Good Health Grooming - Why a salon visit is good for your pet

For humans, grooming is a daily process. We scrub our hands, wash our faces and take frequent showers to keep ourselves clean. Although many pets, especially cats, are known for their ability to clean themselves, professional grooming for dogs and cats is essential to helping them stay squeaky clean. Grooming is about much more than just making your pet look pretty; it can also help prevent unpleasant issues from arising with their hygiene and health.

This is especially true with long-haired pets. While a dog or cat with long, luxurious fur can be beautiful, it also requires a lot of maintenance. In the December/January 2014 issue of Animal Wellness Magazine, an article on grooming by professional groomer Toni Brightman explained the pain and potential illness associated with pets whose hair gets tangled and matted.

“If you’re a woman, imagine hot rollers wound too tightly to your head,” Brightman wrote, explaining how a matted fur coat feels to your pet. The twists and tangles in their fur are much more than unpleasant to the eye; they could actually be hampering circulation, causing skin sores and infections or hiding other ailments.

Does this mean that if you have a short-haired dog or cat, you are free to let them groom themselves? Actually, there are many additional benefits to a professional groom that will help pets of all sizes and coat types:

Hygiene – keeping an animal’s back-end clean and mat-free is important to allow them to eliminate properly.

Eyes – tearing of the eyes can lead to residue build up on your pet’s face, which can pull at their
fur and become gummy and difficult to clean. Regular grooming can prevent this buildup.

Nails – Nail care is essential for any pet, even cats who may have a scratching post or other means of filing their claws. If nails grow too long, they can actually curl and begin to grow into the pads of your pet’s feet. This is extremely painful and can cause strain on joins.

Feet – Mats of fur can grow hard and become tangled and between your pet’s pads. Imagine pebbles stuck between your toes! A groomer will keep this hair short and clean.

Ears – Ear cleaning in many breeds also requires trimming the hair that can grow inside the ear canal. A regular groom will include maintenance of this fur to prevent overgrowth and infections.

Long hair or short, cat or dog, a clean and well-groomed coat will help you pet stay healthy and happy. At Morris Animal Inn, a day at our Grooming Salon and Spa means relaxation and attention from our experienced staff. Your pet will come home looking and feeling their best! Watch the video below for a taste of what your dog or cat can expect from a grooming appointment at Morris Animal Inn:

4 LUXURIOUS WAYS TO SPOIL YOUR PET

In honor of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals month this April, we'd like to highlight some of the ways you can indulge your pet. Thanks to organizations like the ASPCA, the world has made huge strides in preventing cruelty or violence against animals. Pets, most of all, have prospered from this change. Dogs no longer sleep in the backyard or the garage, they sleep nestled next to us in our beds or on their own plush doggie mat. They wear coats in the wintertime and eat gourmet food.  Nourish this special bond by spoiling your pet with the following luxury spa treatments offered at Morris Animal Inn's grooming salon.

Facial Scrub

You thought only you could receive a facial? Think again! We offer a refreshing blueberry and vanilla scrub that will help whiten tear stains, clean dust and grime from facial fur and leave your pooch's face smelling sweet and delicious! This facial scrub is especially great for breeds with wrinkles and folds like Pugs and Shar Peis.

Paw Treatment

Much like a human pedicure, this paw treatment will soothe and moisturize dry, cracked paw pads. It will also eliminate that corn chip smell that comes from bacteria and instead, leave behind the fragrant scent of vanilla!

Shed-Less Treatment

If you have a dog that sheds, you either have a lint brush in every room of your house or you have simply given up and accept the dog hair as a fashion accessory. If you would like to eliminate some of that extra fur in your life, try our Shed-Less Treatment. This treatment removes dead hair and dander from your dog's coat. The process involves a bath with a specialty shampoo followed with an exclusive de-shedding solution. After the bath and premier conditioning, pets are dried and brushed out with a combination of tools designed to remove the greatest amount of undercoat. While the Shed-Less Treatment does not stop the natural shedding process, nor is it a one-time cure (for best results it should be done every 4 weeks), it does extract extra hair that would eventually shed and find its way onto every surface of the furniture in your house.

Canine Salon Experience

For the ultimate in pampering, try the Canine Salon Experience. This luxurious treatment includes a blueberry facial scrub, the soothing paw soak, a vanilla bubble bath, revitalizing deep-moisture shampoo (ginger and grapefruit scented), and is followed up with a vanilla and white ginger conditioner. Your pet's fur will be silky smooth and smell fabulous!

This month or any month, indulge your pet with one of our special spa treatments!

PAUSE FOR PAWS

They click on the floor announcing their arrival. They chase after squirrels in the backyard and move faster than you ever thought possible when you fill their food bowl. It's your dog's paws! Your dog’s paws are incredibly important, so we think it is time to pause for the paws and understand a little better how these fascinating parts work and what we as dog owners can do to take care of them.

PAW ANATOMY 101

Most dogs are quadruped which is a fancy, scientific way of saying your dog walks and runs on four feet! According to CanisMajor, dogs walk on their toes like a horse, not on their soles like humans. The four pads on a dog’s feet are essential for absorbing the shock of walking everyday on hard floors and cement sidewalks. They provide an element of traction so that Fido doesn’t slip and slide everywhere (though some slick man-made floors are too much for Mother Nature’s natural non-slip socks). Most dogs have dew claws (an extra nail, higher up on the leg) on the insides of their two front legs, a smaller percentage have dew claws on their hind legs and an even smaller percentage have two dew claws on their back legs. Because dew claws no longer serve a purpose, they are considered vestigial digits, though they can sometimes be helpful for holding a bone between the paws. Since dew claws are placed higher up on the leg, they do not come into contact with the ground. But it is important to remember to trim these nails as they can grow quite long and become uncomfortable for your dog. Because of the dew claws location on the leg, they are sometimes forgotten.

SEASONAL ISSUES

When extreme weather conditions plague us, they also plague your dog’s paws. Very hot temperatures can make pavement scalding to the touch and burn the pads of their paws. As a result, it is crucial to avoid walking your dog during the hottest times of day. Stick to early morning walks or late evening walks as the sun is setting. Likewise, the bitter cold of winter with the salt used on icy sidewalks, can all irritate your pup’s paws, not to mention upset their stomach if licked off their paws. When walking your dog in the winter, make sure to wash their paws after your walk with lukewarm water.

NAILING IT

Fido’s nails get naturally filed down from walking on hard floors and cement but some dog’s nails seem to grow faster than others. The longer the nails, the more likely they are to scratch your hardwood floors, your bare legs, or even your face during playtime. Long nails are also uncomfortable for your pet. To keep your pooch comfortable and to protect your skin and the furniture, make sure your dog gets regular nail trims. Trimming your dog’s nails can be tricky especially if you have a dog that despises the procedure, (most dogs do). It is important to be careful not to cut the quick of the nail which is the vein. In clear nails, the quick looks like a darkish line but in black nails it is very difficult to see. To save you the trouble, stop by Morris Animal Inn for a nail trim and a filing.

THE PAW LICKER

Photo Courtesy of luluemon athletica

This issue can easily become every dog owner’s worst nightmare. What starts as a seemingly innocuous habit done out of boredom can quickly turn into an obsessive routine that can turn your pup’s paw red and raw. Unfortunately, the cause of this habit can be attributed to many factors including boredom, irritation, allergies, and stress. If your dog is in an incessant paw-licker, consult your veterinarian to determine the cause.

If you follow some of these paw tips you will keep Fido pawsitively healthy and walking proud!