brushing

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sherrymyra
Posts: 43
Joined: Fri Jul 31, 2009 10:32 pm

brushing

Post by sherrymyra »

My westie generally is "ok" with brushing. She tolorates it but I do have to chase her around a bit. Wish it was easier.

Although I try to keep up on it, if time lapses, she may get a bit more objective about it.

The other night she actually slighty bit me. ok. I know a bite is a bite. I just tried to calm her and pet her and continue to brush her. Which actually seemed to go well.

I was advised by a friend that I should have stopped brushing and yelled at her "no bite".

In the first place she wouldn't even know "no bite" means I don't think. I think that yelling only would make her afraid.

But what should I do with that situation?
Leigha
Posts: 1211
Joined: Sun Aug 09, 2009 8:02 am

Post by Leigha »

Ours has a thing about getting his nails done--can't say I blame him. We had a trainer advise us to get baby food and let him lick the baby food out of the jar while we did his nails so he wouldn't bite, scratch, or wiggle around. It worked like a charm! I'd assume any really good food that you give your dog while you're brushing her would be fine.
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Nettle
Posts: 10753
Joined: Sun Apr 13, 2008 1:40 pm

Post by Nettle »

I LOVE you for being sensible and realising that 'no bite' means nothing to your dog - you might as well say anything else such as 'parquet flooring'.

Read the thread on clicker training and then relate the brushing to the click and reward. Start small - show brush. click and reward, touch with brush C&R, one stroke of brush the same, and build up over a period of WEEKS. Aim to stop brushing before she gets upset. She is telling you clear as clear that being brushed is nasty, so aim to make it nice - no pulling. Maybe try a different brush from usual.

Others here can talk grooming with you better than I can :D so I'll leave that to them.
A dog is never bad or naughty - it is simply being a dog

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Fundog
Posts: 3874
Joined: Wed Dec 03, 2008 8:31 am
Location: A little gambling town in the high desert

Post by Fundog »

Okay, my 13 year old son is the official groomer for our two dogs, and has been for several years. He does a good job, too, btw. Now when we got Dottie (English Setter, LOTS of feathering) just last February, she wasn't too fond of being brushed. She was kind of afraid, and would nip and run away. But Jason has a little ritual, which is why the girls now LOVE for Jason to brush them. All he has to do is hold up the brush and call them, and they come and plop themselves down in front of him in adoration. So this is his secret: included in his "grooming package" is a luxurious belly rub, purely for their sole pleasure. At first, with Dottie, there was a lot more belly rubbing than brushing, lol. But he tried to sneak in some gentle brush strokes here and there, while distracting with a belly rub. Needless to say, Dottie's feathers got some mats for the first few weeks, but Jason is very skilled and gentle at working those out. Once he got Dottie accustomed to being brushed, and to where she even enjoyed it, then he started combing out her matted feathers. But he always quit when Dottie said she had had enough, and finished up with a nice belly rub. Now Jason has the girls so tidy he can just take a fine-toothed comb over them. They are mat-free! (Oh-- he combs them every single day; it only takes him a few minutes now)
Smillin'Sammy
Posts: 59
Joined: Sat Jul 11, 2009 8:30 pm

Post by Smillin'Sammy »

Nettle wrote:I LOVE you for being sensible and realising that 'no bite' means nothing to your dog - you might as well say anything else such as 'parquet flooring'.
That's awesome, I think I'm going to teach my dog the "parquet flooring" cue. I'm not sure what I'll link it to, but I think that's awesome :)
cruisintigger
Posts: 15
Joined: Tue Jun 09, 2009 9:54 am
Location: Chicago, IL

Post by cruisintigger »

I smear a bit of peanut butter on the frig door at their level, and they are so excited to lick away that I can brush or nail clip and they don't even care.
sherrymyra
Posts: 43
Joined: Fri Jul 31, 2009 10:32 pm

Post by sherrymyra »

I may have to try something like that.
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