In addition, it is not quite good enough just to keep them clean. Pet owners take great pride in their four-legged furry family members. That is quite an understatement for many pet owners.
Pets are now groomed on a very regular basis similar to the way an older generation of women would frequent the beauty shop.
Typically, many pets will be groomed twice a month which includes a bath, hair cut and style, nail trim, decorative bows or bandana, and some pretty smelling perfume.
Some groomers routinely pluck hair from dogs’ ears as well as express their anal glands. My personal and professional opinion is to remove hair from the ears if the pet has a history of chronic ear problems. Certainly, I don’t think pets should have their anal glands expressed unless they are having trouble with the glands. Plucking hair can irritate the sensitive skin inside of the ear, and squeezing anal glands can traumatize the previously normal anatomy. If it’s not broken, don’t fix it!
There are plenty of situations where grooming is medically necessary. Unfortunately, more often than not, the breed standard for grooming does not always consider medical conditions as part of the latest style.
For example, brachycephalic breeds, dogs with very short muzzles, have hair on their muzzles that pokes in their eyes. The classical breed standard grooming does not call for this hair to be kept really short. It doesn’t look as pretty as leaving the hair covering their eyes. Keeping this hair cut very short reduces irritated eyes with less watery eyes and conjunctivitis, inflammation of the eyes.
Medically speaking, grooming your pet can be a very important means of preventing skin infections and conditions associated with the lack of good hygiene. Very commonly, matted hair allows for infection to set up due to the lack of air circulation and excessive moisture under the mats. Some pets will develop inflammation and infection around their rectum simply due to feces getting stuck on the hair in their rectal area.
The dangers of grooming are common problems seen rather frequently. You probably never even associated danger with grooming. However, there are several grooming situations that have potential for serious consequences. Playing percentages, only about 25 percent of groomed pets will sit perfectly still for long periods of time cooperating fully for the groomer. That means there is a much greater chance that the pet will move around a lot during their grooming. On a fairly regular basis, pets get accidently cut by the groomer’s scissors.
Many pets cooperate much better if they are sedated prior to grooming. This should be done under the supervision of your pet’s veterinarian. Sedation could lead to a slow heart rate and low blood pressure. Certainly, your veterinarian should examine your pet prior to sedation to ensure that it is healthy enough for sedation. In addition, some pets require general anesthesia, completely asleep, so they must be sufficiently healthy for this type of grooming technique.
Grooming pets carries a great deal of responsibility and liability for groomers. Older pets can become so stressed during grooming and suffer from heat exhaustion or even worse, a heart failure condition. Obviously, these situations require immediate attention of a veterinarian.
Another situation that requires attention is that all grooming facilities should require all grooming pets to be current on their vaccinations, including distemper, parvo virus, and bordetella also known as kennel cough. These vaccinations should be given by your veterinarian prior to any grooming appointment.
Advantageous characteristics of groomers are lots of experience and credentials such as being certified or licensed. All groomers should have a good working rapport with a veterinarian in order to quickly respond to any emergency situation that might arise during grooming.
If your pet needs grooming, either for medically necessary reasons or just for preventative care, ask your veterinarian for a recommendation for a groomer to ensure that your pet lives a long, healthy, and happy life.
