Happy Grooming Session :)

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

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ngraham
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Happy Grooming Session :)

Post by ngraham »

In the last week or so between bringing Molly home and trying to get packed to move, Koda's grooming has not been what it should be. I finally looked at him this morning and said enough is enough and Koda and I sat down to start out grooming. Maybe Molly coming will have a positive affect on Koda. We groomed for close to an hour.... world record for us. :) Koda was good the entire time. Gave me lots of kisses while I pet him and brushed. I couldn't have asked for a better boy while I groomed him. I kept thinking, where is my Koda? LOL He looks so much better now and we got rid of alot of the loose undercoat. Of course he was praised and given a special treat of a slice of cheese for being so good while I groomed him. He loves cheese. My sweet boy.
Nancy and Tai

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Post by TXSusiQ »

Puppy Kisses!! Awesome!!
Mommy to Cabo
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Post by Jeri »

Nancy,

I am new to the board but I love reading all the post... I am learning ALOT from all of you... If you dont' mind me asking you or any one else, what kind of brush do you use on your chows?!?!? My first chow came 16 years ago and I lost her when she was 14 years old... Right now I have a one year old female, Saydee Jo and just as of last Saturday I became a mommy to an 8 week old male, Kaspur... All the past chows that I have owned would let me brush them but for some reason I have to fight with Saydee to brush her.... Years ago, a groom told me just to use a "V-rake" and that is all I have used... Saydee hates the brush as soon as she sees it... Can you give me any help!?!?

Jeri, Saydee & Kaspur
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Post by Jeri »

Nancy,

I am new to the board but I love reading all the post... I am learning ALOT from all of you... If you dont' mind me asking you or any one else, what kind of brush do you use on your chows?!?!? My first chow came 16 years ago and I lost her when she was 14 years old... Right now I have a one year old female, Saydee Jo and just as of last Saturday I became a mommy to an 8 week old male, Kaspur... All the past chows that I have owned would let me brush them but for some reason I have to fight with Saydee to brush her.... Years ago, a groom told me just to use a "V-rake" and that is all I have used... Saydee hates the brush as soon as she sees it... Can you give me any help!?!?

Jeri, Saydee & Kaspur
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Post by pannw1267 »

Welcome, Jeri,
I recently adopted a 3 year old chow, Miah. I use a flat brush with pins (not sure of the official name) and a "rake". Miah sits next to me on the sofa every evening and I try to brush her a little bit every night. I alternate the brushes to remove as much of her undercoat as possible and prevent tangles. She had severe matting below her ears shaved out by the vet when I first rescued her.Image
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Post by Odessa's mum »

We got Odessa when she was 2 and her fur was badly matted on the tummy. First we tried a brush but it was not very effective and now I use a comb with long teeth and it seems to work pretty well. I am thinking of getting a rake though.
Where grooming is concerned, it all depends on Odessa, sometimes she will sit peacefully for 20mins at a time and I can groom her but at other times she will bolt after 2mins :roll:
Maybe try treats while grooming or after to make Sayde stay. Odessa loves cheese so I sometimes give her some after a longer session or just her regular treats. Maybe certain areas are matted extra and hurt when groomed with the rake, try holding the hair and combing it out. I do that with Odessa when she comes home tangled in pine cones sometimes. :lol:
Twice a year though, after she sheds, I get a professional groomer come home and give her the spa treatment -- they get their own van, park it in the driveway and give her a bath, dry, nails clipped, ears cleaned, well groomed (all in their van) and she comes out an hour and half later looking and smelling great.

Best of luck

Mildred
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Post by Auddymay »

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These are the brushes I use on Lily and Pippy. Kiwani told me the one in the middle is not good for Chows, because it breaks the hair, but I use it on her belly. The 20 pin rake on the right is for detangling near the skin- my groomer uses it, and swears by it. The round brush on the left I use for overall brushing.
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Post by ngraham »

Hi Jeri and congrats on the new baby. :)
When I got my first chowling, Sasha, she was great about letting me groom her. But that became a routine with us while she was still very little. I sat her on my lap while I drank my coffee in the morning (before computer days... LOL) before work and brushed her. So she knew that grooming was just a part of life. When I got my Koda who is somewhere between 8 and 9 months old (stupid breeder who doesn't even know a puppy's birthdate) grooming him did not come as easily as it had with Sasha. He was alot older when the kids gave him to me for Christmas and obviously the breeder had not bothered to take the time to brush him (along with alot of other things she obviously hadn't taken the time for him to do) so he fought grooming. I won't lie to you... it was hard at first. He fought me, tried to bite my hands and it was not his favorite thing to do. But persistence is the key here. They have to be groomed... they are chows and there is just not getting around it. But I persisted and also provided him treats throughout our early brushing sessions to show him that brushing was OK, I wasn't going to hurt him and that if he coperated with me, there were good things to eat as a reward. It did take awhile, but eventually Koda learned that this was a pleasurable experience and not a bad experience. He still has his times where he would rather I not groom him. But he does not try to bite my hands anymore like he used to... before when he did that, he actually tried to bite. Now while I am grooming him, he does put his teeth on my hands, but not in a defensive way like he used to. He's wagging his tail and trying to play. I do discourage him from dong that tho, since under no circumstances do I want him thinking that it is ok to put his teeth on any human... no matter what the reason. Usually an "Ouch Koda" will stop him from doing that, but if it doesn't than I put his face in my hands and put my face up next to his face and tell him to stop biting. Then he does stop. Usually our grooming sessions last 15 or 20 minutes 2 or 3 times a week. Yesterday's almost hour surprised even me. But he just sat there and enjoyed the Koda and Mommy time while I got a crap load of undercoat off of him. I use the same brush and rake Auddymay uses with the exception of the square one. I started out with a small needle brush that had a slicker brush on one side of it. I found that while we were packing the other day and tried to use it on him. Ha! That wasn't going to work any longer. My big brush I use now I got at Petsmart.. it looks just like the oval one of Auddymay's only Koda's is red and white. It even came with a little comb that fits into the side of it. Like that is gonna do me alot of good. :) And like Auddymay, I just use it as an overall brush. To get to the undercoat that needs to come out, I use a rake. The groomer I took Sasha to occassionally used a rake and swore by it... even gave me one of hers. You can pick those up at Wal-Mart or probably any other department store that sells pet supplies. But I got Koda's at Wal-Mart. I did buy a wire comb for Koda's mane, but haven't tried it yet. We did try to brush Miss Molly yesterday and of course she didn't like it. Why am I not surprised? But she will have to get used to it also. Hope all of this helps. :)
Nancy and Tai

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Jeri
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Post by Jeri »

Thanks... I will try and find the "overall" grooming brush... Saydee just tries to bite the brush not me.... then when she gets away from me, she barks at it like it is a game... and of course, I am terrible at displinary actions... She looks at me sad and I fold... The v-rake brush that I use the teeth are shaped like a v and I think it pulls the hair and skin to much... My problem areas are behind the ears and right along the edge of her "lion" mane... I am definetely finding out that every Chow's coat is different....

Jeri, Saydee & Kaspur
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Post by kiwani »

Jeri wrote: "for some reason I have to fight with Saydee to brush her.... Years ago, a groom told me just to use a "V-rake" and that is all I have used... Saydee hates the brush as soon as she sees it... Can you give me any help!?!?"
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Using a spray-on 'coat conditioner/detangler' right before you start grooming will make the comb-out much easier and less painful. The best rakes have rotating teeth, and are mounted in a spring base. This allows the teeth to conform to body curves, and the gliding rotating teeth are gentler. Keep in mind that you'd choose the *long tooth* rake made for double-coat breeds. Test the quality before you buy, by tapping the teeth on your palm - the tips shouldn't be sharp, but rounded.
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Brushing

Post by Brisco »

I only ever use the Slicker brush on my Chows. I've never noticed any "broken"(split ends?) hair, never spend more than about 15 minutes per dog and neither dog has any mats or tangles, I love it. I don't think that the oval shaped brush would even get through there coat, the pins just get pushed over on ther sides and it would take an hour or so I guess. With the slicker, I hold the hair down with one hand and brush it forward slowly moving from the head back just catching a bit of new hair with each stroke. Good luck.
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