Coat Care
Part 1 of a 4 Part Series:
Common Coat-Catching Solutions
How many times have we tried to brush our dog only to discover a "hitchhiker" hidden among the longer furs?
Depending on your dog's coat, removing gum, burrs, or any other hidden treasure can be a nightmare, and often we resort to the easy way out by hacking off that chunk of fur and praying it grows back in normal.
Here are some more photogenic solutions to the common coat-catcher.
Chewing Gum
For gum stuck just on top of the coat, use ice cubes to freeze it first, then you can either break it off, or lift it off gently.
If the gum has been rubbed right in (ick), a good solvent will remove it better than anything. Peanut butter works for this rather well.
For gum stuck in the hairs between his toes, it is best to just cut it off carefully, and keep those hairs trimmed to avoid further mishaps.
Burrs
Brushing out a burr is not always possible, but there is another way, as opposed to just hacking it out in a chunk. It still cuts it out, but in a less traumatic way for your dog's coat. Take a sewing seam ripper, and pick the hairs around the burr until it can be pulled out.
To prevent burrs from becoming encased again, a spritz with mink-oil conditioner will keep his coat nice and slippery, and any burrs will brush out easily. You can buy mink-oil conditioner from most groomers.
Paint
Water soluble paints like latex should be washed out of the fur immediately using warm, soapy water. Do NOT use turpentine or varsol, and do not allow your dog to chew it out.
Skunk Spray
Not a hitchhiker in the usual sense, a skunked dog is certainly a pain to deal with! An effective remedy for a sprayed pet besides tomato juice, is a concoction of hydrogen peroxide, baking soda, and liquid dish or laundry soap. Soak the coat in this neutralizer, then give your dog a bath.
