Grooming Your Pet to Perfection

As dogs and cats owners, we all love them and consider them as our furry friends, not just pets. The thought of grooming your pet doesn’t even enter our minds a lot of times. When we first see puppies and kittens, there are several things that many of us don’t even consider.

Will they be huge when they grow up?

Will they still be cute?

Will training be easy?

Grooming requirements is one factor that most people don’t even think about. Of course, some dogs and cats require very little grooming maintenance, but that isn’t true for a lot of breeds. Grooming a pet can be a huge problem for many people who are either too busy or who do not have the skills to do it themselves. Everyone wants their pets not only to look good, but also to smell good.

Grooming Your Pet Means You Need Tools

Visit the local pet supply store and you will be amazed at the numerous products available to help you groom your pet.

Pet shampoos, conditioners, brushes, combs, de-shedding tools, moist wipes, hair trimmers, and things to trim nails are some of the items that are available. Many pets resist our efforts to have them looking like the beautiful pets that we envision in our minds.

If your pet is a pro at resistance, you may want to seek the services of a professional groomer.

Grooming usually takes a lot of patience. “Sit still!” may work on some dogs, but cats sure won’t listen.

Coats and Nails

Cocker Spaniels, Poodles, Schnauzers, and several other breeds need regular trims to maintain their coats. A matted coat is unattractive and may be detrimental to skin hygiene.

How in the world can you check for fleas when your pet’s hair is matted? A cat will go crazy if its coat is matted. They will work continuously day and night trying to get the mats out. They’ll chew on it and then throw it back up on your beautiful carpet or maybe in your bed. Ah, the hair balls, just another wonderful perk for the cat owner.

What about the “wonderful” task of nail clipping? Even a small dog can provide you with a huge challenge to complete this seemingly easy task.

Starting the Grooming Process When Your Pet is Young

Of course, we all know that we must start early in our pets life so that the basic grooming tasks such as brushing and nail trimming are not a big deal when they’re older and bigger. But, how many of us actually do this?

We’re usually way too busy with basic training and playing with them. There are so many other things that we must do when they are little. For puppies, we have basic training, socializing, potting training and more. We even have to spend time teaching them their name. A major task for all owners of puppies is to make sure that the puppy doesn’t get into anything that might hurt it. There is so much to teach a puppy and they grow up so fast.

With all this needed training and our own busy lives, many of us just don’t have the patience for these grooming tasks. When we do try to make the time, we stop on the first hint that the “baby” doesn’t seem happy.

All they have to do is whimper, growl, or heaven forbid, bare their teeth and we think that we are somehow hurting them.

Pet Grooming is Big Business

Just take a look in the yellow pages of your phone book or, better yet, look at the business directory on the Internet. You can find pages of pet groomers.

There are even locations where you can use their tubs, hand held sprayers and towels, for a price. This is a great option for those who don’t want to get their bathroom or house messy, but you’ll still get soaked during the bathing process.

A professional groomer can style your pet to perfection. Just make an appointment, drop them off and go shopping. After you return, your tiny darling will be picture perfect. No long sharp nails clicking on the tile floor, clean ears, a wonderful haircut, a clean and nice smelling coat, anal glands expressed, if needed, and sometimes dental scaling is performed.

Groom Your Pet or Pay a Professional

Wow, just thinking about everything that was done will make you tired. Now, all you need to do is pay for the bill and give the groomer a tip. The grooming is all done and all you need to do is stop your adorable from playing in the mud after you get home.

There are some pets who do not like grooming. As a matter of fact, some of them are actually terrified at the idea of a stranger working on them.

A calm, experienced groomer will know how to handle this and will take the time to comfort your pet and familiarize him with the clippers and other equipment before doing any grooming. If a pet is really nervous or aggressive, it may be necessary to provide the tranquilize it. While pills or herbal drops, sometimes referred to as doggie downers, occasionally help, it may be necessary to have a very difficult case at a veterinary clinic to ensure that the use of any tranquilizers can be monitored.

Grooming Cats Can be Challenging

Grooming cats is a completely different ball game. There are actually quite a few pet salons that will not groom cats. Then there are some places that only groom cats.

The grooming salons that specialize in cats are a good choice, if you have a cat, since cats can’t be handled like dogs. Cats tend to be very clean, meticulous animals, but those with long hair will still need some grooming.

Outdoor cats generally end up with matted hair from burrs and other various gross stuff and will need a little help getting it cleaned up. Outdoor cats can even get “skunked“. Definitely let a professional groomer take care of that situation.

Any cat that has a severely matted coat may have to its coat shaved down completely. They may look silly, but the hair will grow back and this is less traumatic that trying to remove the mats with a brush and comb, if that is even possible.

The next time you select a puppy or kitten to join your family, give some thought to the grooming needs. Of course, this is only one factor that you need to consider, but it is usually the most forgotten one.