The Truth About the Fur...

Whenever I mention that my dog has a blog, my friends laugh at me. I then explain how I take my duty to share my knowledge of ChiSpaniels very seriously.  When we first got Nyota, I had never had a small dog in my life. I grew up with varieties of snow dogs and German shepherds. My first dog was an Alaskan Malamute, then I had a white German Shepherd (a brilliant dog!), and then I had a Siberian Husky.  All of my dogs shed, but never needed shaved. I’d take them to the groomers, but they didn’t need their nails clipped. Nyota was a very, very new awakening into small-dog hood for me.

Nyota needs her nails trimmed every two months. If I don’t take her, she inadvertently scratches us, she puts holes in my clothes, and I’m sure it feels uncomfortable for her.

"Messing my head fur up only annoys me, FurParent."

The fur is a whole new issue. Basically, Every other month, Nyota gets hygiene shaves, every four months, she gets her fur clipped, and once a year, I have her shaved completely.  Inbetween that time, I have professional clippers. Don’t skimp and buy the cheap ones, they break and can painfully pull at your pet’s fur. If you can’t afford at least the ‘better’ clippers for around $100, you will end up taking your dog to the groomer’s.  My trips to the groomers are $20 or less. This was a big surprise to me because my large dogs can be upwards of $50 per session.  But, it makes sense…smaller dog, less fur…less grooming time/ work! Also, with so much fur, the options are unlimited as to the fur-do's you can give your ChiSpaniel.

The groomer called this a "Field Cut" - naked on top, tripped on the bottom.

If you’ve lucked out and been blessed with the fuzzy variety of ChiSpaniel, you will know that the Cocker-like fur takes a lot of upkeep to prevent problems. Fur mats are inevitable. Sometimes my dog does this squiggling on her back thing that instantly dreadlocks parts of her fur together. I will wait until she’s calm, and pet her until she’s nearly asleep, and then carefully snip the mats out with scissors. However, this will only work part of the time, for some of the areas.

Pre-shave and super fuzzy...sitting on top of the table while we are trying to do schoolwork! 

Mats can bind up in your clippers. I purchased a small, hand-held, mini-clipper for areas around her ears, but they were useless and I threw them away. Scissors work best for mats in easy to reach places like on the back of her legs. Around her ears is a different story. This summer, the groomer told me that the skin around the ears is so delicate that you have to be careful because it will just peel back when you are clipping it (HORROR! I was mortified! I nearly took my dog and ran out of there!) So…I err in the side of a professional and simply take Nyota to the groomer.  I might get an extra week or two between grooming if I clip here or there, but overall, she’s taken somewhere at least every other month.

It just keeps growing...and growing...and growing...

When I have to do more than just simple snipping on Nyota and require actually using my clippers or nail snips, I place a non-slip backed rug on top of my dryer, connect Nyota’s harness to a short leash, and secure it  somewhere so she can’t jump off, but mainly so she knows she’s tethered and won’t pull away as I try to clip her. I turn the clippers on and just set them down, safely out of the way, so she gets use to the sound, and I give her a treat. This method works best for me because it secures her at a high level so that I can do my job, yet not risk having her jump from the height or slip off and fall while I’m handling her.

This is Nyota’s grooming schedule:

She looks like a mini-pit bull when they shave her head/ face! 

April: full body shave! I take my dog to the groomer’s near me. I call him the Nazi groomer because when I say he shaves everything, I mean E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G. He shaves her face! Her privates! Her tail (buh-bye white tuft at the end of her tail!), Her whiskers! Her eyelashes! Her ears! It all GOES! When this happens, Nyota transforms into a different dog both visually and personality wise. My sister sent me this meme which perfectly describes her:

Naked Nyota is humble, passive, and meek…and she looks like a rat! I travel with a blanket for her and put her hoodie on her when it’s cold or at night!

Full-on Fur Nyota will cut a bitch in an alley.  As her fur grows back, the transformation is slow, but sure. She’s mid-fur length now (August), and she’s snippy sometimes, and sweet the other times.

Naked Nyota
Not even a whisker! :(

June: The vet gives her a hygiene shave and clips her nails. I utilize the vet because it’s cheap and fast. Groomers like to take appointments where they cut, shave, and bathe when I just want her butt shaved and her nails trimmed, so I take her to the vet’s…plus, the longest I usually wait for the vet tech to have an opening is a week. Some groomers schedule months in advance.

September: Vet’s for a hygiene shave, nails clipped, and her feet clipped around her nails. (The pom-pom feet are back!)

Pom-Pom feet!!!

November: It’s time for the annual groomer’s fur-do. I take her to a friendly groomer  who will bathe, clip, get rid of any mats, give her a hygiene shave, and do her nails. We do not go to the Nazi groomer because he will shave her face every chance he gets and it’s holiday photo time.

January: Back to the vet’s for a hygiene shave and her nails clipped. I wait until as late in January as I can because after this, I will hold off until her annual shearing with the Nazi groomer in April.

I waited until after her Easter Bunny photos to have her shaved!

Fur products I use:

I use a variety of brushes on Nyota simply because she loves being brushed so much that switching the type of brush seems to make her happy.

I use the flea brush on her head:

The therapy brush on her ears, legs and belly:

And a regular hairbrush on her back.

Her fur is exceptionally fine on her ears and legs. It is where the mats most commonly occur.  I also used fur detangler, but it doesn’t work that well. It smells great, so I keep it in my bathroom and use it as an air freshener.  The other product I use is fur hygiene wipes. I only mention these because poop WILL get caught in your ChiSpaniel’s fur and if it’s on her fur, it will get on your FURniture. No one wants that, so wiping is necessary so much less frequently if you keep their bum fur shaved. Nyota actually comes to me when she needs her butt wiped now!  She will tap me with her paw and cautiously sniff her butt.

Adorbs.

In conclusion, my advice is to keep after your ChiSpaniel’s fur. Daily brushing, snipping out mats, and periodic grooming will keep them healthy and happy. Now, when my friends laugh about my ChiSpaniel blog, I say, “I write it to help people. I wish I had known when I got Nyota that I’d need to shave her bum every other month!”

"She shaves my butt...oh, the shame of it!"

ChiSpaniels and Collars

I’ve never collared my ChiSpaniel. Chihuahuas are noted to have fragile necks, so I have always opted for harnesses. Any time I see a Chihuahua or Chi-mix in a collar, I cringe. The last thing you want to do is pull your Chi by the collar and accidentally snap its neck!

My favorite harness for Nyota is a soft one! She barely pulls when she’s on a leash, so there is no need for heavy or bulky harnesses/ leashes. I opt for secure and comfortable ones instead.

Nyota sniffing a daffodil in the Spring time.

My favorite place to doggie-shop is PetLondon.net , but many of their products can be found within the United States if you simply search the manufacturer’s name. When Nyota was under a year old, I only needed a mesh-velcro harness for her. Because she was so small, that was enough to secure her and because she was young and just learning about walking on a leash and being put into a harness, the Velcro closure was super fast to get on her!

Remember, ChiFriends…Harness, don’t collar, and always, always keep identification on your pets! You never know when they will accidentally get lost!

Even more unknown, is the need to properly restrain your dog in your vehicle in case of an accident. Most dog restraints FAIL. I’ll refer you to an informative article as well as a link to the best-rated dog safety harness for vehicles:

Read this for info on what happens when your dog is in your car during an accident:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/hannahelliott/2013/10/28/the-best-seat-belts-for-your-dog/

Read this for info on purchasing SleepyPod’s ClickIt dog retraints:

http://sleepypod.com/clickit

2 Year Annual Vet Check-Up

Nyota recently visited the vet for her annual check-up.  (Sorry, I’m late to blog about it…life got in the way.)  The animal hospital that I take her to tries to keep pets seeing the same doctor throughout their lifetimes.

Nyota was placed on the baby scale and I learned she now weighs 13.9 pounds.  I suspect she will hover at this weight for many years to come. The doctor did the usual things, and Nyota wasn’t very cooperative. She kept scrambling for me to hold her, but in any unfamiliar situation, that’s what she does.

The doctor said she’s in great health and was patient with my insanely obsessive pet questions:

What’s this bump on her head?

Her skull.

She doesn’t have a brain tumor?

No.

Is this tooth decay?

No, it’s a stain.

Why does she shake her ears? Could she have ear mites?

No, she doesn’t have ear mites. She has floppy ears; she’s bound to shake them.

She scratches, but I can’t find any fleas (and she regularly receives flea treatment). 

Why?

She might be allergic to flea spit. If it becomes excessive, bring her back.

Is it safe for her to get all of her shots at once?

Yes.

Are you sure?

Yes.  We can give them at two different times if you’d like.

No, I believe you.

Nyota received her shots and was adored by the crowd in the waiting room when we were leaving. The secretary at the desk said that she owned a Cocker Spaniel and most bite, so she was afraid to pet Nyota, but Nyota didn’t bite her (thankfully).  I’m beginning to think that everyone has their own version of what breeds ‘normally’ do.

Since Nyota was fully up-to-date with her vet care and healthy, I applied for doggy health insurance for her. I had been comparing policies and benefits with different companies for a few weeks. I decided to go with Healthy Paws Pet Insurance. (You can follow that link.) I answered a few basic questions and entered my info/ credit card payment and it was that easy! 

I chose the highest level of insurance that I could because I’m a worrier when it comes to Nyota. I never want to sacrifice her health care if I’m in a financial bind. She’s already had one surgery in her life to correct a cherry eye (common with Cocker Spaniels), I had to call doggy poison control ($60 for a 1 minute phone call), and take her to be seen for her bug bite. So, for 90% coverage of all costs and only a $100 deductible, my payment is $34.56 per month. Please note—I could have gone with a lesser level of coverage and have a smaller payment a month. Really, it’s a very good idea to get your dog health insurance. When I watched the documentary, Madonna of the Mills, I learned some people had paid over ten thousand dollars to correct their dog’s health problems.  You never know what will happen! 

Transitioning From Puppy Food To Adult Dog Food

At sixteen months old, my ChiSpaniel is starting to develop a solid build!  

I purchased her a 30 pound bag of Blue Buffalo Puppy Food (chicken and brown rice) over a year ago and she's almost done with it now. Yes, it took her a year to eat a large bag of dog food--which strikes two points: 

1) Store your pet's food in an airtight plastic bin.

2) Even though Blue Buffalo is more expensive that the national brands you can buy at grocery stores and Wal-Mart, your dog will eat so little that it's actually not expensive at all.  I buy Nyota's food at the Tractor Supply Store where it costs much less than purchasing it at Pet Smart or PetCo.  Her monthly food bill over the past year has averaged out to around $3/month.  If you aren't yet convinced about feeding your pets a natural, healthy brand, google 'pet food kills' or visit the Blue Buffalo site for more information. There are other all-natural brands besides Blue Buffalo, but it's what I started her on as a puppy, so I'm continuing with it. Her coat is exceptionally shiny, by the way!  In summation-- you want your pet to be healthy and happy.  Some pets seem fine after a lifetime on generic or national brands of dog food, but honestly-- how can we tell if they don't talk, and perhaps they'd live longer if they were fed a better quality of food.  Personally, I see prevention as another selling point as well.  Anyone that has ever had to pay out-of-pocket vet costs for a pet illness or emergency knows that spending a few extra dollars now is better than a few hundred later.  I'll be blogging about pet health insurance in the near future as well.

According to Cesar Millan's website, the ChiSpaniel matures between 10 and 12 months of age. Nyota definitely kept growing after 12 months of age, so I just used it as a general guideline. As with anything you read on the internet, it's best to consult your veterinarian if you are unsure.

Since I was switching from Blue Buffalo Chicken & Brown Rice Puppy to Blue Buffalo Chicken & Brown Rice Small Breed Adult, I wasn't worried about the transition.  When I first got Nyota as a puppy, she was eating (moistened) Purina Puppy Chow, so when I switched her to Blue Buffalo Puppy food, I slowly mixed the Blue Buffalo in with the Purina, increasing the amount of Blue Buffalo over time until she was used to the Blue Buffalo.  This is a pretty standard technique used to switch dog foods.

I do feed Nyota some human food, but I try to stick to lean meats (boiled chicken, Nyota LOVES duck), plain rice, veggies (green beans are her favorite), and fruits (No Seeds or Stems! apples, watermelon, and bananas).  It's hard not to let her try things when she begs, but keep in mind high fat and salt diets are really bad for you dog. Here is a list of foods you should NEVER feed your dog. They can harm and even kill your pet in many cases:

Avocados
Walnuts
Macadamia Nuts
Other Nuts
Beer/ Alcoholic Beverages
Chocolate
Candy, Gum (Especially with artificial sweetener)
Grapes
Raisins
Onions (In all forms, even powder)
Garlic (In all forms, even powder)
Caffeine 
Dairy Products 
Toothpaste
Fat Trimmings From Meat (can cause pancreatis)
Bones (can splinter and cut digestive tracks-- especially fowl bones such as chicken and turkey)
Persimmons
Peach/ Plum seeds
Raw Eggs
Raw Meat/ Fish
Salty Foods
Yeast Dough
Baking Powder
Baking Soda
Nutmeg
Raw Potatoes/ Potato Plants

This is just the list I've gathered over the years...I'm not a vet.  When in doubt, call a vet!

Next month is Nyota's annual visit to the vet. Since she was so small when she received her puppy shots, they staggered them over many weeks, so it's now been nearly a year since her last shots. I'll be blogging about that in February! 

15 Month Old Chi-Spaniel

Chi-Spaniel Bath

This is Nyota.

Sometimes she has "problems" and "stuff" gets stuck in her fur.

I use pet wipes, but sometime the job calls for a bath.

This is Nyota in the bath...

Nyota is NOT happy.

Nyota is dripping wet...but don't worry, her fur fluffs like magic...

See!

In all seriousness...I've had to take her for two 'hygiene' shaves in the past year.  The last one left her butt pretty bare, but it was a wipe-free two months.  Now she's back to being ultra fluffy. She's compliant when I clean/bath her anyway.

I've posted this before, but here are a few tips:

1) Make the water barely warm-- according to my groomer, their skin is exceptionally sensitive.  In lieu of a hot bath, I turn the heat on so she doesn't catch a chill.  

2) I use organic soap with essential oils.  If I use any sort of regular dog shampoo, it kills my allergies.

3) I place a bath towel in the bottom of my bathtub so her feet don't slide around.

4) I prepare ahead of time-- have the towels, shampoo, and water pitcher all ready so I can do it as fast as possible.  She's not fond of the water, so I try to stress her out as little as possible.

5) I remove her from the water and wrap her in several towels. I then dry her off and only let her roam around the house once she's dry.  Remember-- chi-spaniels are half chihuahua and that breed is sensitive to both cold and hot temperatures. 

3 Month Old ChiSpaniel Puppy

3 Month Old ChiSpaniel Puppy

"My Octopus never listens to me."

Unwilling fashion victim: Sporting a Hello Kitty winter jacket.

ChiSpaniels are NOT outdoor pets.  I had mine clipped in a saddle-back cut on a 90 degree summer day and she was still shivering.  These dogs would rather be social with first, humans, second, little dogs, then third, other dogs.  Leaving a dog outside is cruel. If you can't keep your ChiSpaniel indoors, for its health, please find it a more appropriate home.  

My ChiSpaniel has definitely inherited her Chihuahua father's intolerance to extreme temperatures.  She can't take the cold and she can't take the heat.  Please keep this in mind!  My ChiSpaniel has a coat for each season and sweaters as well.  If you wouldn't expose your baby to the weather, don't expose your ChiSpaniel to it.

10 Week Old ChiSpaniel Puppy

10 Week Old ChiSpaniel Puppy. This is when she started getting really active and playful.