Dog Cleanliness and Nutrition

"Just as with human beings, cleanliness and good nutrition have a big influence in the life of a dog".
Cleanliness of Your Dog: I'm not going to go into all the details of the cleaning of your dogs hair. If your breed is long haired the breeder should give you pointers on how to take care of it, and you should take notes. Here are some few basic rules on that:

1). A dog loves a daily brush, as long as you do it with a lot of love and patience and a thick brush, one that does not scratch: it considers it as a loving stroke. Depending on how long it's hair is you will have to do this procedure 15-30 min per day. This way you will eliminate the dead hair. Brushing your dogs hair should be a habit from the time when it's still young.

2). Long haired dogs should always be brushed. In doing this regularly you avoid it's hair getting knots. When it's hair is tangled, sometimes the scissors are the only solution, you shouldn't wait till it gets to that extreme. When you've finished brushing it you can pass a humid cloth over it to eliminate the dust.

3). Shedding of the hair: work against the hair, contrary to how it falls, do this with your hands. This way it is easier to brush it and you can get to the dry or dead hair. Do the same with it's paws and head. The dead hair on a dog makes it feel very uncomfortable.

4). Short haired dogs also loose their hair and are in need of a daily brush.

Baths: The rule of not bathing a dog in it's first years has been outdated. To be able to bathe a puppy you must first get it vaccinated and then wait till it's of 12 months of age; older dogs can bathe every 3 months or when they play in the mud. Female dogs must be bathed after the time that they're in heat. You should use a stronger type of shampoo than the one you would normally use for yourself, but even a softer shampoo will help to eliminate the grease and dirtiness, which is actually what protects him, in a way, from the cold, the rain and other atmospheric changes.

The temperature of the water should be around 34 degrees C. Be careful to not get any water into it's ears nor soap in it's eyes. Very few dogs enjoy to take a bath although they at love to jump into rivers and lakes.

Long haired or bushy haired dogs, such as the Wolfspitz or the Chow-Chow have a strong "dog smell" even after the bath. To avoid it having this strong smell you must comb and/or brush it daily, try not to massage it too harsh. Wash the spots of urine that it leaves on it's hair. It is very important to dry the dog after it's bath. Do this softly, the dog likes it. Avoid the drafts of air and let him run loose once it's dry. Next: Cleanliness of your dogs ears and eyes