Hi, I’m Allison. Read my introduction to be taught extra about me and my three mixed-breed canines from Thailand, Jelly, Lorraina, and Manic.
If you might have a canine, you’ll most probably should battle with their fur. You will discover it in your garments, on the ground, underneath the mattress…you get the image. One apparent option to battle the fur is by grooming your canine. Now, in case your canine doesn’t thoughts being brushed, this ought to be a reasonably easy job.
Unless you might have a canine like Jelly. What ought to be a easy grooming session turns right into a battle—and Jelly normally wins.
Jelly’s Shedding
Jelly began shedding closely when she reached center age. It was not extreme, however I seen I needed to sweep up extra fluff a bit greater than normal. Worried, I reached out to my vet. After an examination and dialogue of her historical past, the vet didn’t say her shedding was resulting from any sickness, allergic reactions, stress, or parasites, so I used to be not involved along with her total well being. We additionally have no idea what breed she is combined with, so her shedding might be resulting from genetics. She has a single coat, so the shedding is pretty constant all year long.
However, this implies my residence began turning into stuffed with fluff pretty persistently.
Jelly History With Brushing
Since she was shedding extra incessantly, I made a decision that brushing her a number of instances per week was essential to maintain the home clear. Plus, it could be extra comfy for her. I doubt she loved being surrounded by her free fur greater than I do.
I’ve brushed her earlier than and used numerous varieties of brushes. However, she by no means actually appreciated it and at all times ran away. Jelly has brief fur and didn’t shed a lot when she was a pet, so I didn’t thoughts skipping her weekly grooming session.
But why did she hate it a lot? I by no means harmed her (to my data) when brushing her. I used to be mild and by no means held her down. I even rewarded her with treats afterward. Plus, puppies are tough anyway, proper? It should be a section. Surely, now that Jelly is a mature grownup canine, she would settle for grooming with extra grace.
Nope.
How within the World Do I Brush Her?
After doing a “energy sweep” of my home and discovering fluff underneath each piece of furnishings and in each nook, I made a decision that I wanted to arrange a brushing routine. My home was 30% fluff, and whereas that won’t appear that unhealthy, having a 3rd of your living space be full of dog hair just isn’t nice.
One afternoon, I grabbed the fine-toothed comb and took Jelly exterior. From earlier grooming experiences, I realized to brush her away from the entrance door; in any other case, the wind would blow the fur I attempted desperately to take away from Jelly again into the lounge.
“Come right here, my candy Jellybean,” I cooed, hoping she wouldn’t suspect what was about to occur.
Once in a good spot away from the door, I knelt down and let her scent the comb. I did that to let her know what was coming. Then, I gently put my hand on her facet and began brushing her hind legs and hip space, the place I noticed little tufts of fur protruding. After about six seconds, Jelly began to again away, however I had barely begun. I wanted no less than 5 minutes to get the free fur off her.
Jelly doesn’t put on a collar as our property is fenced in, so there was nothing I may gently maintain on to with the intention to maintain her shut. So, I shortly maneuvered in entrance of her and continued to brush her legs. Jelly was not having it. She ducked down and scurried a number of toes away from me once more.
“Jelly, c’mon!” I moaned.
I began strolling towards her, however she began trotting away. She whirled round and seemed me within the eye as if daring me to do this once more. I prevented eye contact along with her and pretended to stroll previous her again towards the home. She began to observe me.
Then I spun round and gently put my arm throughout her chest so I may get a number of extra brushes in earlier than she ran off to the opposite finish of the yard.
I aimed to get 15 strokes in. 12…13…14…
Nope. Just one brush shy of 15 strokes, Jelly broke free and took off down the hill. This is the place I finished. She had sufficient. I seemed down on the brush and pulled out the eliminated fluff. It was virtually a handful. If I used to be really profitable, I may most likely have stuffed a throw pillow with the eliminated fur.
The Battle Was a Partial Success, But the War Continues
I don’t wish to power Jelly to be brushed. I hate that she dislikes it, however my outdated woman is a shedder. She needs to get brushed for her health and the state of our residence. I’m grateful my different two canines like being brushed. Of course, they don’t seem to be those that shed that a lot.
I figured that if I simply gave her a fast brush day-after-day for a number of seconds, this could be higher than attempting to do a full five-minute grooming session. At least I’d get a few of the stray fluff.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I want to comb my ground for the third time in the present day.
