Bathing

Pets certainly need a good wash from time to time but it is important to use a shampoo designed for dogs as human shampoos are too harsh on a dog’s skin and can cause skin irritations.

While bathing your dog, make sure the temperature of the water is not too hot and be careful not to get water and shampoo in the ears, eyes and mouth. Dipping your elbow into the water is an effective way to test the water temperature. Also, putting cotton balls in your pet's ears can help prevent water from getting into the ear canal.

Drying

It’s also important to dry your dog well after a bath as wet hair contributes to matting and skin diseases. You can towel dry or use a blow-drier carefully if your dog tolerates it. After bathing and before drying, comb the coat through to make sure there are no tangles or mats.

While towel drying the legs and beard, don't rub but squeeze out the excess water to help prevent tangling. Don’t forget to dry the bottom of the paws. If you’re using a drier, brush the beard and eyebrows down but brush the legs up, starting with the pin brush and moving to the slicker brush when the leg is almost dry. Slicker brushes tend to rip out hair when used on a wet leg.

Body check

Grooming is more than just cleaning your pet. It’s also a good opportunity to examine around the body for signs of illness. For instance, dogs with droop ears are especially susceptible to fungus, waxy ears and ear mites.

A weekly inspection can help to prevent infection, which can cause further complications, such as an ear hematoma (breaking a blood vessel) caused by your dog shaking his head in response to the discomfort. Never use scissors in a dog’s ear or push your fingers into the ear canal itself as this can cause permanent damage to the ear.

When you check the eyes, look for redness, tearing or discharge, which may require veterinary treatment. Wipe away any dried matter from the corners of the eyes using a moistened cotton ball.

To remove discoloration from eye staining on white and light-coloured dogs, add a small amount of hydrogen peroxide to warm water. Using a soft cloth, and being extremely careful to not get too close to the eye itself, apply the dampened cloth to the stained area, moving in the direction of hair growth.

Doing this on a regular basis will minimise the staining. Darker-coloured dogs will not show tearing and just a soft cloth moistened with plain water is all you need to remove debris/dirt that may collect.