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Grooming And Bathing

Brian M

Well-known member
Hi

What day to day grooming brushes and combs do you use and do you also use a general coat conditioner if so
which one. Also how often do you bathe and again what shampoo and conditioner do you use .
 
I've been using fresh and clean tropical scent. Henry gets a bath once a week. And I use a puppy slicker brush on him.
 
I use the Furminator Puppy tool, its not a de-shedder or rough on the coat like the regular furminator, it just has slicker brush and comb attachments. I bathe every month or so, or if they get really dirty. For the puppy I use PetHead Oatmeal and blueberry shampoo with Furminator de-shedding conditioner, and for the 3 year old I use both Furminator de-shedding shampoo and conditioner, it smells really nice. For refreshing sprays I use the CHI detangler or the Pethead spray in the pink bottle - they both smell really great and it freshens them up between baths.
 
Fletcher gets a bath about once every 2 weeks due to all the swimming he has done this summer. I use a 2 sided brush pins on one side a sticker brush on the other, I also have a small toothed comb. I brush Fletcher every evening hoping to get to any tangles before they become mats. I use a sensitive skin baby shampoo, it has a lower ph. I also use a mix of a little coconut oil and water on a spray for conditioner. Its one part coconut oil 10 parts water shake well. I'm thinking after swimming season is over I will bathe Fletcher about once a month or only as needed.
 
I use an oatmeal based puppy shampoo for Tess. She gets bathed at most once a month. During shedding season, I brush her at least once a day sometimes twice using a pin brush all over, a slicker brush almost all over, and a comb on the very long feathers.
 
I use John Paul Pet Oatmeal shampoo and conditioner - not too scented, and kind for Maddie's skin especially in summer when she scratches. For grooming I use a comb and a gentle slicker brush. As all three have different coats the amount of grooming and bathing varies:
Maddie (blenheim with a tendency to roll in noxious substances and a cottony fluffy coat) gets bathed once every two weeks, which coincides with her hydrotherapy sessions, and brushed/combed twice a week.
Pippin (b&t with a lot of long wavy thick fur) bathed once a month and combed / brushed every day
Rosie (ruby with a fairly smooth silky coat at present but she's only a year old) has only had 2 baths and gets her ears combed every day, and a brush for the rest of her once a week.
 
I'm using Only Natural organic herbal shampoo and conditioner on Dillon who is 15 months old. It contains lemongrass and citronella among other herbs and smells really nice (to me anyhow) help repel the sand fly we get here as well. He is being bathed every 3-4 weeks, but ears are washed more often on an as and when basis....his coat is still quite lightweight and silky and he has long feathers and very thick cottony type ear fur which requires combing through twice daily to keep them tangle free. We are using just a comb for the body and leg feathers and either a spaniel comb or pin brush for the ears. Interested to see what you all use for the ears as we do struggle a bit keep these nice and tangle free!
 
Lady does not yet have her feathers at 6 months (she has some, but not much at all) so she is still pretty silky and has a manageable coat. My husband is a fanatic about bathing her! For some reason he just really enjoys it and just loves a sweet smelling pup. She is bathed probably every 2 weeks. The upside of his obsession with bathing her is that she is very used to it now and it does not phase her at all.

Because of her eye problems, we asked the ophthalmologist if there was a special shampoo we should use to not irritate her eyes. Her suggestions was, "Just use baby shampoo! No tears!" We previously were using some fancy dog shampoo from Petsmart. This definitely has done the trick. We can wash her face really well (gets tear stains up well) and the drool/water/grub off of her long ears. It smells wonderful and leaves her incredibly soft! The vet always ask what we use to bathe her! Because the hubby bathes her so much we use an ear cleanser that evaporates the water from her ears and cleans them. It is called "epi-otic" and works extremely well. She had a problem with ear slight buildup, but never again since we started using this. No more scratching ears!

No real brushing needed....yet! I saw a 9 month old black and tan boy at the vet on Friday and he was swimming in his feathers and fur! I said, "Oh my gosh, he must be full grown" and his momma said, "Nope, 9 months!" so...we have loads of hair to look forward to and I definitely will be searching for brushes!
 
Hi Courtney

Have you looked at the Mars Coat King it is very good, in fact I prefer it to the Furminator .
 
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I have not seen that one. I do have a regular furminator but have only ever used it on my parents Cairn terrier, I feel like its too aggressive on their skin. But I dont strip my cavs, I just took the older one to the groomers when I got her (a month or two ago) and the puppy's hair is still really short. The furminator that i do use regularly is just the "puppy tool" with a comb with a slicker. I have started using a pin brush though and find it works the best. But if i ever get the courage to strip them myself, this is what I will buy!
 
Brian, we use Isle of Dogs (shampoo #12 conditioner #51). If BB needs additional help on her white spots we use Chris Christensen's White on White shampoo, I also finish her off with Chris Christensen's Ice on Ice leave in conditioner and dirt resister. This has worked really well to keep her clean and we bath monthly or as needed.

On brushing I have a basic Mason Pearson brush, a furminator (really only needed when she blew her puppy coat, now rarely use) and need to get some recommendations on a comb for the feather areas? After we got through BB blowing her puppy coat things have been much more manageable with daily brushing. She is getting tangles in the feather areas behind the ears and around her front "arm pits". Comb recommendations appreciated and hope the shampoo advice helps!

One additional note, while BB was a puppy we did weekly water things to get her use to bathing. Things may have included walking in some water in the bathtub, washing the face, rinsing with water or a full bath. Basically just tried to get her use to water and baths while not over bathing. She is really good with the bathing and does well so if there are owners with young ones just keep that in mind!
 
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