What is a Pad Shaving? The removal of dirt, mud and various types of debris caught in the interdigital hair between the pads of a pets toes. This is done with professional tools that are designed to remove irritants without harming the sensitive pads.
When you trim the hair between her pads, you reduce the risk of mats building up between them and making it painful for her to walk. No matter what time of year, there is always something that can get caught up in your pup's paws and pads if you don't keep them well groomed.
Additionally, long hair can slip under the paw pads and cause your dog to slip or lose their footing, increasing their risk for injuries. To avoid these problems, the excess hair between and around your dog's paws should be trimmed back and combed.
Hair that bunches between the pads is uncomfortable and hair that folds under the pads can cause the dog to slip and slide. If your dog has hair that grows between his pads, trim it when it gets long and folds under his pads or when it bunches up between his toes.
Having an abundance of long hair in the paw pads can also trap moisture which can lead to infection. Although it's always safer to leave trimming your pet to a professional groomer, you may sometimes need to trim your pet's paws between grooming appointments.
Don't feel frightened about grooming your pet. It is ok to give your long-haired dog or cat a “summer cut”—trimming their long hair may make it more manageable. However, it is best to allow a professional groomer to perform the haircutting, and never shave down to the skin or try to cut the hair yourself with scissors.
Shaving Can Cause Itching
Your dog's outer guard hairs grow much slower than the soft undercoat. After shaving your dog, their hair will grow unevenly, and your pup will feel pretty uncomfortable. And if they scratch to relieve the itch, then they could damage their hair follicles and cause hair loss.
A dog's fur coat protects him from sunburn and decreases his risk of developing skin cancer.” Shaving a double-coat can also do long-term damage. When it is shaved down to the skin, the undercoat hair will grow back faster, and sometimes will crowd out the slower-growing guard hairs.
Short-haired breeds may only need a slight trim once every 2-3 years. Long-haired breeds may require paw trimming every 4-6 months. It really depends on the specific dog breed and the quality of its coat. Trim your dog's paws when it's in a docile and pleasant mood.
The Root of the Behavior
Some dogs might resist you touching their paws simply because it makes them feel awkward or vulnerable. While the leathery bottoms are padded to withstand changing terrain and temperatures, the tops are among the most sensitive parts of a dog's body.
A sanitary trim (or sanitary clip) refers to trimming or shaving the coat so it's shorter in the areas where urine or feces may otherwise stain or get stuck in the coat. Areas such as around the anus, genitals and abdomen.
Healthy dogs should be able to grow new cells easily. But because paw pads are made up of tough keratinized epithelium the healing process can take up to three weeks.
Dogs such as golden retrievers, German shepherds, Siberian huskies and any dog that seasonally sheds huge clumps of fur (part of its undercoat) should never be shaved.
Pups are somewhat like human babies. Grooming sessions can make them very uncomfortable and even sad! In fact, it's not at all unusual to see your pup cowering from you or just looking very sad each time you bring him back from a grooming session.
Cutting or shaving your pet's hair interferes with your dog or cat's ability to stay cool. Although you may have the best intentions when you turn on the clippers, your pet may have more trouble regulating heat after a shave or haircut.
If your pup has a positive experience at first they will not have a problem with coming back, but if your dog has a negative experience, such as an accidental cut or a shave, they can become traumatized.
It depends on the groomer, whether they bathe a dog before grooming or not. Some groomers will clip and thoroughly brush out a dog before giving a bath and washing them. The dog groomers use this approach as it will prevent damaging the grooming equipment and might bring a better finish.
They might be nervous, cold, bursting with anticipation, or having a really stimulating dream, but an underlying medical condition or an injury could also cause such tremors.
If your dog has been clipped and the hair is failing to grow back, it may be due to a hormonal deficiency or imbalance. In order to diagnose this, blood samples are necessary to measure concentrations of various hormones. If your dog is losing hair in spots then it may have a bacterial infection or ringworm or mange.
Shaving can cause permanent damage to the coat, causing it to be unbalanced and unable to provide adequate insulation and protection. As a result, the coat may grow back in uneven patches, have a ragged or unkept texture or may never grow back at all (shave shock).
Some dog groomers snip off vibrissae for aesthetic purposes, but this is not a good idea. It's true that dog whiskers tend to appear sporadically, while cats get whiskers in neat lines, but they serve an important purpose and shouldn't be removed.
Long-haired kitties may have hair sprouting in between their toes. If this irritates your cat (you'll know if she licks at the hair obsessively), trim them gently with a small pair of rounded scissors. Be wary of your kitty's sensitive paw pads.