How to give my chowchow a cool summer...

Topics, guidelines and tips for coat and skin care and grooming Chow Chows.

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xueshuxin
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How to give my chowchow a cool summer...

Post by xueshuxin »

I'm really a new chow owner and don't know many necessary things.

How often does a chow take a bath usually? From a book I know that at the most once in a week, even in warmest summer weather.

You know this sounds really not practical... My chow, SongSong, is very sensitive to the temprature; it's still in spring here in Beijing, China, however he often sticks his mouth out. Believe 'coz he feels too warm. Can't imagine were I him, how could I live w/o a bath each day.

What can I do with him in the summer then? He takes a bath once a month now :( that's what the book suggests.

Another problem is about air conditioner. One book says chowchows can't endure high temperature and if you own a chow, you shall turn on your a/c; however another book says a/c cooling can cause problems since anyway your chow will be outside for at least once or twice in a day, the temperature difference will give him cold, blahblahblah. So confusing.

The weather in Beijing is somewhat the same as in New York, I believe. How do you take care of your chowchows in summer? I'm really eager to know
:?

Thanks! :D
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ciaobella
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Post by ciaobella »

Hi! I'm new here, too.
I can understand how you can get confused by "what the books say"...I have read that a bath once a month is fine, some sources say three baths a year is more than enough. If you ask my chowgirl Sophie, one bath per year is too much (she hates a bath). She gets the once a month treatment, whether she likes it or not! :wink:

I'm lucky to have a nearby park where we walk that has a field bordered on three sides by a creek, and on hot days Sophie will cool off her tummy and legs in the water. Other people use plastic children's wading pools to help keep their chowkids cool. No soap involved to strip the oil from their skin, so it's not really a bath.

Sophie's favorite method for keeping cool is to plop down on the air conditioning floor vent at my Mom's house and hog all the cold air... keeps her deliciosly cool, and fills the house with a chowwy- fresh fragrance! :roll:

Some people have their chows fur trimmed short for the summer, but I never have because I've heard that their fur not only insulates them from the cold, but also the heat. Don't know if that's true, wonder what everyone else thinks?
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Auddymay
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Post by Auddymay »

You are exactly right, Sophie. There are a few people here who live in some hot conditions, and from what I can tell, these dogs are all waders, whether it's in a kiddie pool, the ocean, or a lake or river! It's the soap that is the problem, as you said. There are any number of answers about how often to bathe, I'm shooting for twice a year with Lily, and my mix, Pip, only gets one at Christmas. Lily's chest is kinda gray from dirt, so I'm going to look into wipes to clean between baths. I think once a week is asking for skin problems.
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xueshuxin
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Post by xueshuxin »

So getting him wet to cool down is ok, but a bath with soap will be dangerous right?

Then I'll give him a bath maybe once a season.

Thanks!
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Post by TigerTiger »

From my experience, as long as our chowboy/girl gets good daily brush(es), show them couple times a year is more than enough, As Auddymay said, bath them once a month is really a bad idea as it will creat more harm than good to both the coat and the skin. Of cause, give them a bath after a camping trip is always neccessary. :D
Purple kisses from Tiger xxxxxx

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Post by TigerTiger »

Oh, can I ask how big(weight) is Songsong? We met couple chowboy(or girl?) last year when we visit Beijing, they are kind of small. Our Tiger is almost 7 years old, and he weights between 72 to 75 pounds.
Purple kisses from Tiger xxxxxx

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Post by kiwani »

Re: "So getting him wet to cool down is ok..."

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Actually, as long as he has his plush puppy undercoat, wetting him down will make him hotter. The water would weigh down the fine undercoat fur and trap body heat.
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Post by Judy Fox »

We aim to bath Milly and Mabel twice a year - in the Autumn and in the spring. But, if they get dirty we give them a third bath.
We brush and comb them every day and let them lie out in the garden in the hot weather. :)
They find somewhere cool to lie or come into the house where it is cool in our bedroom which faces north.
We don't walk them when the sun is high in the summer - in fact, if there is a very hot day, we don't walk them at all.
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Post by ciaobella »

Sophie will be thrilled to find out her once a month regime is too extreme! She thinks the bathtub is a medieval torture device, poor girl.

Now, if I could just get her from trying to befriend the skunk population, her life would be near perfect! :lol:

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Post by kingalls »

Our Shiloh is a Chow mix and has a kiddie pool that she jumps into - even in the winter. Mr. N is full chow and hates water - he's over 2 yrs old now and has never had a bath...he is groomed on a regular basis. He doesn't have a stinky problem or a skin problem either. It also seems like the lanolin on the fur helps to get him brushed out clean easier when and if he does get a little muddy.
Although Shiloh loves her kiddie pool - we don't bath her. We do brush her but don't try to shampoo and bath her. She doesn't have any skin problems either.
Shiloh has a very heavy Chow scent while Mr. N is not as distinct.
During the warmer months, we do not run/walk them in temps greater than 72 degrees. If we do take them out in 70 degree weather, it is a walk - no running as it is very difficult for them to handle.
Mr. N's groomer said that Mr. Nahkohe is much easier to brush because of the natural lanolin.

Hope this helps,
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Post by Auddymay »

A bit off topic, but for new chow owners- take care you are brushing your babies thoroughly. I recently took Lily to the groomers, and she showed me some tangled fur I was missing deep in the mane near her skin. She raked Lil out a couple minutes and had a pile of hair when she was done. I ended uo and bought a rake like hers. It is the 3rd one. The other 2 is what I was using before (and still am).
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(Little does she know I am brushing Miss Curious after I'm done posting.)

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Post by xueshuxin »

Thanks for all your useful tips.

My SongSong is only 4.5 months old and weighs around 40 pounds or less (15kg).

I comb him twice everyday; he seems to enjoy it a lot! :mrgreen:

In summer it's very here in Beijing, usually over 35 centigrade(sorry I'm not familiar with farenheit degree :( )

There are big chows in Beijing, too; maybe it's because big chows are forbidden in the city area that only small chows can be seen.

Mine won't grow quite big finally, I believe; I've decided to walk him twice each day in the summer, once in the early morning and once when it's all dark.

I've got only two apartments, so he can only stay inside :(

And I'll only bath him twice or three times a year, that's my decision! :-?
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Post by kiwani »

Auddymay wrote: "The other 2 is what I was using before (and still am)."

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If that's a pin-brush in the middle, those can easily damage fur, causing shaft breakage. Also, it's best to lightly mist the coat before combing to prevent breakage.
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Post by kiwani »

Re: "Mine won't grow quite big finally, I believe;"

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At his current rate of growth, I don't see him being a 'small' Chow either, probably will be over 60 pounds.
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Post by Auddymay »

I use the middle brush on Lily's hips and stomache fur. It is that wooly stuff that gets all bunchy. The hair regrowth on her belly from being spayed is really nappy, and it makes short work of it. :P

also :o Thanks for the misting tip I was wondering if I should mist her mane because it gets all static charged when I'm working on it. I hesitated because I thought THAT might cause damage. I'll give it a try.
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Post by kiwani »

Re: "I was wondering if I should mist her mane because it gets all static charged when I'm working on it. I hesitated because I thought THAT might cause damage."
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You'll find a lot of grooming sites mentioning misting to protect the coat and that static while brushing can damage coat. Here's one excerpt on Chows below. You can add a small amount of something like silk protein coat conditioner to the misting water, or a coat conditioner like mink oil, etc. Some of the coat dressing solutions contain sunscreen too.


Excerpt:
"Your Chow should be brushed weekly between baths. Lay the Chow on his side, mist the coat with coat dressing and brush thoroughly to the skin. Coat dressing prevents hair breakage, static and generally makes grooming easier."
http://www.chowwelfare.com/cciw/groom.htm
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