Make Cairn Terrier Grooming Easy with these Simple Techniques

If you’re the happy owner of a beautiful Cairn terrier breed you’ve made a great choice, this particular dog has a friendly and energetic character and makes a loyal companion to both single owners and those with large families.

This dog is a much sought after canine breed, so finding lots of helpful Cairn terrier info at you local veterinarian’s office or over the internet is very easy.

In terms of cairn terrier grooming they do tend to have a large amount of shaggy long hair which can be quite difficult to maintain at times, but if you follow some of the tips mentioned in this article you won’t have a problem keeping your terrier comfortable and looking their best.

The Cairn terrier breed originated in Scotland in the 1500’s and looks almost identical in appearance to the well known Scottish terrier breed, but is actually itself an original pure terrier in its own right.

Since their humble beginnings they have developed into an attractive compact dog, they have a log thin haired coats that require a good deal of grooming to keep them free of invading insects and canine bacteria infections.

Cairns are known for their facial hair that sprouts from the top of the head and bellow their muzzles looking a little like a small beard.

This combined with their always alert pointed ears and sturdy, square shaped bodies anyone would find it difficult not to fall for this adorable animal.

Cairn Terrier Grooming Basics

Living an average of 15 years overall the Cairn terrier health is very good for a dog of such a small size, but grooming your dog must be done regularly to keep him or her free of parasites.

The areas that needs most attention is of course the long coat, without a trim every few months you may end up with something that looks more like a mop end.

Long hair also has the tendency to pick up dirt and other debris when your terrier is running about outside, trimming can be either done at a pet grooming shop or you can attempt this yourself.

If you plan on grooming your own terrier be careful not to go too close to the skin, you want to avoid destroying the protective undercoat which protects them from water and the sun.

Hand Stripping your Terrier

When your terrier starts to look overly shaggy and you notice that you’ve had to pull out one too many mats of hair, then it’s probably a good time to give it a quick trim and groom.

Using scissors to clip your dogs hair is not a good idea especially if you’re untrained, instead you can hand strip your cairn terrier for an even coat.

Stripping involves pulling out all the old dead hair from the root, it is a little tedious but helps to stimulate oil production and new hair growth leaving your cairn with a fresh new coat.

To hand strip your dog grab a clump of hair between your thumb and fore finger as close to the hair roots as possible and pull outwards with a strong tug. This doesn’t hurt your dog and can alternatively be done with a hair stripping knife bought at your local pet store.

Removing Mats from your Dog’s Coat

Of all the Cairn terrier grooming techniques that you’ll learn, knowing how to remove mats quickly will be a valuable one to use on your terrier; Cairn terrier owners will know all too well how often you need to pull and cut mats out of you’re their dogs coat.

Too much matted clumps of hair can tighten areas of your dogs coat and pull on the skin, which can inevitably be harmful to your cairn terrier health levels.

To remove mats use a wide toothed comb and start at the bottom of the mat gently puling up and outwards; if this doesn’t work there are several detangle shampoos that smooth the surface of each hair allowing the to slide out.

The best way to prevent mats is to regularly comb your terrier’s coat keeping it oily, straight and free of dead hair build ups.

For further information on Cairn Terrier grooming, we suggest you check out the highly recommended Cairn Terrier eBook and audio package today!