Comments on: It’s summer - can I shave my Golden to cool him off?

By: Antje Hunt

Antje Hunt — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 14:26:17 +0000

New to this. Please send me info how to get our LONG BEACH SPAY AND NEUTER FOUNDATION into the fund raising contest. Long Beach, CA has a horrific problem of cat overpopulation and the local shelter has to put down 5 out of 6 interned cats. Long Beach Spay and Neuter, a non for profit foundation, is working hard to trap homeless cats, help low or no income people spay and neuter their pets, not just cats. There are many rescuers who are desperately looking for funding to reduce the overpopulation and maintain healthy colonies. Long Beach Spay and Neuter last year founded CHAT the Coalition for the Humane Animal Treatment and contributed to the selection of a new shelter director who has the insight into the problem, is an exellent planner and is proving himelf by making inroads with the city counsel. The counsel has started to look at the data the new director is generating with the help of the rescuer community. As in all areas of government funds for animal control were slashed and only a limited voucher program for spaying and neutering is possible.
What we need is 1. a full time veterinarian at the shelter!!! 2. a low or NO Cost spay and neuter clinic for cats and dogs and rabbits in the geographical areas of Long Beach were accidental and illegal breeding occurs. A 40 year old ordinance of ‘no breeding allowed without a license’ has gone by the way side due to lack of enforcement due to lack of staff=funding.
Please Rachel, help. Fund raising is extremely difficult in these times but the willingness of rescuers is there to volunteer their time to gather animals that are homeless or belong to persons without means and transportation: if only they had a place they could take them for free spaying and neutering!
Sincerely,
Antje Hunt, Long Beach Spay and Neuter Foundation

By: Lori

Lori — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 15:04:53 +0000

You cannot compare a humans response to heat to a dog. Humans perspire and removing clothing allows this moisture to evaporate and take heat with it. Dogs do not perspire except for feet and they remove body heat by panting.
Shaving the dog will allow it to feel cooler when laying on a cool floor. But long hair will hold moisture longer if you wet the dog, providing a cooling blanket. The hair also acts as a sun shield, preventing sunburn. There is no one right answer… it depends on your dog and your activities.

By: Jennie

Jennie — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 08:50:03 +0000

I have a German Shepherds with long hair and i cut it every spring and he loves it. He sleeps mutch better and is mutch cooler during the day.

By: Jamie

Jamie — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 08:50:26 +0000

Hi there! I have a golden and I did get her trimmed for the summer, but not shaved. Like a few people said in previous posts, shaving can cause irritations to the skin. I recommend getting the dog trimmed and then using the furminator brush, it does make a huge difference without any of the worries of shaving. And they will still look pretty:)

By: Naoma

Naoma — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 00:13:51 +0000

As a dog groomer - I personally feel that we do whatever we have to to make the customers happy - as I am the owner of a golden/border collie mix - I keep her brushed out regularly - once a month - no sanitary clip, no anal glads - but, if i have a customer that comes in and does not know what to do - I show them shelby - and let them make up their minds….I explain to them that she is groomed about every 4 to 6 weeks (as a groomer that brings her dog to work with her, she is not groomed as often as I would like :))) Anyway, I always leave it up to the owner - it will cost the same to shave them 2x as opposed to brushing them out 4 time

By: bree

bree — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 23:57:08 +0000

I agree with the groomers, ive always heard not to shave long haired dogs down, the long hair keeps them cool, and they could end up with sun burn if out in the sun. I dont shave my golden,just keep him brushed out on a reg basis

By: Alyssa

Alyssa — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 23:06:21 +0000

my dog just had 9 puppies! and the r 3 weeks old and i want to wean but i need a recipe 2 do i heard to put the dog food in the bleander with goats milk but i want 2 hear other recipe before i wean them!can you help me?

By: Kimberly

Kimberly — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 20:48:38 +0000

for Darlene,
ears get cleaned with a vinegar/ water sol., a few drops into the ear,massage for 30 sec. clean out with a cotton Ball. allow dog to shake out excess, and put in ear dry powder ( petsmart). also, some people swear by adding a dollop of yogurt to the food if it is yeast base problems.

By: Kimberly

Kimberly — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 20:44:25 +0000

Our beloved female golden was shorten ,not shaved, in the summer heat, to protect her from sunburn. her belly was shaved allowing her to cool off by lying in cool spots around the yard. We only cut once a year allowing her coat to be grown in by cold weather. As she has passed, our male puppy will receive the same. Our summers can be wickedly hot with high humidity, even though we furminator and brush-it is too much of a chance that he could suffer in the intense heat of a Tennessee summer.

By: Alexandra an LVT works for a vet

Alexandra an LVT works for a vet — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 15:35:14 +0000

To respond to the groomers, please dont take offense. However, to “allow nature to do its job” would mean to not have made breeds of dogs. Golden retrievers are not “natural” as are not any other breeds. They are man made. The double coats protect from cold and water and snow, not heat. The only reason not to shave would be for show purposes. Shaving down the dogs, is easier for pet owners (less hair, less time brushing). AS an LVT, I see goldens come in with mats all over and who are very uncomfortable. I have heard countless reports from owners who gave their dog a puppy cut and found they were much more comfortable in the summer, and they had less hair in the house to deal with. The owners were also MUCH HAPPIER.