Grooming your dog every so often is a must in order for their coat to be healthy, and their nails to be at a comfortable length.
Coat
The amount of times you should brush your dog’s coat depends on the amount of hair they have. There’s long, medium, and short haired dogs.
Short hair
Short haired dogs, such as Pitbulls or Boston terriers, need to be brushed once every week or every two weeks. Even though they don’t have a lot of hair or hair that needs to be untangled, brushing their coat will help the hair grow back healthy and strong.
Medium hair
Medium haired dogs, such as a Husky or an Akita, will need to be brushed more often. About 2-3 times a week is best. Dogs that have this type of coat may need to have it trimmed or shaved at least once a year.
Long hair
Long haired dogs, such as the Afghan Hound or Cavalier King Charles, will need the most grooming out of the three hair types. The dog’s in this group don’t necessarily have to have long hair, this group can also include textured hair, such as the Poodle. These dogs will need daily brushing, or at least every 3 days. This group will need to be trimmed or shaved every 5-6 months.
Brush types
To brush your dog’s coat, you can use a standard bristle brush that’s specifically for dogs. To brush their undercoat, you can use a de-shedding brush or a horse shedding blade as shown below.
Nails
I explained how to trim and often to trim your dog’s nails in another article about dog nails. Here’s a bit of a reminder:
You should trim your dog’s nails ⅛ of an inch, or until their nail is barely touching the floor every two weeks or so.
