Dog grooming is an important part of dog ownership. It allows the animal to feel good and maintains their coat to an acceptable standard. The care required varies depending upon the breed.
It is essential to groom a short coated dog as much as it is a long haired one. All coats need the stimulation of a brush to remove the dead hair. There is more to grooming than simply brushing the coat. Bathing and grooming on a regular basis ensures a healthy coat and less maintenance is required when it is done on a regular basis. How often your animal requires a groom will vary depending on the breed, the length of coat and the living environment. Some smaller breed house dogs may require grooming approximately every 6 weeks.
Here at Northern Suburbs Veterinary Hospitals we offer grooming every Monday to Thursday by appointment. Our qualified and experienced groomer, Jacqui, offers a full service of:
- bathing
- grooming
- clipping by breed standards
- nail trim
- face and feet scissoring
- anal glands expressed
- stripping
- feathering
- furnishings (legs)
- ear clip, plucking
If at any time Jacqui may find anything out of routine e.g. smelly ears, lumps or bumps during the groom, we obviously have a vet available to examine the animal immediately.
Why does your animal stay with us for a few hours? We prefer to take things slowly to reduce the stress on our visitors. When grooming animals are admitted they are hydrobathed and then towel dried. It is then time for a rest. After a short period they are then blow dried. Time again for another rest. Next it’s time to get the clippers out. Time varies here dramatically depending upon the breed and the state of the animal. Some animals need to be clipped others need to be stripped. This means combing of the undercoat which may take many hours. We find that by taking the process slowly the animals are not stressed. They look at their visit as a social outing and are not hesitant when they come in for their next groom.
We use a twin tub heated hydrobath for the comfort of the animals. So it doesn’t matter what the season the animals are bathed in clean, heated water and then in the comfort of our heated/air-conditioned hospital. Quality professional products are used in the bathing process with the Virbac skin range of shampoo and conditioners used to ensure all skin conditions are treated according to their needs. We use Heiniger hand clippers with Oster and Wahl blades along with Jaguar brand scissors. Using these products allows for a cleaner cut without nicking or having clipper rash to the skin.
