How to Shave Your Dog Properly

Shaving your pet dog would not only keep your dog clean and neat but would also make them more comfortable. For long-haired dogs, shaving their coat can help prevent heat strokes especially during summer. A lot of dog owners have been wondering how to shave a dog correctly by themselves without having to visit a pet grooming salon. The following are steps on how to shave a dog.

1. In learning how to shave a dog, choose the right shaver. Although using regular human shavers is okay, they heat up quickly and have the tendency to pull your dog's hair or fur. Pet shavers are available at different pet shops or even at pet grooming salons.
2. Place your dog on a table with an overhead. Tie a leash to his collar so that your dog keeps his head up. This can also prevent the dog from jumping off the table. In the absence of an overhead, you can just hold the dog's collar.
3. With a #10 blade on the pet shaver, start shaving your dog's face, being careful not to poke your dog's eyes. Shave against the body (not doing so might cut your dog's skin). If your dog starts moving his head, wait until he settles down before continuing on shaving his fur. This is important when learning how to shave a dog.
4. When done shaving the head, move to shaving his ears. Shaving the outer parts of his ears is as important as shaving the corners of his inner ears. Be careful in shaving this part as your dog might move his head around too much and might cause you to accidentally nick his skin with the shaver.
5. After shaving the ears, move to his underarms. Lift up his arm and start shaving there. Do the same with the other underarm.
6. Next stop is the groin area. Lift his leg in the way he does when he goes to pee. Start shaving under the legs. Shaving this part will help in keeping himself clean when doing his business.
7. Go on shaving your dog's bottom part as well. Raise his tail and start shaving around his bottom area.
8. After shaving all these important parts, shave the all the fur from the rest of his body. Before doing so, switch your #10 blade with a larger one. It is best to start from behind the dog's head, going down to the neck, to his back part, and down on both his sides. Take care when shaving the belly part as this is a very sensitive part.

The above steps would help any dog owner who wants to learn how to shave a dog. Make sure that if your dog gets nervous easily, make him accustomed to the sound of the shaver first before using it on him as it might make him panic too much. Clean and oil your pet shaver regularly to prevent fur from building up. Remember that shaving your dog is not only a grooming essential but is also a good way of bonding with your pet.

Reliable information about your beloved dog can be hard to find. Find useful tips and information about dog grooming on AtoZDogBreed.com.

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Created on Jul 20th 2011 05:26. Viewed 538 times.

Comments

Arthur Webster   Just plain honesty DO NOT SHAVE A DOG!!!!! Hairy dogs can be clipped to reduce the over-all length of the top coat. Many dogs have two types of fur, a coarse, outer fur and a very fine, water-proof inner fur. The inner fur must not be removed! When clipping a dog it is important that special attention is paid to the paw pads and between the toes. Dogs sweat through their paws and the fur should be regularly kept short, especially for a house dog in warm climates, so that the fur does not get heavily matted and prevent the proper effect of the sweat in cooling the dog. If your dog is clipped very close to the skin, make sure that it is not out in the sun long enough to get sun-burned. Cats are a special case and, if for some reason you feel that yours needs clipping, ask a professional to do it. Not only are cats very mobile, they will bite and scratch if not happy. A cat bite is probably one of the most poisonous bites people suffer. Jul 20th 2011 16:37

C C Howard   Small Business Owner I agree with Old Coot. Special care must be taken in clipping overall. I see far too many dogs, especially fair colored fur who are clipped way too short in the summer time, running risk of serious sun burn! It's a good idea to first have a professional do a clip, enough times until the dog handler is privy to & confident enough to do it them selves, properly. Leaving a little more is better than too short! Dog have their coats for a reason. Clipping over all dog in moderation, to reduce summer time overheating is a nice idea, keeping undersides of paws clear of over growth of fur too. Aifing in keeping cool & is a must, even in the winter, before applying say paw wax for salt, snow and ice protection & to avoid snow balls from clinging to the under sides of the paws. Nov 16th 2011 08:03