Ticklish Shih Tzu

[aries27]

My shih tzu likes being groomed. I like grooming him.

The problem is:

1. He is ticklish on his front paws (for trimming excess hair in paw areas, and even clipping nails); and

2. He is also ticklish on his ears. Have to do a battle with him just plucking off the hairs from inside his ears.

All others he love -- brush, massage, top knot (falls instantly asleep on this with a good snore to boot!)

Any solutions please from owners of similar breeds? Thanks in advance.

[sbk]

That is a tough one. I de-tick my dogs on a regular basis and two of them absolutely fight getting their ticks removed from between their front paws. I've found I just have to assert my authority as the boss and hold them until they submit. Not roughly, but let them know I WILL get this done. Whether they like it or not. They squirm but finally, let me do it.

[aries27]

thanks sbk...

when he was younger, he was more cooperative. the hind paws however are no problem.

i will just have to try harder i think. and maybe do it more often, just to get him used to it, even if i am not really going to pull the hairs etc... they say shih tzus are stubborn breed. this is one of the times he shows this behavior but otherwise, very sweet and obedient dog...

[elfe]

i got a shitzu mix, he is the only dog here who does not like to be touched or have his hair cut at certain places. always thought that is due to bad experience before he was dumped here outside my gate. but now as you say, maybe not

i do the same as sbk, show him there is no way out and that i'm the boss

he has become more patient since but still tries some time..

[sbk]

And you do have the right idea, the more you do it, the more he will get used to it (eventually ) Patience and firmness are the two keys. And believe me, I still work on that with my dogs and they are 7 years old!

[elfe]

just re-read the op. you should of course not plug or pull out hair! this hurts and of course your dog will try to avoid it if not even become aggressive...

[sbk]

You are right, I missed that part about pulling hairs out of his ears, I wouldn't pull those, just trim them back.

[Tammi]

Dogs are very protective of their front paws - I think because it's the only part of them they really can see and realize is actually part of them!

I stopped trying to comb out knots and now scissor them out and the dog sits still when I say "scissors" because he knows I am not going to hurt him, just give him bald patches - but he doesn't mind those!

[bina]

yes u do pull the hairs out of the ears and it doesnt hurt if done properly; u take a few from the middle of the canal, twirl and yank once, they come out very easily...if it hurts him, then u are taking a huge clump from all sides of the ear... only from the middle area should be pulled to keep the ear canal open. hair from the flaps shouldnt be pulled, it hurts. never use a scissors in the ear canal, only a clipper for grooming, or a hemostat for pulling the hairs.

u should keep the ear canal clean all the time, but u cant pull a whole lot at once as it does hurt... and if there is infection then it hurts...in which case a good ear cleaning and meds should be used.

as for front paws, then --here are some behavior modification instructions:

every day u put your hand out as for a 'hand shake', the dog gives u his paw, he gets a small piece of treat. each day u ask for a paw, and gradually u hold or press gently on the paw, then he gets a treat.

release the paw BEFORE the dog pulls the paw away... its a matter of timing, but the point is to get him used to it, and increase the time u hold or 'play' with the foot. once he gives u and lets u hold his paw, u trim or snip a small amount and RELEASE, before he pulls the paw away. GIVE A TREAT.

the problem is that people only hold paws when doing treatments and the dog learns that having a human hold a paw is equal with pain. the same with ears. pet and stroke the dog around his face, every day. flip his ears inside out , stroke them, and then play a game. dont try to do anything with the ears. only after a week or so of just handling etc, then u can clean out the ear. when cleaning the ear, do the painful one first, then the good ear so that the dogs memory of ear cleaning is the pleasant one, not the painful one. do things in short time spans, often rather then a long drawn out procedure.

both my dogs give me their paws on command, sometimes i just shake hands, sometimes i cut their nails and sometimes i pretend to cut their nails, or spread their toes out to search for ticks, and sometimes, i examine their paws, and they always get a treat after, and i always release their paw BEFORE they pull the paw back from me.

it takes time, but now, i have a lhasa that lays still for up to half an hour for full body grooming, ears, teeth, feet, balls (yes i massage them also, so that if the vet ever has to check him there, he is used to the handling)... and he always gets a toy or treat for being such a good boy. this is the same lhasa that was aggressive bad tempered, ungroomed and nasty when i first got him at 8 months old.

never comb knots out, u break them apart slowly with your fingers (in shitzus and lhasas and other wooly furred dogs), when they are broken up a bit the u can use a comb or scissor blade to spread and break it up more, for combing. when combing, hold the hair at the base, just like for a little girl or boy when combing out tangles, and slowly move the comb thru...

always first comb out the dog and only then bathe him, otherwise it 'sets' the knots and mats. use a conditioner in the hair ( i use my daughter's detangler conditioner.)

ten minutes of grooming daily is better then once a week marathon...

i forgot i did ten years of grooming as a teenager, and have started again....

bina

[aries27]

bina!!!

thanks so much and the others too.

yes, will follow your tips... guess longer bonding time again between me and my master LOL... lucky doggie!

btw, i use a real dog conditioner but dont use it often. i mean sometimes he only gets shampoo.