MOSA Italian Greyhounds™
North Carolina
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" A beautiful smile is priceless"
Grooming and Dental Care
Grooming an Italian greyhound is really pretty simple as they do not require much with their coat, most of the time spent grooming your IG will be on the dental care and nails.
To care for an Italian Greyhounds coat is fairly easy, especially when compared too many other breeds. They do not require frequent bathing or excessive brushing. Give your IG a bath once or twice a month and this will be sufficient, unless of course your IG has gotten into something and is stinky or dirty or maybe for a special occasion.
Keep in mind starting the grooming process early as a puppy will get your IG use to the process and eventually they will tolerate the nails being done and the teeth being brushed. The teeth and nail care are VERY important, not keeping the teeth done will lead to periodontal disease, tooth loss, and possibly sever complications with their other internal organs leading to an early death, read Eddie's Story. Lack of nail care can result in misalignment of the bones of the feet resulting in pain for the dog and possibly causing some lameness from arthritis.
If you wait to begin your dogs dental and nail care until they are older or you adopt an older dog that has either not had nail or dental care or has had bad experiences when having it done expect some resistance when beginning the process, but in time if you make it a positive experience for them they will begin to accept it and relax a bit once the process begins.
Expect puppies to just be puppies, they are going to fuss, wiggle, and complain but they are puppies, they will get over it in time.
No matter when you begin doing the nails and teeth of your dog remember to keep the experience positive for your dog, this will make it much better for both of you. Don't yell at your dog for moving around or acting a bit crazy when you first start doing it, this is a natural response from most dogs and like children is just their way of trying to get their way thinking you will stop. Instead you have to talk to them in a firm but reassuring tone. Praise them (even for holding still for just a second), give them love and they will begin to stop resisting and eventually it will just become routine to them.
You do not want to over bath as IG's have very short hair and do not produce a lot of dander or oils. Bathing too frequently can cause your IG's coat to be duller in appearance as well dry out their skin, possibly even causing it to flake. Show dogs are bathed more frequently, just due to the nature of showing you want your Show IG to be at it's best in the ring. Since they are bathed more frequently their coats are often sprayed with a light oil to help prevent drying out.
You can brush your IG as often as you like, brushing is a good way to bond and it also stimulates the loosening of any dead skin, promotes a shinier coat, and increases the blood circulation helping the skin, just as with humans. When you brush your IG use a soft brush not one that has bristles that are too hard as it can hurt your IG. You can also use a mitt, rubber brush or one of the many other specially made alternate grooming brushes.
To care for the IG's nails we prefer and use a dremel as it allows for a smoother finish to the nails while also allowing us to make better determination to avoid the quick which causes pain and bleeding. If you use a dremel too keep the nails short touch them up by smoothing the tips down once a week.
Nail clippers sometimes splinter the nail and can also be difficult to determine where to stop cutting. You can use a nail clipper if you prefer but be careful not to go into the quick and I would only do this every other week. If you do decide to use clippers I would have a styptic pen on hand or some other liquid clotting agent in the event you accidentally cut into the quick as bleeding will happen and applying one of these will help clot the cut to stop bleeding.
Dental care for an IG or any toy breed for that matter is crucial and the most important part of grooming as toy dogs are especially prone to periodontal disease, gum recession, and tooth loss. Some are more prone to these things than others just due to the structure of each dogs teeth, some have much more porous teeth with less enamel coating to protect the teeth and a dog with teeth like this must have much more vigilant care taken to make the teeth last longer. Your vet would be able to advise you on the porosity of your individual dogs teeth once they are an adult so that you are aware if you need to be more active with care than normal.
If oral care is not started early, some loose their front teeth by the time they are 3 years of age, the four teeth between the canines on both the top and bottom of your IG's mouth are the ones most prone to loss due to disease or not caring for them properly. So check these teeth often so you can give them more care if needed to avoid their loss. If you do notice redness, swelling or gum recession consult your vet or a specialty dental vet so they can help establish a program to help prevent the loss of the teeth.
I can not stress enough the importance of Dental Care for your IG or any dog, just as with humans it is very important and not enough or inadequate care can cause many problems from tooth loss, severe infections, liver/heart damage and even death in sever cases of neglect. We have experienced and have seen first hand the damage caused by neglect as well the ill effects of dogs that have been more prone to dental issues just due to individual circumstance.
If you can, brushing your IG's teeth daily would be great but at least 3 times a week with supplemental aids such as Petz Life oral spray in between brushings will significantly help in reducing the chance of developing tooth problems or put an oral additive in their drinking water such as healthy mouth. To brush the teeth there are many different types of brushing tools you can get, one is not better than the other it is what your dog tolerates best and what works for you. You can use a dog tooth brush (small), a finger brush, .cleaning pads, or even children's small tooth brushes along with a dog tooth paste that is flavored (there are many flavors but I find our IG's like the meat flavors, just experiment to see what yours like best).
You also need to take your IG into the vet at least once a year for a thorough dental cleanings just like people have done. Dog dental care is becoming very high tech as promising as human dental care, there are specialty dentists for dogs now that perform many different procedures very similar to those for humans, such as fillings for teeth that may just have a spot cavity on them but are otherwise healthy so you can avoid total tooth loss, crowns, bridges, and procedures to aid in encouraging gum growth or reattachment when your IG has had gingivitis and their gums have slightly receded. The advancements are amazing and worth looking into if you need them rather than just accepting your dog must loose it's teeth.
Please clean your IG's teeth on a regular basis and if you suspect an issue see your vet to determine the appropriate steps to be taken. Don't be afraid to ask your vet about new techniques in dental care or specialty dentists that may be in your area that may be able to help. As our Saudi shows to us daily a beautiful smile is a terrible thing to waste even for our IGs'.
We are not perfect and while you may not be able to stop all tooth loss you can significantly reduce it or possibly eliminate it by doing preventative care. Most people realize the importance of caring for their own teeth, we should do the same for our companions to give them the best quality of life we can.
The links below are for the dental care of you dog, we are providing links for products, services, and articles that we feel will help. We are just providing information and are not responsible for the care of your dog or what course you take in caring for you dog or any consequences that result in your choice, that is a personal choice and you are responsible for all liability from your actions, including costs associated with your decision to use any of the products or services listed.
Always choose carefully and make an informed decision regarding the care of your companion.
https://www.pethealthandnutritioncenter.com/petzlife-oral-care-spray.html
www.entirelypets.com
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MOSA Italian Greyhounds™
North Carolina
ph: 910-605-5571
contact