Cocker Specific Discussion > Grooming

Hairy Feet.

(1/2) > >>

JohnMcL:
Hi,
peanut’s feet are super long and furry and she won’t keep still long enough to scissor them. On top of that I really like them!
I shower her feet after walks and she lets me clean in between her toes with a bit of doggy shampoo so that I get the mud out. She’s also quite good at letting me dry her feet with a towel and brush them.
As long as I keep them clean and dry is there anything wrong with keeping them hairy please?

Thanks.
John.

bizzylizzy:
I think the only issue is keeping them clean so if she‘s happy to let you clean her paws, I can‘t imagine why it would be a problem. I try to keep the hair underneath, on the pads, fairly short as it tends to get tangled and a couple of times  the matts have become compacted with mud and Humphrey’s ended up with a stone like lump between the pads or toes which I imagine must be painful and is also a devil to remove ( a pair of sharp nail scissors when he‘s too tired to resist  :lol2:).
I‘ve recently also started to run the clippers over the top of his paws to make cleaning and drying a bit easier, sometimes it looks like we‘ve had a yeti march through the house!  :005:

JohnMcL:
Thanks Jayne, I can certainly relate to the yeti footprints through the house!  :lol2:

I wouldn’t go as far as saying she’s happy with me cleaning in between her paws but it’s easy as she’s standing in the bath at that time! Drying feet is easy as we play the escape from the big soft towel game with lots of squeals and a special treat after. Brushing them is a very quick affair but stops tangles. I will attempt to shorten the fur at the back of her paws as this doesn’t seem to wear off with walking and is very long. Her fur on the underside of her paws is short so that must wear off with walking.

I accidentally caught her ear with scissors a few months ago and it was a vet job, she didn’t know she had been nicked and was fine. She loved being at the vets and I felt so , so dreadful. I don’t feel comfy using scissors yet.

Thanks for posting about what to watch out for, I’ll make sure to get mud, seeds, grit out.

How is Humphrey doing?

John.

bizzylizzy:
I‘ve done that with Humphrey’s ear, it was only a scratch but enough to put him off the sight of the scissors for life! lol2:
He’s not doing too badly now John,  thanks. He puts weight on all fours when he „gallops“ and he uses all four to walk very slowly but when he trots, which is what cockers all seem to prefer, he still lets his right leg hang in the air like a puppet and its still very thin compared to the good leg, where he‘s building up muscle like Mr.Universe! Its a bit of a battle and I have to make sure at least half of his walk is slow, controlled on lead, -  carrying a stick works wonders as it seems to help him balance  :shades: But all in all we‘re just happy he‘s mobile again, we‘ve managed nearly 3 kms this morning and were out for nearly an hour so its a huge improvement in just 4 months.

Mari:

--- Quote from: JohnMcL on February 03, 2022, 08:35:24 AM ---
I accidentally caught her ear with scissors a few months ago and it was a vet job, she didn’t know she had been nicked and was fine. She loved being at the vets and I felt so , so dreadful. I don’t feel comfy using scissors yet.


--- End quote ---

Been there, done that. I felt like the worst owner when asking the vet to suture my dog back together. I did eventually get used to scissors again and was always very careful with them. It's the type of mistake you only make once.
I think my only worry with hairy feet would be the risk of skin infections if the fur on the paws is damp many hours a day. But I suppose that can be easily solved with a hairdryer  :005:

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page