Summer Grooming and Skincare for Dogs

Maybe you have a new puppy, or your dog has been  acting itchy. Maybe your dog is getting older and showing some signs of being uncomfortable, maybe you’re just looking to learn a bit more. Whatever the reason, you’re here, and we are going to look at grooming and skin care for your canine friend! 

“The basics” are the best thing you can do to keep your pet in good shape. You want to be regularly brushing their coat to help distribute natural oils, clear away dry crusty skin and keep their coats shiny. Depending on their coat, you might find the odd insect tucked away in there too! 

Keep up with regular baths, but too often can also cause dry skin, so consider easing off a bit during the winter months. You also don’t necessarily need to use shampoo every wash, unless your dog is properly muddy. When you do use a shampoo, make sure to pick one that is moisturising and preferably that uses natural ingredients. And make sure it’s made for dogs. Not everything that’s OK for us is OK for them. 

Diet is another tine of the issue-prevention fork. Sometimes low quality pet-food, and often people’s home-made diets can lack a nutritional balance. This imbalance can impact skin and coats. Omega-3s, can be lacking if you’re seeing skin issues. Omega’s help with inflammation, protecting the coat and keeping it shiny. You can try adding in flax seed, oily fish or algal oils as healthy sources. 

You can pick up on issues with your pups skin early just through petting! Give your pal a nice big scratch all over and it should be easy to notice dry patches, patches of missing fur, abrasions, lumps and bumps, red spots, even flea dirt which will look like little black specks. Make sure to check any extra skin folds and face folds, and don’t forget the paws and ears. 

However, if you don’t quite catch things in time, or they just move really fast, here’s what you might be looking at as the more common problems dogs can get: 

• Allergies - Dogs are prone to allergies just like us, they can be seasonal or reactions to food, dust, shampoos, grasses etc. In the environment. 
• Hot-Spots - Not always well understood, hot spots are patches of red, warm, itchy skin that can drive your dog a little nuts and lead to lots of scratching, gnawing and skin damage 
• Infections - Yeast, fungi and bacteria can all take hold easily in minor cuts and scrapes and cause infections that range from very mild to very serious. 
• Parasites - Fleas and ticks can infest your pets coat even if you do everything right, which is very much the case with all of this list. 
• Cuts and wounds - Most dogs live hard and fast and will hurt themselves a bit along the way. Most of these will rarely bother them and you can usually apply first aid at home yourself. 
• Underlying health issues - Liver and kidney issues can sometimes manifest on the skin. 

If your dog has dry skin, if it’s flaky, red and irritated, if they are aggravated and uncomfortable and itchy, CanineCare Probiotic might be just the thing for you. It’s special blend of microbes are designed to fight many different yuckies and promote healing. Testimonials are showing many pets are finding relief with it even in situations where other, traditional efforts have failed. And when they’re feeling better, it’s a smart preventative step. 

As always, of course, if you are ever unsure of any aspect of your pet’s health take them to be seen by a trusted vet.