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Chinese Crested Grooming.
Informtion on how to groom your Chinese Crested
DBT highly recommends the How To Professionally Groom Your Dog At Home ebook when learning to groom your dog or pet.
The Chinese crested is also called the African Hairless terrier.
Two different types may be born in the same litter: the Hairless or the Powderpuff.
The Hairless has human-like skin and very little hair on its head (head crest), tail (plume), and lower legs/feet (socks.) It has a single coat.
The Powderpuff has a silky, soft double coat and the same furnishings. Both of these dogs require daily grooming.
The Hairless Chinese Crested has super-sensitive skin that must be conditioned or oiled as well as shaved.
The Powderpuff needs to be brushed and combed daily to avoid painful and infectious matting.
Tools: Soft pin brush, fine comb, spray conditioner, oil/cream, sunscreen.
Apply skin cream/oil and sunscreen to your Hairless daily. Comb and brush its furnishings daily.
Brush and comb your Powderpuff daily; these silky hairs can easily mat and cause skin irritation and infection.
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 ears once a week.
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.
Hair growing into the ear canal can prevent the canal from drying properly and trap bacteria, causing infection.
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.
Starting this dog off with this practice can be tricky. Reward it constantly 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.
The Chinese Crested has long toes and nails. Take care when clipping.
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 of the pliers variety, 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 and touch your bulldog'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 and put your arm around its shoulders if you can 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.
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.
Expressing Glands: Every 2 to 4 weeks
This is a task normally done when you take your dog in for professional grooming. It's easy enough to do yourself.
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. That's when your dog drags its butt along your 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
The Chinese Crested has very sensitive skin that dries easily. Do not bathe too frequently or you will strip the natural oils that moisturize its skin and condition its coat.
A rubdown with a damp towel can remove dirt and hair. With regular brushing, ear cleaning and gland expression, dog odour will remain minimal.
Tools: Non-slip mat, sprayer hose, dog shampoo, conditioner, 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 hard to hold a slippery dog. If your dog is being difficult or awkward, a muzzle and a helper would be a good idea.
Never bathe your dog in standing water and never use human shampoo.
Find a shampoo and conditioner formulated for your Chinese Crested's sensitive skin.
Wet your dog using your hand to massage it.
Avoid getting water into the eyes, nose and ears.
cotton wool balls may be placed into the ears to deter water.
Massage the shampoo into a lather.
Rinse thoroughly as leftover shampoo can severely dry out and irritate your pet's skin.
Condition and rinse.
Squeeze off excess water by running your hands along its body. Dry with a towel.
Blow-dry the furnishings and comb thoroughly.
The Salon Treatment:
There are many different hair styles that are acceptable for show.
Hairless Chinese Crested dogs are normaly shaved closely in most places, often with human tools.
Full hair on all furnishings is acceptable but many owners prefer to shave the body, face and head and ears close (of both types) and shave the legs to the socks and the 1st part of the tail.