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Bouvier Des Flandres Grooming.
Informtion on how to groom your Bouvier Des Flandres
DBT highly recommends the How To Professionally Groom Your Dog At Home ebook when learning to groom your dog or pet.
The Bouvier des Flandes or the Cattle dog of Flandes has a shaggy, rough and heavy coat. This dog needs plenty of combing and hand plucking or stripping 3 times a year.
Regular combing is one of the best things you can do to help your pet become healthy and happy. Your Bouvier des Flandes needs help getting rid of dead hair that can trap dampness and bacteria.
Combing:
. Removes dirt and debris
. Invigorates the skin
. Spreads oils to moisturize skin and keep its coat shiny
. Prevents mats and tangles which are irritating and painful and can harbour bacteria, fungus and other infection
. Keeps your house cleaner especially during shedding seasons
. Bonding, massaging, loving interaction
. Early detection of fleas, ticks, eczema, infection and smells
that may signify sickness
Tools: Comb, rake, slicker
The coat of the Bouvier des Flandes needs regular combing down to the skin to pull out unwanted dead hair.
The Bouvier des Flandes has a rough outer coat that needs hand stripping.
Wiry-haired dogs are supposed to look rough and their hair is meant to be coarse. These top-coat hairs grow to longer length than the undercoat and then fall out from the root. The hair doesn't "blow out" or drop as normally shedding hair does: it needs help.
Wiry hair is naturally water and dirt resistant. Clipping this hair instead of plucking or stripping it causes its color to change dramatically over time and it will become soft, cottony, bumpy and too fluffy.
Clipping also leaves a wire-haired dog itchy all-over and irritated because the dead hair shafts remain behind.
Always pluck or strip before a bath. Wet hair is impossible to grasp and it's a good idea to bathe away irritation and clean any cuts or abrasions that may occur.
Hand-Plucking or Stripping Basics:
Hand plucking or stripping is the act of removing hair from either the top coat or the undercoat of your pet by hand.
Perfectionists always hand pluck. This involves holding the pelt down with one hand, grasping some hairs between thumb and forefinger, and giving a firm, fast tug in the direction of hair growth.
Never twist the wrist. This cuts the hair rather than pulling it from the root.
Dead hair comes out easily. If needed, apply powder or chalk to the dog's fur or your own fingertips for a better grip. Some swear by a rubber glove or finger cap.
Stripping is plucking with a tool. Make sure this knife is blunt. The purpose is not to cut the dog, the hair or yourself but to grip the hair.
Grasp the stripper and hold it perpendicular to the dog's hair growth. Grab some hair between the stripper's teeth and your thumb, rotating the blade away from the thumb and give a quick pull.
Hand plucking and stripping are time and labour intensive.
A more detailed stripping plan can be found at the end of this article.
Eyes: Check your dog's eyes daily.
Debris is flushed to the corners of the eyes and daily wiping with a wet cloth or paper towel can prevent the build up of bacteria.
Ears: Check frequently; this dog's ears tend to get infected.
Your dogs ears should be pink and healthy inside. If not, don't do anything to them until you see a vet. Keeping your dogs' ears clean minimizes odour, removes dirt, bacteria and mites trapped in wax. Never use a cotton swab on the inner ear.
Tools: cotton wool balls or soft cloth and ear solution.
There are solutions made specifically for dogs but substitutes include: hydrogen peroxide, alcohol, mineral oil, witch hazel, and tea tree oil.
Place a few drops of ear solution in ear and rub and massage to loosen wax. Swab out with cotton wool balls or cloth.
Ear Hair Plucking: Every two weeks.
Your Bouvier des Flandes has hair growing into the ear canal. This can prevent the canal from drying properly, trapping bacteria, and causing fungal infections.
Tools: Tweezers, powder, chalk, rubber gloves all optional.
Lift the dog's ear and lay it back. Grasp the hair along the inside of the ear between thumb and forefinger and then pull firmly. This hair should come out easily.
Use tools to help grip slippery hair.
Teeth: Regularly.
80% of 3 year old dogs have periodontal disease. Cavities and gum disease are painful for your dog; they diminish its pleasure and ability to eat. Bacteria that develops can infect the heart, kidney, liver and brain. Really bad breath is usually a sign of gum disease.
Tools: Toothbrush/finger cap/cloth, doggie toothpaste, tooth scraper.
Never use human toothpaste. It is not edible.
Starting this dog off with this practice takes patience. Reward it constantly, no matter what its behavior to get it used to grooming.
Start off by getting it used to its mouth being handled.
Progress to touching the teeth with your finger.
Get some meat-flavoured toothpaste and apply with your finger.
Then introduce the brush. Clean a few teeth at a time and soon you will have a routine that takes just minutes.
Brush in a circular motion and get under the gum line.
If you don't want to brush everyday, use a tooth scraper once or twice a month to get rid of the build up of plaque. It accumulates mostly on the outside of the teeth and on the back molars. This won't be much fun for your or your dog though. Lots of bones and hard, crunchy foods can minimize plaque but not to a truly effective degree.
Nails: Every two weeks.
Nails that aren't trimmed can splinter and infect the quick or grow and curl into the flesh. This can be painful for your dog to walk on. It will affect its gait, posture, and eventually it's skeletal and ligament health. Nails should never touch the ground. When your dog is standing its nails should rest above the ground. If you hear clicking on the kitchen floor, clipping is overdue.
Tools: Doggie Nail Clippers (scissors, pliers, guillotine), Dremel or file, Styptic or Kwikstop.
Introducing your dog to nail clipping should start off by getting it used to its paws being handled. Stroke, touch and manipulate your dog's paws whenever you are giving it affection.
Getting it used to the Dremel is your best bet to avoid clipping altogether.
Sit beside your dog so that you are clipping from underneath and at the right angle.
Lift the paw and press on it to expose the claw.
If it has a clear nail you should be able to see the quick: a dark bundle of nerves and blood vessels. Clip from underneath close to the quick but do not cut into it. If you do, your dog will soon let you know. Use Styptic pencil or Kwikstop to staunch the bleeding.
Buff the ragged edge with a file or Dremel.
If it has a dark nail, clip just under the curve of the nail and then you will be able to look inside and see the quick if you look close enough. Clip using tiny snips at a time.
Don't forget to check for dewclaws: an extra claw dogs may have farther up on the leg that works like a thumb. It is better to clip your dog's nails frequently as this encourages the quick to recede farther away from the tip.
Paws: Check daily/Trim every two weeks.
It is very important to Check between your dogs pads for foreign objects that may have wedged there and check the pads themselves for cuts, scrapes and infection.
Tools: Small, blunt scissors, slicker brush or comb.
The Bouvier des Flandes has hair that grows between its pads. This hair can mat and trap bacteria, besides becoming painful to walk on.
Trim hair around the paws to keep them clean. Only do this when the dog is standing on the paw.
Push the feathers growing on top of the foot down through the toes and trim to pad level.
Lift the paw and from the back, brush out the hair and trim to pad level.
Push feathers back up through the toes and trim from the top.
Hygienic trimming: 2 to 4 weeks.
Tools: Blunt-nosed scissors, Thinning Shears, Electric clippers
Trimming at the front of ears, under the tail and around the privates keeps your dog feeling better as well as keeping it and your house cleaner.
Expressing Glands: Every 2 to 4 weeks
This is a task normally done when you take your dog in for professional grooming. Your dog uses scent glands in the anus to mark its territory.
These glands also excrete when your dog defecates. At times, they may get impacted. Signs of this include: increased doggie odour, excessive licking and chewing of the behind and worst of all, scooting (when your dog drags its bottom along the floor or carpet).
There is no risk of overly expressing these glands so it's best to get accustomed to doing it regularly as it will lessen dog odour.
Tools: Warm cloth
Lift the dog's tail and hold the cloth against it's behind. Place your fingers at 5 o'clock and 7 o'clock and press inward and squeeze to expel.
Bathing: As needed
Bouvier des Flandes' do not need regular bathing. Their coat has natural oils to moisturize their skin and keep them resistant to dirt and water. Stripping these oils with frequent bathing dries out the skin and ruins the texture of their protective coat.
A rubdown with a damp towel can remove dirt and sponge cleaning of the face, legs ruff and tail is also a possibility.
With regular brushing, ear cleaning and gland expression, dog odour will remain minimal.
Bathing a few times a year is usually adequate.
Exceptions to this are when your dog manages to roll in something or during its shedding season. A bath can help to remove a large amount of shedding hair.
Tools: Non-slip mat, sprayer hose, dog shampoo, leash, towels.
Choose a place where you can block escape routes and expect 1-3 water-spraying shakes.
A leash tied to a higher point than your dog's head will keep it standing and prevent it from escaping. This is highly recommended as it's really difficult to hold a slippery dog.
Never bathe your dog in standing water and never use human shampoo.
If you choose to bathe your Bouvier des Flandes outside, attach the hose to the tap of your kitchen sink for warm water.
Grooming salons often offer self-service use of their well-equipped facilities.
Wet your dog using your hand so as to massage and lift the hair to get to the undercoat.
Avoid getting water into the eyes, nose and ears.
Cotton wool can be stuffed into the ear canal to deter water.
Massage lather down to undercoat.
Rinse thoroughly as leftover shampoo can severely dry out and irritate your pet's skin.
Rinse and squeeze off excess water by running your hands along its body and pressing down gently.
Dry with a towel.
The Complete Strip:
Strip the ears very short to the leather at the tips and the lower part of the ear to the jaw.
Strip the top of the head to the temples to about ½ inch, the eyebrows to 1 inch.
Pluck between the brows so that the fall falls to around the muzzle.
Thin out cheeks so that they fall nicely into the beard.
Even out the beard slightly with scissors.
The jaw and throat should start very short and get progressively longer until you reach about 1 1/2 inches from the sternum.
The lower chest should be 2-2 ½ inches ong, the neck 2 inches.
Trim the back of the neck and the back to 2-2 ½ inches.
Even the shoulder hair and fronts of legs should br trimmed.
Strip all the legs to even the lines.
The tail should be very short and the hindquarters short but gradually getting longer towards the hocks.
