Westie Grooming

Our Westie gets some reddish/pink pimples on his belly from time to time…mostly after he’s been groomed and he’s shaved underneath…he hasn’t been groomed in over a month and we’ve noticed the pimples are back…THIS TIME – they’re ALL OVER HIS BELLY, up the INSIDE HIND LEGS and CHEST…and now some of them are filled with pus and some have even popped leaving the yellow ick on his fur…he’s not scratching and doesn’t seem uncomfortable, but they seem to be spreading…any clue what this could be??? thanks.
i’m planning on taking him to the vet, just wanted to know what it could be as vets have a tendency to charge for the most expensive thing instead of what’s really wrong with the dog…and after visiting 5-6 different vets (all with different opinions) i’m starting to lose my trust in them…seems like it’s all about the money…

and as for ‘shaving’ him…we don’t shave him … but his belly gets a pretty close shave to keep him clean from urine and dirt. But this is not the problem this time as he’s got a full ‘belly’ of hair at the moment.

Westies are highly prone to skin issues. Take him to the vet and they will do a skin scraping to see what he has. Could be mange, could be dermatitis, could be allergies to food, allergies to the environment, seasonal allergies, etc.

While it’s not an emergency, he should be seen by a vet either today or tomorrow since that can’t be very comfortable for him.

I have a few questions. First, I’m using Earth Bath oatmeal and aloe shampoo for my Westie. How often should I wash him? He already has a skin condition as Westies do, but a week after he gets a bath, he’s totally gray and dirty! Will washing him with the Earth Bath stuff once a week make his skin worse, or will it be okay?

And just a question about washing in general… how do you go about washing their face? I’m afraid I’ll get water, or worse, shampoo, in his eyes or mouth or ears. Does anyone have any tips?

Also, my Westie has itchy, irritable and sometimes red skin, mainly on his back. Is there something I can put on his back or something I can put in his food to help with his skin?

Finally, what kind of brush should I use for my Westie? I don’t want to use a brush that irritates his skin, and I’d like to get one that I can clean because I had a basic pin head brush, and some gunk stuff from his skin got in the brush and I couldn’t clean it out.

Thanks!

Only wash once a month. Use a cloth to wash the face. put a made for animals gel in the eye, you get this from a vet. don’t get shampoo in the eyes. Get a brush recommended by a groomer.

My little tinkerbell looks horrid and needs a westie cut for cheap. any groomers?

Look in the phone book and locate a couple of groomers i n your area, call them up and ask their price. Remember, cheapest is not always best.

Hey, so im thinking of getting a little white westie
i have a few questions and i dont know where to find the information (i know i can google search it but i want legit information and sometimes stuff on google is like stupid and wrong

so here are my Q’s :

How much do they cost on average (at the pound/petstore)
How much do they shed?
How is their tempermant?
Do they bark alot?
How much food (in cups) do they roughly eat a day?
How often do they have to go to the groomers (for haircutting..i can do the rest)
How healthy are they? (like i know it depends on the individual dog…but i know some breeds are more prone to certain health problems then others)
How often do they need to be walked?
How often do they need to be brushed?
How calm are they?
Are the majority good with kids?
Are they usually smart?
are they small enough that i could put them under my seat on an airplane?
what is their height and weight?
How much excersize do they need a day?

lol thanks

just a little background info. I currently am 17, I just wanna do some research on different breeds because in a year or 2 im getting my own Apt and I believe that a house is not a home without a dog
Currently i have a golden retriever/poodle mix who i mainly take care of…but my mom doesnt want him to move with me
do you think theres any other information i should know about this breed?

also BQ: do you think hell get along with my current dog? hes playful and gentle and hes about a medium dog (about 30 pounds)

and also how easy is it to do the grooming on this dog? like i can cut people hair, and ive groomed my aunts Bijon
so do you think i could learn how to do it?

Try not to get one from a pet store. Fina a breeder or keep an eye out at the pounds (try www.petfinders.com), I have a (Westipoo) Westie/poodle mix (street rescue) and she is a great dog! I’ve never had a smaller dog before, but she is awesome! Changed my whole perspective. She learns quick, she doesn’t bark hardly ever. She eats about 1 1/2 cups of food a day, broken down into two meals. Make sure you feed a good food, it won’t be wasted and your dog will be healthier. You should learn how to trim and groom yourself, watch a groomer a few times, take your dog in for an initial cut so you can follow along when you are able to do it yourself… you are going to make some mistakes, but you will get good at it (even the most well trained groomers make mistakes). If you choose to use a groomer, it’s a good idea to have them done about once a month. My dog is relatively calm,she is about 3 yrs old now. She was a very shy at first, but she has probably been abused, and now you would never know otherwise! I have kids from the ages of 22 down to 7 yrs old and she loves us all! She loves to be with the kids the most and is very attentive of them. I walk my dogs constantly (like about 6 times a day, and the kids walk them too) but a few times a day, as with any dog should be good enough. I have not had any health problems with my dog, and she goes to the vet regularly, but every dog can be different. Just make sure you get their shots, dewormings, flea treatments and regular vet visits. My dog is just below my knee, she weighs about 25 pounds, what I consider to be a medium/small dog.

For better information, you can also look at the AKC website, they have breed info available and a list of breeders. I don’t know the prices. Each pound or rescue will also have their own prices. And look, I didn’t google a thing…

ADD: My westi/poodle doesn’t like cats, other than the ones in my house, she sleeps with them and plays with them. The reason I tell you once a month is because their beard hair gets really gross and needs to be kept clean and trimmed. The people that say they are fiesty and yappy don’t know what they are talking about and probably have never owned one, I used to think the same thing.

I have a 2 year old female westie, whom I’ve been taking to the same groomer since she was born. They always do a good job. They check to make sure each dog is up to date on their vaccinations, etc. so that’s not a huge concern for me. But, they let the dogs play loose together in a gated area in the building. My dog loves going to the groomer since she gets to play but last time I went to pick her up, there was a huge rottweiler and pit bull in the area with her. I hate being the person judging rottweilers and pit bulls but they were both extremely aggressive with her. She never gets scared of other dogs but I could tell she was ready to get out of there. They claim the dogs are "sweethearts" that they would never hurt a dog/human but who’s to say that? I mean, they could kill my dog in 1 bite. Am I crazy for considering a different groomer? Thanks for your opinion. Yes, a maltese or small dog is just as likely to bite, but I highly doubt they would kill her.
Thanks. I’m glad no one thought I’m trying to say all big dogs are mean I just know their bite may be a little more lethal if something were to happen, versus a small dog. I’m glad to know I’m not going overboard for thinking this way!

completely inappropriate … i would find a new groomer fast … they all claim pitbulls are "sweethearts" until you are trying to wrestle your dog’s lifeless body from it’s jaws … pitbulls especially go for the weaker, so your dog is definitely at risk … not only that, i would report them to animal control … a groomer is not a daycare and that require a different license … those groomers are very irresponsible to take changes with other people’s animals … get a new groomer

I was wondering about the purpose and justification of breed type grooming and the owners correcting their dogs standing position.

Isn’t it misrepresenting the appearance of the breed and the individual dog?

Ok, so for example, this a westie au natural:

http://wapedia.mobi/thumb/732c14630/en/fixed/470/524/Idefix_westie.JPG?format=jpg

Then a westie after grooming:

http://www.barneythewestie.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/show-westie.jpg

Sure, washing and brushing etc but shouldn’t dogs be judged on how they are in their natural form – including the way their hair grows?

Also, i saw the owners continually pushing the tails over the dogs back and moving their feet – if they don’t stand like that naturally then shouldn’t they be penalised for it?

I’m not involved in showing, dog shows hold very little interest for me aside from seeing the different breeds… as i understand it, it is meant to be a breeding selection competition.
If false aides are used to acheive a look closest to a standard, well, it is pretty much pointless. If the dog can’t stand on its own merits then why is it even being entered in the first place… I’m not talking about the grooming, but, things that are plainly cheating.
Grooming the coat like that i don’t really see an issue with, but that is not the same dog in those pictures so comparing the two is like comparing apples and oranges…

I took my westie to be groomed as he had a few matted clumps of hair on his tummy i thought he may need to have that clipped he has come out like a different dog he has been completely clipped so short you can see pink through his hair and has a very small skirt left approx 1 1/2 inches long he looks awful and i dont even want to take him out now any ideas how long it will take to grow out. I am gutted.

Probably about 6 weeks.

If you keep the dog groomed regularly, then the groomer will have no need to do this next time. It is fairer to the dog when to clip it off the coat has become terribly matted.
#
Once clipped, the coat is never the same. This breed should be hand stripped.

I am considering getting a dog, and I have never owned a dog before. The two breeds I really like, are the Westie, and the Miniature Schnauzer. I know these two breeds need to be groomed regularly, as their fur grows long… I have seen a lot of westies with like short hair on their back, and long hair going down under their bellies, and I was wondering, does it HAVE to be like that? Cant you go to a dog gromer and ask them to have it all short, and the same length all over? More for practical reasons, as I would prefer to take a dog on long walks through the forest and the beach, and it’s just not very practical….Would a westie get like too cold in winter with a summer cut in winter? I would get it a dog coat of course…

As long as you’re not showing the dog you can cut its "hair" any way you like it. The dog doesn’t care! I keep my Mini Schnauzer’s "hair" cut short for convenience sake. Still, they need to be brushed a few times a week. And if the dog is wearing a coat, sweater, etc., make sure that you brush out their "underarm hair" as the clothing will create mats. BTW – the longer hair on the legs & under belly is called a skirt. Libby has a short skirt & "Andy Rooney eyebrows." I hate it when I can’t see her adorable eyes!

Hi, we are moving from Chicago with our 5 moth old westie to India. I wanted to know if any one has done this before?
how should i groom my westie in the hot weather of india? should his hair be short or long
what kind of diet should i put him on?
is there ay precautions we we need to take?

thanks in advance!

Poor westie. He’ll have to get used to the water. It might cause problems as it would you or me. The pet food will ‘probably’ be of substandard quality. I hope they don’t have to put him in quarantine for months at customs. Keep him close to you and find a good vet asap.