Before you get a dog, you need to think carefully about the responsibility that awaits you. After all, a pet in the home is another member of the family who needs care and attention. The health of your dog and his life activities (ultimately: the cost of veterinary services and the length of time a dog can live without any problems) will depend on how comfortable the environment is for your dog.
What do owners need to know about some aspects of dog care more detailed advice on feeding, maintenance, care and education of a particular breed of dog will provide pet consultant.
1. How to bathe (wash) a dog properly
A dog’s coat condition is very important to his health, not only for his own health, but also for that of his family. Keep your dog’s coat clean at all times. And your dog’s breed and hair type will determine how often he bathes.
What you should know about bathing:
- all animal shampoos are divided into types based on wool: long, thick, hard, etc..;
- bathe the dog depending on the breed, starting once a week or once a month;
- more often bathe animals with long coats;
- dirt is more easily washed off with hard hair;
- bath your dog in water at a temperature corresponding to his own, i.e. 37-39ºC;
- If the hair is short, simply towel it down after bathing, and if it is long, blow-dry it;
- bath your pet an hour or two after the walk and 2-3 hours before the next walk!
2. How to brush your hair properly
How thick and long your dog’s coat is will determine how often he is brushed. On this basis, specially designed hair types, brushes and card brushes (puffs) are selected.
- For dogs with short hair, you buy a brush with hard natural bristles. And it’s necessary to brush your coat once every 3 days.
- For long-haired dogs, I choose special scallops with long but dull teeth at the tips. Also use a special cardboard (puffer), which is good to comb out a cluster of coats. According to the standard of the breed, some long-haired dogs should be cut 3-4 times a year and once a month grooming care, which is a partial cut: muzzle, paws, neck, etc…
- Hard dog hair requires trimming (plucking dead hair) and at least 3-4 times a year.
3. Like taking care of a dog’s paws
When your dog comes back from the street, you should carefully examine his paws. Very often you will find remnants of glass, grass, sand or other foreign bodies in his paws. If it’s summer then you can simply wipe his paws with a wet cloth.
But if it is winter, when the roads are covered with salt, you should wash your feet in a basin with soapy water. But… if it’s frosty outside, you have to let your paws “warm up”, i.e. you can’t wash your paws for 10-15 minutes!!! To wash your paws, use cool water 16-18 º C.
The wool that grows on your fingers and between them should be cut in time. It’s a great place for bacteria to multiply and form boils. In winter, longer wool is left on the paws between the fingers.
If you see cracks or dried skin on your paws, you should lubricate them with a special product (paw ointments) or hand cream.
You should give your dog a claw cut every 10-14 days. Usually more claws will grow on his front legs. You can cut your own claws, but only if you have consulted a specialist and know how to do it.
4. How to brush a dog’s teeth properly
A domestic dog, like a human, needs proper dental and oral care. Because if you don’t, your dog will have plaque on his teeth and then stone and so on. This way, an animal can lose its teeth.
It’s better to start teaching your pet to brush his teeth when he’s still a puppy. And this is done as a gentle massage of the gums with the master’s fingers. After 2 weeks of such massage we continue to do it only with special toothpaste for dogs.
And only after the dog has got used to the master’s hands in his mouth cavity, then you can start using a special brush. Currently, there is a wide variety of toothpastes and brushes on the zoo market. If you don’t have time to brush your pet’s teeth every day, you should just do it at least 3 times a week.
5. Walk your pet and play with him
Walking your dog is not just for the sake of his natural needs. After all, walking on the street, the animal learns the world, sees its inhabitants, runs, which replaces the physical activity for him. Walking positively affects the dog’s CNS and its general health.
Thus it is necessary to walk with the dog at least 4 times a day, taking into account that at least one walk will be active and dynamic (you pass from 2 to 5 km.) and last not less than 1 hour (taking into account a season and breed of the animal). Service, working and hunting dogs need much more physical activity than room scenery.
6. Preventive veterinary activities
In addition to all of the above, it is important to understand that your dog needs regular preventive veterinary check-ups, where he will be given all the necessary annual vaccinations. He also needs regular check-ups of his eyes, ears, teeth and genitalia. It is also necessary to gelminate your dog once every three months and treat him for fleas and ticks every season.
For dogs aged 7 years and over, we recommend an annual heart ultrasound and blood chemistry test. And it’s equally important to understand that each breed of dog is individual and requires its own, sometimes special, approach.
7. School of training
Regardless of the breed, each dog, after reaching the age of 4 months, must begin a guided city dog training course. For working, working, sporting and hunting breeds this course usually lasts between 4 and 6 months.
For small room decorative breeds – 10-15 sessions. It is necessary to remember that the dog and the owner is a tandem, i.e. “one whole”. That the controllability of the dog directly depends on the ability of the owner to “give the right command”.
During the life of a dog, the developed skills should be maintained through regular 1-3 times a week, training at home. In general, if the Owner of a dog has a desire for HPL, then any joint fitness with the dog is the basis of health, as a pet, and the owner (sports clubs that popularize cynological sports with dogs, now quite a lot.
8. Cinologist consultations (ethologist)
In the life of a dog owner, there can be a wide variety of problems associated with both the behaviour of a pet and the attitude of family members or other pets towards it. Not all of these problems are reflected in dog training manuals or interpreted on the internet…
And not every behaviour change problem can be diagnosed by the owner himself and the only correct solution found. It is therefore advisable to have a link, ideally online, with an experienced film consultant and etologist – a specialist in pet behaviour.