Tail Talk Grooming Chronicles with Hound Therapy

Managing Your Pet's Health Through the Changing Seasons: A Complete Guide to Preventing Matting, Fleas, and Allergies

• Shannon & Tanya • Episode 6

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Seasonal Grooming: Super Matted, Fleas and Allergies

As warmer weather arrives, your pet's scratching might not just be a casual itch—it could signal the onset of seasonal allergies that require your immediate attention. Professional groomers Shannon and Tanya reveal why your dog's allergic reactions mirror your own stuffy nose and watery eyes, but with one critical difference: they can't tell you when they're suffering.

The grooming experts dive deep into why matted fur becomes more problematic during seasonal transitions. Many pet parents make a well-intentioned but counterproductive move—bathing an already matted dog actually tightens those tangles against the skin, often necessitating a complete shave. "We don't want to shave your dogs," Shannon emphasizes, "but the tighter the mat is, the shorter your dog has to be." This frank discussion delivers practical solutions for maintaining that fluffy coat without the discomfort.

Flea prevention takes center stage as the conversation shifts to parasites that thrive during warmer months. Even if your furry friend rarely ventures outdoors, you're not immune to infestations. "If you're in an apartment, your neighbor's dog may go out all the time. And if they've got fleas, you share a wall, so you've got fleas," warns Shannon. The grooming professionals share their preferred prevention methods, explaining why ingestible options typically outperform topical treatments for comprehensive protection. They also reveal surprising culprits behind matting—those cute dog sweaters might be causing more harm than good! 

To learn more about Hound Therapy visit:
https://www.HoundTherapy.com
Hound Therapy
3509 E Park Blvd.
Plano, TX
469-367-0009

Speaker 1:

Welcome to Tail Talk Grooming Chronicles with Hound Therapy, the podcast where we talk all things pet grooming, daycare academy and more. Hosted by Shannon and Tanya of Hound Therapy serving pet owners across North Texas, we're here to share expert tips, hilarious pet stories and the inside scoop on keeping your furry friends happy and healthy. Our motto humanity over vanity. And don't worry, we don't bite. Let's get started. Who let the dogs out? Who let the dogs out?

Speaker 2:

As the seasons change, so do your pet's grooming needs. As the seasons change, so do your pet's grooming needs. Learn how a timely grooming routine can prevent serious issues like matting, fleas and allergies. Welcome back everyone. I'm Sofia Yvette, co-host, slash producer, back in the studio with Shannon and Tanya, professional groomers at Hound Therapy. Shannon and Tanya, how's it going today? Beautiful day today, sofia, how are you? I am doing? Well, and yes, it is. That is wonderful to hear. Now let's answer the question everyone wants to know why is seasonal grooming important for issues like matting, super matted pets, fleas and allergies?

Speaker 3:

Let's start by saying everybody this time, especially this year today alone just the wind, the constant rain, you're sneezing, you're pollen, your eyes are itchy in water. Your dogs are essentially the same Dog care is. It's very easily related to pediatric care. So if you have a stuffy nose and runny eyes, the same medicines that we use for humans is what we use for dogs. That said they're.

Speaker 3:

They're tailored a little differently but if they're itching and chewing, unlike a baby, you can't say, hey, you know, stop doing that. You've got to stop them from itching and chewing. So the more that they itch, the more that they chew, the more matting that they cause. If they've caused matting, then oftentimes you've got saliva which causes then a sore or an infection. So we've got to be able to really recognize when our dogs are acting unusual, when they're not the same as they normally are from a day to day. Their paws, their butts, their scooting, their eyes have a lot of extra drainage to them. You know that they've got allergies. It could be that they have fleas if they're extra itchy, or it could be that they have an overproduction of yeast so they get a lot of more yeast infections again. That grows in that real humid kind of environment. We have several cockers that come in here. There's certain breeds that are more prone to it than others, but all dogs have the allergies.

Speaker 4:

You can do allergy shots from your vet, like Cytopoint, aptoquil, all those things. They're a little pricey but they are worth it and you can do a Benadryl.

Speaker 3:

There's seasonal allergies, and then there's food allergies as well. All of a sudden, you haven't changed a diet or food.

Speaker 4:

Chances are it's seasonal and that's something that they can get to. It's kind of like allergies in us, like you're fine one day and then the next day you feel like crap and you're just like my nose won't stop running, my eyes are itchy, so your pets get the same.

Speaker 3:

Now let's get to a matted fur. A lot of people want to wash their dogs. Oh, they're itchy and they're gross. You take a shower, you feel better. Well, that's not necessarily the same for your dogs. If you are washing your dogs and your pets and they've already got mats or tangles in them, what that's going to do is tighten it up, and the tighter it gets to the skin, then the less likely we're going to be able to de-mat it. Not only are they itchy and it's icky, but that mat gets so close to the skin that there's nothing else we can do but to shave it, and nobody wants a shaved dog.

Speaker 3:

If you want a fluffy dog, you've got to brush them regularly If you want to make sure that they are flea infested. If you're traveling and you need to wash your dog on a regular basis, you want to make sure that they have a short coat. So that's an easy maintainable. But a mat is not something that we can cut through or cut across. It's something that we've gotta go underneath. So the tighter the mat is, the shorter your dog is.

Speaker 4:

So we don't want to shave your dogs. No, we don't like doing it either.

Speaker 3:

Cute and fluffy is good, although a shaved dog during the summertime can be very simple and easy to do. So if you don't have a budget of grooming, you know, every four to six weeks, a shorter haircut is definitely a much easier way to maintain your dog.

Speaker 3:

They'll still look cute and if you're trying to do a topical for fleas, let's get into fleas. Fleas are huge this time of year. They have a cap star which you can give your dogs. We do defleeing here. I do not like to see a dog that comes in with live fleas. We have it from time to time but that means we have to basically shut the shop down. We disinfect, we clean, we bathe that dog directly. We have to bathe it with a Terrence coat, we do a dip, we do a cap star which will kill the dogs. It starts working in the first 30 minutes but it will kill the fleas for up to 24 hours that are on them.

Speaker 3:

It is not a flea preventative for long-term use. If you can get that flea pill, we'll give it here. If we have to either come and pick it up the night before, we would rather deflee dead fleas than live fleas. We have a lot of people here. Nobody here wants fleas. There are flea and ticks that you can get, pills and digestibles that come with your heart guards and I highly recommend that everybody. Everybody is on those. Just if you're at a dog park and you know I hear every day oh, my dog some sort of flea my dog something is better than nothing.

Speaker 3:

I hear all the time my dog doesn't ever go out. Well, you have neighbors and if you're in an apartment your neighbor's dog may go all the time. And if they've got fleas, you share a wall, so you've got fleas. Now they have to go outside to walk. You have cats, right. Cats may or may not jump into your yard. So there's topicals as well. They do not work as well in my opinion, but I am not a vet. Some dogs do not do as well with pills. I think it's some preventative is better than none. I prefer an ingestible because I know that they're getting it. The topical is great because it works through the sebaceous glands, so it goes through the dog's body, but it does leave an oily spot in the back.

Speaker 3:

You can't wash them directly after giving it, so you want to de-flea them first, which kind of you know don't get it all on or missed a spot or if your dog has got some kind of a medical condition, it may only hit the back half or the hind end quarters or the front quarters, leaving part of your dog open for a flea infestation, and we definitely don't want to see that. So hopefully that answers some of your questions. It's a lot to cover really quick.

Speaker 2:

It most certainly is. And one final question for you today are certain breeds more prone to seasonal matting or flea problems? Let's get into that for a second.

Speaker 3:

Any dog can get fleas, so it doesn't matter what breed it is Cats and dogs, both Fleas are fleas and they don't care who they get on.

Speaker 4:

If it has blood, they like it.

Speaker 3:

Yes. Now as far as seasonal matting, yes, the longer doodles are cute, Doodles mat, you know, the longer they are. Everyone wants a long, fluffy doodle, so I would say that's the number one. Just curly coated breeds and then anything that's got a pattern cut. So you've got Cockers. Cockers tend to have an overproduction of yeast more than other breeds.

Speaker 3:

I'm not sure why the older your dog gets the undercoated breeds, if they only get them once or twice. They've got that double thick undercoat and you know, as it gets warmer and moist, that moisture stays underneath those coats. So you know letting the skin breathe. There's your key is getting down to the skin so that that skin can breathe. But if it gets compacted, that's the same as matting, it's just. It's a different terminology because it's a different type of hair.

Speaker 3:

Matting on a thinner dog versus a double coated breed and a single coated breed are two different things. They're both removed, but in a very different kind of way. I would say, the longer your dog, the more prone you are. Schnauzers, armpits behind the ears, certain collars can promote matting because they rub Sweaters. Do not ever put sweaters on your dogs, Please, people please. Or, if you do, brush them really well if they have long hair. If you have longer than a half an inch of hair on your dog, no sweaters, no sweaters. Short hair, dogs, sweater all you want. If you want hair on your dogs and you want to have a sweater, then we need to shorten your dog's hair so you can wear the sweater, but you can't have both harnesses create a lot of matting as well, especially like the armpit areas, just because it's constant friction.

Speaker 3:

So anything that rubs on and wear a dog's. The best way I can describe it is if you were to put a stocking cap on your head and imagine it's cold. You're just wearing it on your head all of the time, you're never taking it off, and then you, three days later, you take it off, and then the next day you go out and you put that same hat right back on your head. Can you imagine what your hair is going to look like? Yeah, so that is what happens to dogs and sweaters. It's just a constant friction. Yeah, it's. It's like a noogie, a wet noogie all over.

Speaker 2:

Wow, my goodness. Well, shannon and Tanya, thank you so much for stopping in today. We'll catch you in the next episode. Have a fantastic rest of your day.

Speaker 1:

Thank you so much. That's a wrap for this episode of tail talk with hound therapy. Ready to book your pet's next groom daycare stay or grooming academy tour? Call us at 469-367-0009 that's 469-367-0009 to schedule an appointment, or visit us online at wwwhoundtherapycom. Serving North Texas with expert pet care. Until next time, keep those tails wagging.