# Grooming



## emCee (May 23, 2010)

How often do you brush your dog?
After the dog park I took my dog out and brushed him. It looks like he has lost 5lbs in just fur. He does look much better and seems much cooler.


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## GSD MOM (Apr 21, 2010)

We brush for 5-10 min every day or every other day.


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

I usually only brush every month or two unless they're blowing coat. Halo is blowing coat. :wild: I took enough undercoat off her on Friday to outfit several medium size dogs, and then we did it all over again on Monday. But now she's practically bald, so it will probably be awhile.


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## Minnieski (Jan 27, 2009)

I try to brush them at least once a week, but twice is better. It really keeps the hair out of the house, and it keeps them cleaner and smelling good.


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## Asche-zu-Staub (Apr 25, 2010)

When i first rescued my first shepherd sam (owners put him on craigslist, they were quiet clearly drug dealers and he was underweight and matty) i had to brush him everyday for what seemed like ages! The first day i got 4 grocery bags of messy nasty undercoat. it was horrible...

with my two dogs now, i brush stauba daily for about 5-10 mins (shedding puppy/undercoat ) and aschen once a week because his long coat doesnt shed or tangle all that much, he's very silky (for now....)!!!!!!


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## Mary Beth (Apr 17, 2010)

Daily - and I combine it with a massage and good rubdown. He enjoys it and it keeps his coat looking nice, also I can spot any skin problems right away.


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## Andy-jr. (Mar 1, 2010)

Once a week for me.


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

out of 7 days i make sure
i brush 4 days sometimes more.
i spend 15 to 20 minutes brushing.


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## Josiebear (Oct 16, 2006)

I have noticed JOsie's coat is a bit greasier since she's been on her meds for EPI and she doesn't smell all that great so i have to bathe her at least once a month. I hope that isn't too much for her?

What kind of shampoos do you guys use for dry itchy skin? ( which she has)


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## WolfCrest (May 13, 2010)

I brush Jericho for 5-10 mins every other day and do one full on grooming maybe once a week if it's nasty muddy outside or he gets into stuff he shouldn't. One every 2-3 weeks otherwise. For shampoos I use a nice oatmeal shampoo for itchy/dry skin. For the dogs I was at school we use a pyrantel shampoo mixed with an aloe and oatmeal, which seems to be doublely helpful since it kills any hiding fleas if there are any (Good after a visit to the dog park) and the Aloe and Oatmeal help with the itchy/dry skin issues.


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## CandySkyer (Sep 29, 2009)

There is earth bath oatmeal and aloe shampoo i use for fenix.. it had helped a lot with her itchy skin. she loved it. its very natural, no chemicals at all.


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## Gib Laut (Feb 21, 2010)

I don't brush Dex unless he's been swimming a lot and has a bit of hair coming out...he doesn't shed much.....

JosieBear we just tried a rinse on our female of 1 cup colloidal oatmeal (make your own or buy) and 1 cup baking soda, dissolve in warm/temped water, poured on her, left 15-30 mins. and rinsed with clean water. She had a severe skin reaction to her rabies vaccine (thank goodness no more of those for her) and it really helped with the inflamed skin and itching.


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## misplacedsooner (Jun 5, 2010)

nice thread, i was just gonna ask a question on this matter. when we brought sam in to join us as an inside dog i had to bath the heck out of him...he still has a slight odor to him though, can i bath him again?? and what shampoo? he has kinda itchy skin from fleas bothering him i suspect when he was outside. i used advantage and now see no fleas but he still itches once in awhile. i put some anti itch meds on him and it seemed to help. his coat is pretty coarse except for his head and neck is this normal or is there something i can use to make him softer??


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## Gib Laut (Feb 21, 2010)

misplacedsooner said:


> nice thread, i was just gonna ask a question on this matter. when we brought sam in to join us as an inside dog i had to bath the heck out of him...he still has a slight odor to him though, can i bath him again?? and what shampoo? he has kinda itchy skin from fleas bothering him i suspect when he was outside. i used advantage and now see no fleas but he still itches once in awhile. i put some anti itch meds on him and it seemed to help. his coat is pretty coarse except for his head and neck is this normal or is there something i can use to make him softer??


a high quality, species appropriate and natural diet will generally do the trick, as well as EFA's such as fish oil, flax oil and olive oil.


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## JakodaCD OA (May 14, 2000)

I hardly ever brush Masi, she has a short stock coat, but sheds like a german shedder at times) I can not live without my metro air force blower,,she gets blown out a couple times a week, and what a difference, also easier than brushing tho she doesn't mind that either.

My aussies on the other hand, one has more of a working line coat, he's easy, blows out nice.. My female who's a foo foo dog, doesn't like to give up her coat,,soooo have to get in and really pull it out of her,,I use an undercoat rake on her alot and thin it out. 

As for the Q above about bathing,,you can bathe him again, find a shampoo for itchy skin, or medicated oatmeal. Make sure when you bath him yourself, to get ALL that shampoo off him,,any left can also make them itchy


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## misplacedsooner (Jun 5, 2010)

Gib Laut said:


> a high quality, species appropriate and natural diet will generally do the trick, as well as EFA's such as fish oil, flax oil and olive oil.


forgive my ignorance but how do i apply the oils or are they pills i give?? also what type of food does everyone feed??


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## Gib Laut (Feb 21, 2010)

misplacedsooner said:


> forgive my ignorance but how do i apply the oils or are they pills i give?? also what type of food does everyone feed??


lol, sorry.....fish oil comes in gel caps, flax is best purchased bottled....I would give 2 fish oil caps per day initially (pierce and squeeze onto food) and watch the coat, when better down to one....flax or olive oil added at 1 tbsp per day....as for food, oh boy, you'll get a million comments!....I now feed raw, but you can find some high quality dry foods like Orijen that will offer great benefit to overall health and dramatically improve coat and skin.....


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## misplacedsooner (Jun 5, 2010)

ok, i got the pill thing down and will get some and start it. the food you named i have never even heard of,lol. as for the raw, are you talking about raw meat?? i thought that was supposed to be bad for animals. i have always bought the large bags at like walmart, is pedigree a good one?


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## Gib Laut (Feb 21, 2010)

misplacedsooner said:


> ok, i got the pill thing down and will get some and start it. the food you named i have never even heard of,lol. as for the raw, are you talking about raw meat?? i thought that was supposed to be bad for animals. i have always bought the large bags at like walmart, is pedigree a good one?


since we're starting to hijack this thread, I will refer you to the Diet and Nutrition and BARF/Raw Feeding sections and ask you to take a look....I will tell you now, pedigree is very poor and generally anything at stores like Walmart are going to be sub-par and nutrient deficient foods. I do encourage you to take a look in those sections, there are a great deal of knowledgeable people here who can help, but you also need to educate yourself about the digestive system of dogs, ingredients in dog food and how to select a better diet for your dog....good luck to you, it's not as scary as it sounds and the benefits you will see make it worthwhile. 

PS yes, it is raw meat, no, it's not bad for dogs lol


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## misplacedsooner (Jun 5, 2010)

thanks ill take a look. i too saw that we, mostly i had started to jack a good thread that id like to see stay on course for the good info it contains....i just have so many questions,lol.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

misplacedsooner;
The thread hi-jack is somewhat legit because diet is the key to a good coat...brushing or not. 
If you feed a quality diet with supplements the dog doesn't shed as much, therefore brushing only during the heavy blowtime is sufficient in my house.
I brush my dogs daily right now as they had heavy undercoats this past winter(never before so thick!) They are about done shedding, finally!
I feed RAW and never have smelly dry coated dogs, they only get baths if they get into something. During the pollen season, I like to hose them down as Karlo and Onyx seem to have sensitivities to pollen, causing them to scratch. A brush won't take the pollen out of the coat. 
For brushes I use an undercoat rake and a slicker brush, one of my dogs is long coated and those brushes work for both types of coat. I'm not a fan of the furminator.


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## misplacedsooner (Jun 5, 2010)

thank you , im reading over some pages of the diet now. most of the dry food i havent heard of. i think our feed store carries diamond brand. other than that i have walmart and petco to choose from.


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## Gib Laut (Feb 21, 2010)

misplacedsooner said:


> thank you , im reading over some pages of the diet now. most of the dry food i havent heard of. i think our feed store carries diamond brand. other than that i have walmart and petco to choose from.


if you update your profile with your location, you may be able to ask others close where they get theirs from....I'm from canada, but I know some in the US order online....or, some stores will order in food for you if you ask...tho not walmart.....it's really great you're taking the time to read and learn about food....good for you.....


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## VChurch (Jun 14, 2010)

Question:
For those of you that brush your GSD everyday, does it control the shedding enough to keep a spotless clean house???


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## JudynRich (Apr 16, 2010)

Mia is having her summer shed...so it is daily for her (we fill a bag a day) ...Bella has no loose hair at this time, I brush her and the brush is empty, so it really depends on the dog and the time of year. As for batheing, I try to keep it to only twice yearly. GSDs skin can be sensitive.


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## KayElle (Mar 1, 2010)

I brush every day and except when they blow their coats, I have very little dog hair in the house. I have a long coat and a stock coat and I can tell you that my long coat sheds virtually nothing except when he blows his coat. My female stock coat is the one that I will get a little hair on the floor. I bathe them right after they blow their coats in the early summer and right before Christmas (for Santa)


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## Anja1Blue (Feb 27, 2008)

I brush every other day unless they are blowing coat - then it's daily. I live in a dry climate so they stay very clean. (Raw diet means no doggy smell also.) Both my dogs are paranoid about getting bathed, in their previous lives I don't think their owners introduced them to water (or perhaps they had a bad experience.) So I generally stick with Earthbath Grooming Foam for Dogs - it has a very nice clean smell and does a surprisingly good job of getting out what little dirt they have in their coats.
_________________________________
Susan

Anja SchH3 GSD
Conor GSD
Blue BH WH T1 GSD - waiting at the Bridge


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## Mary Beth (Apr 17, 2010)

To answer VChurch:
Spotless clean house - no, Spotless clean dog - yes 

"Daily brusher"


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## Samba (Apr 23, 2001)

I wish brushing my dog daily would make my house spotless!


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## Anja1Blue (Feb 27, 2008)

Samba said:


> I wish brushing my dog daily would make my house spotless!


 Me too!!! Doesn't seem to work that way tho'...
________________________________
Susan

Anja SchH3 GSD
Conor GSD
Blue BH WH T1 GSD - waiting at the Bridge


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## brucebourdon (Jun 2, 2010)

My 6 month old (Kyra) mouths my hands and the brush whenever I try - ends up being a wrestling match...


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## Mary Beth (Apr 17, 2010)

Kyra may be having fun but her(?) coat is going to suffer. Try having a chew toy or a toy, give her that when she tries to bite the brush and mouth your hand. Also brush her when she is tired and not full of energy. Just do a little bit - reward her when it is done, and gradually work up to more.


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## brucebourdon (Jun 2, 2010)

Thanks for the great suggestions Mary Beth, will do!


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## ZAYDA (Apr 22, 2010)

I brush every 3-4 days but always seemed to still get hair and when people pet my girls all that lose outter coat just keeps coming off as if I never brush them. So I picked up one of those rubber mitts and started using that and collecting all that outter coat. My girls look so much more shinny and soft I wish I would have tried it sooner I don't have any idea what took me so long.


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## ILGHAUS (Nov 25, 2002)

I brush a lot when they are blowing their undercoat or before going anywhere. Other times it is a hit and miss thing. I sometimes am tempted to contact someone at the space training center and ask if they would allow me to put my dogs in one of their wind tunnels. Bet that would get rid of a bunch of hair. 

Baths, well I take the easy way. Karl goes to the groomer for his oatmeal treatment and hydro tub soak every other week. Last time he was there the groomer gave him a blueberry facial ??? Guess she was either bored or had some extra from another client? Either way she didn't charge for it and Karl didn't seem to think it harmed his macho shepherd look so all was good. 

The other two get baths as needed which the white poodle who is a house dog gets dirtier than her sable shepherd brother who likes to dig and role.


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## LaRen616 (Mar 4, 2010)

I brush Sin once a week with the furminator. It takes me less than 5 minutes. When I switched him to grainless he started shedding alot less.


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## Caledon (Nov 10, 2008)

I love brushing my dog. Lucky for us both she loves it too.

I try to brush as much as I can - daily if I remember. I use a zoom groom, a pin brush, an undercoat rake and shedding tool, which I like the most.


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## Dawn (Jun 23, 2010)

I try to brush Raven every other day. She is not real fond of it and thinks of the brush as a toy so after about a minute and half she is trying to take the brush out of my hands..lol


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