point, she didn't mind the water being turned on. We could tell that she was a little uneasy when we slowly wet her feet to introduce it to her though.

With her feet wet and only a little trepidation from her, we massaged her body as we gently wet her with warm water. Now she was totally wet!

Nick very slowly massaged the sensitive shampoo into her coat. Initially she wasn't sure of this white foamy stuff, but after receiving a relaxing massage, she slowly closed her eyes and finally was at total peace.

For the entire groom, Tim photographed and filmed her experience so we would never forget her first bath with ilps.

We are so lucky to have such wonderful clients and customers at ilps, people who trust us with their pets, to treat them like they are our own. Putting yourself in Jo's shoes, would you trust 'just anyone' with Kira? Allowing us to groom her is one of the highlights of ilps's history thus far.

After the luxurious shampoo, we washed it off, all the while gently reassuring her that it was all ok. After this, we applied the feel good conditioner. There is nothing better than seeing a dog that is full of trepidation and anxiety, relax and enjoy the experience.

After a nice shammy and towel dry, it was time for the blow dryer. Now a blow dryer, for most dogs is not the most pleasurable of experiences. It is loud and scary! Thankfully, our hairdryer is variable speed from very low to Formula One speed!

So, we started very low and introduced the blow dryer to her. We showed the nozzle of the blow dryer and that it didn't hurt. She sniffed at it and worked out quickly that air came out and that it wasn't a threat.

We slowly worked the blow dryer over her back, all the while increasing the speed of the air, so as to not scare her.

For a dog that has had such a sad start to life, she did exceptional well. We completely dried her and lowered the bath, opened the sliding door and she jumped out. She immediately came up to us and cuddled in. In her own way, she was thanking us for the massage and being kind.

Kira is now a regular to ilps and we honestly can't wait to see her each and every time.

If you have any questions about Kira, we are happy to discuss. Awareness is key.

The videos I took during her visit have been compiled into a short movie and uploaded onto YouTube shortly. If you wish to view this video, please click the link here: https://youtu.be/w-Xo_h2oCs0

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