It’s all about the fluff!
Harriet took some time out of the office recently to immerse herself in the world of professional dog grooming . No aspirations to become one herself but she spends a lot of time with dogs and carries out a fair few ‘in-house refresh baths’ so wanted to learn how to do it properly.
A quick Amateurs’ Top 10 Tips that she picked up from her time in the Salon and which may be useful for other ‘home groomers’ out there …
Wear clothes that wash easily and preferably don’t contain wool - hair gets everywhere!
Rather than start off by wetting the dog , apply diluted shampoo solution to dry fur and scrub hard. That way the shampoo lathers up better, does it's job properly and isn’t diluted out of efficacy by any water that’s already on the dog’s coat.
Buy a squeezy bottle in which you premix the shampoo/water solution. They’re cheap, convenient and worth every penny!
When it comes to washing faces, massage half a pump of the shampoo/water mix into the muzzle and around eyes. And then tip the dog’s nose downwards for rinsing. Such a simple thing but most of us automatically tip a dog’s nose up towards us, and that almost inevitably results in water going up the dog’s nose. Not popular…
Never lift up the ears as that exposes the ear canal to water; instead, turn the ear inside out (if it’s bendy enough, obviously!) and wash the underside against the dog’s head. You can put cotton balls in the ears if you’re particularly concerned or if they’re prone to ear infections, but that shouldn’t generally be necessary if you’re able to turn the ear inside out instead.
Use a microfibre chamois towel to soak up excess water before drying. They’re really effective!
If your dog doesn’t much like the hairdryer, consider buying a Happy Hoody - again, cheap and effective. And always use the lowest setting on the dryer for the head and face area.
Only once the coat is fully dry, should you start brushing. Ideally the dryer will have straightened out many of the knots already, but even if it hasn’t they will come out much easier from clean hair.
For short haired dogs, dry the hair in the direction it grows naturally. For long haireds, dry in the opposite direction to hair growth. That’s how you get the FLOUFF! S
Use the right brush for your dog’s particular coat type. (I can’t possibly go into which one for which type here as it’s a minefield and if I advise the wrong one, groomers all over will shout!)