Grooming is not just about maintaining your dog’s level of cleanliness, and it is not just about keeping your dog good-looking. Grooming is about maintaining both your dog’s physical health as well as her appearance. This is especially important for long-haired dogs, which require more intense grooming sessions as compared to short-haired dogs. It takes more time to brush their long fur and they need to get used to staying still for this starting at an early age. That is not to say dogs with short, clipped fur does not require grooming. It is especially important for double-coated breeds to prevent the impaction of old hair that can potentially cause hot spots and other skin problems. 

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Brushing, for example, is beneficial for all kinds of dogs no matter what breed they are, helping to remove dead hair, dirt, and dandruff. Regular brushing also helps to bring out the natural oils in the dog’s fur. As you brush, the natural oils are spread all over your puppy’s fur giving the coat a healthy sheen.
 

Another benefit of grooming is that it allows you to check your dog for any abnormalities. This includes skin problems such as ticks, fleas, and dry patches, or issues with their nails, teeth, ears, and eyes such as infection or inflammation. When found at an early stage, these problems can be treated right away, before they have a chance to become more serious.
 

You can begin grooming a puppy when they are as young as three weeks old.

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With that said, we are extremely pleased to be partnering with Pawsitive Pawrents' Kat Kay, a local certified groomer from the Kemptville area! Being around dogs for most of her life, Kat turned to owning and grooming her own dogs at a fairly young age. While working at a kennel, alongside the owner and onsite grooming specialist, she took a keen interest in learning to groom and has acquired different techniques to properly care for all breeds of dogs. Kat is known to be a patient groomer with tenured experience working with nervous, and anxious dogs that may not be comfortable being groomed or in a kennel environment. Whether it is thick hair mats, shampoo, or just a trim to make your furry family member look and feel their best, we are excited to have Kat partnered with us as our resident groomer and be able to offer grooming services here at River Run Kennels, once again.  To speak to Kat about your grooming needs or to make an appointment, you can email us at grooming@riverrunkennels.ca.

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