GENERAL CARE OF DOGS

Generally dog's health reflects the owners living style .hence for keeping the dog in good condition we have to follow these general care procedures for promoting good growth and health in our dogs.

Dog Grooming

it refers to both the hygienic care and cleaning of a dog, as well as a process by which a dog's physical appearance is enhanced for showing or other types of competition. advantages are as follows

 

• Removes external parasites
• Removes dirt from body
• To make the coat more shining
• For massaging the follicles for better growth of hair
• To avoid matting of hair

Dogs are generally groomed before and after bathing to prevent the hair from matting which is an undesirable quality in case of show dogs.For long haired dog should be washed,dried and brushed in one direction for good look.

it is necessary to examine ear regularly especially for cocker spaniel,labourdor and dash hound due to their pendulous ears no aeration hence the accumulation of wax and parasites takes place.

hydrogen peroxide(H2O2) and ear drops  with catycones and antibiotics like gentamycin 's  are use for treatment.there are courses online for grooming your own dog so lets try and make your dog look healthy .

http://www.onlinegroomingschool.com/

https://www.icslearn.ca/programs/animal-care/pet-grooming-certificate

Care of eyes

Conjuntiva inflames when dog comes in contact with smoke,foreign object.common in Pomerian and Lhasa apsa tears will be continously flowing. clean eyes with mild solutions.to avoid cataract by 10 years of age to our dogs we should use eye drops.in initial stages it can be treated with vit-A.

Care of teeth

Dog will be in full mouth at 6-7 months of age.two types of eruptions mainly

• Temporary -2(I 3/3 , C 1/1, P 3/3) = 28
• Permanent-2(I 3/3, C 1/1, P 4/4, M 2/3) = 42

Usually colour of teeth is white but in some animals which are fed on canned food and spices and too much sweet and salts,the teeth gets yellow tinge.this can be removed by regular brushing.but the best thing to do is to give long bones as feed and hard biscuit.

Care of Paw and Nails

Necessary for dogs which are taken for long walks and used for exercise.Done by regular examination and cleaning of the paw&nails.

Wounds may have maggots infestation hence it is recommended to clean the feet with potassium permanganate or salt solution.

If you are wondering what the different parts are in the dog paw photo above, here is the key:

A. claws
B. digital pads (“toes” – for bearing weight)
C. metacarpal pad (the largest pad)
D. dew claw (many dogs have these removed at an early age)
E. carpal pad (this provides additional traction when descending slopes or ramps).

Deworming

Bitch is dewormed in pregnancy.if bitch is not dewormed puppy should be dewormed at day old and it should be repeated after 21 days.it is advisable to deworm once in six months.we can keep our dog safe by administering these medications to prevent diseases mainly causing by internal parasites of family - cestods ,nematodes and trematodes.