shaving

Do you shave your dog yourself? Or maybe you look for a specialist who will shave your dog for you? Or maybe you don't shave it at all? During summer, I like when my Homer has shorter hair because this way I know he won't overheat. Also, he is quite dirty because he hates bathing so it's easier for me too keep his hair in order when it's short . I wouldn't dare to shave him myself though because he is so naughty and I'd be afraid that I could hurt him. I always bring him to a specialist who is more experienced in this matter than I am and who has better scissors. How about you?

 

We have never shaved Mishka but intend to get her shorn this summer. Her fur is getting quite long and every time she decides to go for a swim in the creek she comes back muddy and smelling horrible. Two days ago she was given a bath and that afternoon went and got so muddy from her little creek romp that we had to restrict her from being inside that night.

A neighbour had her collie cross shaved last year when they went north to a mining town to work. The temperatures there are high and to ensure the dog would not suffer the heat it was shaved or shorn to a low coat. I've never seen such a funny sight as a shaved dog.

 

We don't shave our dog at all. I always feel bad for dogs when I see them shaved. I get why it's done and it probably feels good for ones that are really furry and live in warm climates. They just look so....naked.

 

Sometimes they really do. My Homer's hair was once shaved so short that he really looked naked - poor thing - and it wasn't flattering at all. Now I always ask the specialist not to shave him too short.

 

Aside from shaving, if you have a dog with odour issues, try rubbing him down with some talc. Talc is a great way to lift a lot of dirt and odours off their hair, and if they like being rubbed down and petted, you can incorporate that into your petting routine. He'll probably also like it if you massage him at the same time, that tends to send them into a very relaxed and sleepy state. Make sure you get some talc that you use purely for dogs though, as their skin has a different .ph rating to ours. Using even the smallest amount of something you'd use on human skin, can cause massive skin irritations to dogs.

 

They always leave the tail and head fur alone, too, so they look completely ridiculous.

 

I have never actually shaved a dog, but I can understand why some would. I live in Arizona and the heat can get bad especially for dogs. I remember one dog we had when I was younger, he had thick black hair. Summers were extremely hard on this poor dog. My mother tried to help him by taking him inside, but it was still hard for him. After this experience we started looking more for short haired breeds with light color coats, because we didn't want to watch another dog suffer in the way. Thinking about it now, maybe having a vet shave this dog during the summer months might have spared him the suffering he went through.

 

I can now see what shaved really looks like. I guess with Mishka we intend her to have more of a short haircut. I agree the shaved look is a bit ridiculous though in very hot places it would help keep them cooler. You would have to consider sun burn.

 

Fortunately, our dogs all had short hair so we never had to do that. We did recently babysit a friends border collie who has just recently gotten a haircut, and he looked really nice. They didn't give him a full on buzz cut, just shortened his hair for the summer months. He seemed pretty happy.

 

Our neighbours border collie was given a real buzz. I think we'll settle for the gentler version.Mishka doesn't like the heat and its probably because she has so much fur. There's a young lass that has set up a dog grooming service in the old laundromat in our small town. It will be great to give her some business.

 

My good friend has got a sand coloured French Briard called Max (short for Maximum as he is like a small horse!) and she had to have him shaved recently because his long fur had just got too matted. He looked like he halved in size overnight!!