Dog Grooming for Golden Retriever

Dog Grooming for Golden Retriever

Nothing can beat the true loving nature and companionship of the Golden Retriever breed. The shiny eyes, lustrous golden coat, and furry paws of Golden retrievers need proper grooming care. Dog grooming for golden retriever breeds requires focusing on every aspect from coat care to nail trimming. 

If you are a proud parent of a golden retriever, you know the struggle of removing broken hair from your sofa. In this guide, we’ll go through the complete details of dog grooming for golden retrievers. This is essential especially when you don’t have time each day to groom your dog and keep him healthy. 

Start Grooming Golden Retriever at Young Age 

A good grooming routine cannot be maintained if your golden retriever doesn’t allow you to touch him. This is a very common problem faced by dog owners when their dogs are not accustomed to grooming. Indulging your dog in grooming will help him get used to the grooming tools and make grooming a comfortable experience. 

Although golden retrievers are quite good at interacting with people, bad things can be expected. Sudden exposure of an adult dog to a groomer can scare him and he might not let the groomer near him. It is best to start and develop grooming habits in golden retrievers when they are at the puppy stage. 

Steps Step Guide to Dog Grooming for Golden Retrievers 

A grooming session will start smoothly when you know what to do and how to do it. Whether you want to do the grooming at home or avail of a groomer service, both must be comfortable for the dog. Keep reading below to learn how to start an effective grooming session for a golden retriever. 

Gather the Necessary Grooming Tools 

As golden retrievers are mostly double or triple-coated, certain grooming tools are essential. These tools help to remove the dead and broken hair from the coat of golden retrievers. Here is a list of what you need on the grooming day and don’t forget to turn on your dog’s favourite music playlist. 

• Good quality dog grooming pin brush 
• Medium wide metal de-matting comb 
• A pair of blunt ends straight and curved scissors 
• Dog-specific hair clipper 
• Specially formulated dog shampoo & conditioner 
• A good quality towel for your fur buddy 
• Bathtub & a grooming table 
• Blow Dryer 
• Dog nail clippers & grinder device 
• Toothbrush & Canine Specific Tooth Paste 
• Safe to Use Ear & Eye Cleaning Solutions 

Take a Start by Brushing the Coat 

The first step for dog grooming in the case of a golden retriever is to thoroughly brush the coat. Use a pin brush and gently brush the whole-body coat to remove the broken dead hair.

This step is essential before a bath as when wet, these broken hairs are difficult to remove and cause stubborn tangles. You can also brush in the reverse direction or opposite to the hair grain to remove the dead hair. 

If your dog has a lot of matt formations due to negligence of grooming, carefully remove them using a de-mating comb. You may need to cut off some of the mats with blunt scissors in golden retrievers. High precaution is required to make sure you don’t accidentally nick the skin of your dog. 

Clipping & Trimming Golden Retriever’s Coat 

Golden retrievers are known for their luscious coat and rarely require a full shave. However, the long coat may overgrow and cause irregularities. You can use scissors or shaving clippers to cut off the excessively grown fur from the belly, legs, and tail according to the requirement.

 Do Teeth Brushing Before Bath 

Veterinarians & dog groomers recommend brushing your golden retriever’s teeth before bath. There is no point in giving a bath before and making his fur wet again with toothpaste. Choose a gentle bristle brush and dog-specific toothpaste for that purpose.

While brushing, make sure not to go hard on the gums of the dog or you might accidentally cause gum laceration and swelling. Doing this will irritate & make your dog hesitant to go for other grooming procedures. 

Trim and grind your Dog’s Nails 

Trimming nails is an essential part of every dog’s grooming routine. The golden retriever is a medium to large size breed and requires nail trimming to prevent nail issues. Untrimmed nails can make a golden retriever unable to walk properly and cause injuries to the surrounding paw.

During nail trim, it is crucial to take care not to cut the sensitive skin of the nail. I recommend you use your phone’s flash or other focused flashlight for that purpose. Hold the light on the opposite side of the nail and look where the sensitive pink nail ends. Cut & grind the nail around 5 mm away from the pink region. 

The Right Way to Bath a Golden Retriever 

After doing the brushing, coat & nail trimming, and teeth brush, your golden retriever is now ready for a comfy bath. Gently put the dog in a bathtub, and place cotton balls in the ears to prevent accidental water spillage inside the ears.  

Use lukewarm or moderate-temperature water and shower the whole-body coat of your dog. Then, apply the dog-specific shampoo and conditioner and rub thoroughly using your hands or a rubber bath brush. After that, rinse and wash the coat two times to remove all the excessive shampoo from Golden Retriever’s long fur.

Remove the inserted cotton balls from both ears of a golden retriever. Take a towel with good absorptive ability and dry the dog with gentle motion. Give your golden retriever a few moments and then use a hair dryer and low to medium heat to dry the fur completely. 

Ear & Eye Cleaning of Golden Retriever 

Golden retrievers are susceptible to excessive ear wax build-up due to floppy falling external ears. To clean the ears, use a vet-prescribed ear cleaner such as Veto quinol ear cleaning solution. Put a few drops in the ear, rub the ear base, and clean the visible ear area with a cotton ball. Additionally, eye cleaning is as important as ears in the case of golden retrievers.

The build-up of gunk in the eyes of golden retrievers must be cleaned with a good eye cleaner. If your dog has stubborn ear stains, you can also use dog tear stain remover drops on the eyes and clean them with a cotton ball. Following these essential grooming steps will ensure a clean and fresh Golden retriever without facing any stress or grooming anxiety.