Grooming Your Shih Tzu

One reason Shih Tzu are so popular is for their luxurious, thick, flowing double coats.

The long hair on their heads is often tied to an adorable top knot so they can see better and to show off the way they naturally carry their heads high. However, these stunning coats must be brushed every day, or at a minimum every other day.

Shitzu Dogs

Some people will trim their Shih Tzu's hair short to simplify grooming. This is a better alternative than allowing a pet's hair to become matted and dirty, but doing so wastes one of the best features of the Shih Tzu.

Grooming Your Shih Tzu

The time you spend grooming your little dog lovingly will pay off in closer bonding and even more devotion from this naturally trusting and affectionate companion.

You may fall in love with the Shih Tzu's flowing hair,but if you do not have time to spend bathing and brushing a long-haired dog, or the finances to pay for regular grooming, you would be happier if you adopted a different breed.

If you purchase your Shih Tzu for rowdy romps in the backyard (which she will enjoy), you will need to groom her even more frequently to keep her hair free of tangles and matting. Still, a Shih Tzu requires less grooming than some other long-haired dog breeds.

Start Your Grooming Ritual Early

Begin brushing your Shih Tzu puppy daily-even if only for a couple of minutes and even if his immature coat doesn't really need to be brushed-and you will establish the brushing habit for both of you. Make this a time of proximity and gentle care and you will be rewarded by years of loyal friendship from yourShih Tzu.

This is also a great job for older children, if you train them how to properly groom your Shih Tzu, and will teach a loving child valuable lessons in patiently nurturing and caring for another living being.

Some Shih Tzu owners report that at about 10 to 12 months of age, a Shih Tzu's coat will change. You may become discouraged in your brushing because mats may seem to form faster than you can untangle them. Fortunately, this condition is only temporary and lasts about three weeks to one month.

Grooming Your Shih Tzu

Tips on Shih Tzu Grooming Styles

There are many Shih Tzu grooming styles to choose from. However, some pet owners will choose to reflect their dog's personality in the style.

For some dog owners they find that the up keep of their dog's grooming is too much hassle and they opt to keep the hair trimmed. Keeping the hair trimmed is much less time sharp for the owner.

Shitzu Dogs

Daily grooming is required for the fun loving Shih Tzu, if the owner has opted not to keep the coat trimmed. It is recommended that a steel comb or bristle brush is used when grooming a Shih Tzu. If the owner finds a lot of tangles or mats, then a plastic comb can be used.

Trimming can be done by using a good set of dog trimmers and trimming the hair all one length. Normally owners will leave the hair at the head and around the neck a tiny bit longer than the rest of the body.

The Top Knot style is for owners wishing to keep the hair of their Shih Tzu full length, they will pull back the hair around the eyes and pin it on the top of the head.

This ensures that the dog will be able to still see. Owners will often times pin the hair around the mouth as well. You can put a pin in or some choose to braid the hair and then put a pin in. As you can see, there are many dissimilar varieties for the top knot.

Shih Tzu grooming style is more of an owner's preference. However, if the Shih Tzu is older or is sick, it is recommended that the hair is kept short and trimmed.

Most leading to remember is if the owner allows the hair to stay long, they must pin the hair back from the mouth and eyes so the dog can profess vision and genuinely access their food.

Tips on Shih Tzu Grooming Styles

Shih Tzu Grooming - Can You handle Grooming Your Shih Tzu Daily?

Shih Tzu grooming can be a fun experience. In fact, you and your wee puppy dog may find the whole taste of Shih Tzu grooming to be a frightful way to bond with one another.

But grooming such a pet is not all fun and games though. It is not all about manufacture your dog look attractive. It is more of a matter regarding your dogs' condition and well being.

Shitzu Dogs

If you happen to be the proud owner of a Shih Tzu puppy dog, or you are inspecting to bring one home, then there is one thing you need to know:

Grooming this kind of breed must be performed daily, if not every other day.

Now, of policy Shih Tzu grooming involves many distinct things, not all of which need to be done every day, but there are some basic things that you precisely cannot afford to neglect.

As harsh as it may seem to say this, but the truth is that negligence in this matter can precisely run the risk of putting your Shih Tzu's condition on the line.

Shi Tzu hair can grow to be very long. Therefore, it is very prominent that you brush this hair properly every single day. Otherwise, your dogs' hair could end up in knots, or it could mat. When this happens, you are basically absorbing parasites to come and burrow in your dogs' skin. Left unchecked, these parasites can cause skin lesions and lead to assorted canine diseases.

Yes, all this can happen, if you come to be lax about grooming this kind of breed.

Other aspects of Shih Tzu grooming must also be taken care of on a regular and frequent basis as well, such as brushing of the teeth, clipping of the toenails, among other things.

If all of this seems to astonishing to you, because you do not have the time and it just doesn't fit into your lifestyle, then you may want to think your decision to keep a Shih Tzu.

But if you think you can take a wee bit of time out every day for your puppy dog, you will have a very happy and healthy canine friend on your hands, for many, many years to come.

Shih Tzu Grooming - Can You handle Grooming Your Shih Tzu Daily?

Why Irregular Shih Tzu Grooming Creates Problems for This Breed

Some habitancy only see the Shih Tzu's lovely coat, never suspecting there are precisely two coats. The outer coat is the one obviously seen, because of the long hair owners love to brush. There is also the inner coat, which is often wooly. Despite a lack of patience with an attention-demanding and high maintenance pet, some habitancy want to own a Shih Tzu.

But a Shih Tzu needs to be groomed every particular day; concentrate that with the breed's question for concentration and some owner give up on it. These dogs can live from fifteen to twenty years, and the norm is every day grooming; every other day at the least. If you want to have a bouncing wholesome pet, you need to groom it, devotedly.

Shitzu Dogs

Impulse buying or adopting is not going to be a good decision, if it's a decision at all - just because you spend some time watching a dog show or combing a friend's Shih Tzu, doesn't mean you can take care of it. The dogs commonly seen in dog show are often finely chosen representatives of their breeds - genuine bloodline, solid, healthy, and friendly. Because their owner trained them hard and groomed them well, those dogs behave so well and look so good. Grooming is a habit a good pet owner should develop, but that some, unfortunately, don't.

Some owners who buy or adopt this breed, after learning about the tedious grooming disposition it requires, tend to give it up. But what turns off some habitancy is exactly what other habitancy need - a routine, a bonding session. There are pet owners who adore grooming their pet. Because of their fierce loyalty and devotion, the Shih Tzu are a hit companion pet among the elderly.

You could all the time take your dog to a pet hair stylist, and have your pet's hair cut stylishly, lowering to a degree the need to religiously groom your pet. You could have your Shih Tzu's hair cut stylishly, so that your dog remains cute, only with less hair to worry about grooming. Although you may want to reconsider this, but you might have to put up your dog for adoption.

Again, if grooming is an daily habit you cannot make and stick to, please reconsider getting a Shih Tzu. Inconsistent grooming leads to a lot of problems for dog with a coat like that - health problems at the most, inconvenience at the least - would you feel comfortable if the hair all over your body was matter, tangled up, and insect-infested? What you want to avoid is for your pet's coat of hair to mat, get tangle up, be the home base of numerous parasites leading to skin lesions and a host of other diseases.

Why Irregular Shih Tzu Grooming Creates Problems for This Breed

Shih Tzu Grooming Tools

To make things a whole lot easier for both you and your pet, you should introduce the opinion of brushes, combs and a quarterly grooming schedule to your canine companion as soon as possible. Even puppies as young as a few weeks old can and should be taught how to get used to a quarterly grooming regimen.

The most basic Shih Tzu grooming tools you would need are dog shampoo, dog conditioner, warm wet cloth, pet nail filer, doggy toothbrush and tooth paste, right metal comb, soft bristled brush, cloth, and a blow dryer. You can use trimming scissors to give your pet an edgier look or to take off preexisting fur matting. But if you plan on entering your pet into a dog show, you should not be using trimming scissors at all.

Shitzu Dogs

You would need: doggy toothbrush, doggy toothpaste, grooming liquid (warm or tepid water will do,) right metal comb, and a warm, wet cloth. These are the tools you would need to groom your pet on a daily basis (for puppies) or on an every-other-day basis (for adult Shih Tzu pets.)

You would also need: a pet nail filer, doggy shampoo, doggy conditioner for long haired pets, and a blow dryer.

Lastly, you should only buy a pair of trimming scissors if you have no intention of entering your pet in dog breed accepted competitions or in case your pet is prone to matting.

If you are not sure as to what kind of canine grooming brush you should buy for your pet, you might want to consequent this guideline: #4F (comb) blades are for short-trimmed dogs, while #30 blades with a #1 comb is for long-haired pets. Dogs prone to matting and tangles would advantage from the use of #5F or #7F blades. These blades are ready in most high-end pet shops. However, a long-toothed metal doggy comb should work fine as well.

One more thing to remember when it comes to grooming Shih Tzus: never try to brush out the tangles in your dog's coat with a comb or brush. This is not only very painful for your Shih Tzu, but pulling on the tangles can also lead to skin tears and other doggy skin. Untangle the knots moderately by hand first and then comb through. If matting is already present, then you need to cut away the matted fur using trimming scissors.

It is also recommended to use slicker brushes in order to take off dead hairs. The slicker brush is also used as a final brush down.

De-Matting Rakes

This tool is recommended in order to take off excess mats from the fur. This is an primary tool for dogs that have a qoute with mats.

Pin Brushes

Pin brushes can be acquired in one or two forms, withrubber-tipped brush prongs and one without. Pin brushes are a brush of preference for dogs with medium sized coats, wire coats, and wavy coats or curly coats. Secondly, pin brushes are a great compliment for dogs with irritant skin.

Pin brushes are also excellent for removing dead hair. Pin brushes are also very sufficient at eradicating tangles found in many dogs with a medium-length coat.

Understanding what types of tools are best for grooming particular dog breeds are imperative. Using a certified dog grooming brush will save time, pain and pain.

Shih Tzu Grooming Tools