bathing and grooming

[rhondapup]

I love the fact that we love our fur babies no matter how much they shed!

How often should you bathe your Golden? I read that you shouldn't unless they smell as they are prone to "hot spots"... Is it true that GR's have more sensitive skin than other breeds?

Also, do other people trim the hair around their GR's ears to avoid the crimped look? I comb behind her ears every second day but it still gets very matted.

At 9 months, I find my GR's coat very mixed - I suppose she is just getting her adult coat...?

[GoldenLady]

While it may not be necessary to bathe your Golden too often, it shouldn't hurt her skin and coat if you want to do it more frequently. Show dogs commonly get bathed every week, and without ill effect; when I was showing my boy I did just that for a while, and his skin and coat were always fine. :)

Some Goldens do seem to be prone to hot spots.... But as they are retrievers and tend to love the water, I wouldn't avoid getting them wet for that reason. If your Golden seems to get hot spots frequently, I would suggest drying her off as thoroughly as possible after bathing or swimming; this does seem to help in hot spot prevention.

The best way of dealing with the crimped fur behind the ears, in addition to frequent combing, is to use thinning shears to thin it out; it's hard to do the job with straight (i.e. regular) scissors without getting a choppy look.

Yes, your girl is in the process of getting her adult coat! :) Talking about shedding, she will likely blow her puppy coat in the months to come; the biggest coat blow tends to happen during the first spring season after the dog turns a year old, so in your case it'll probably happen in a couple of months or so. You'll also see the feathering continue to come in.... It's a fun process to watch, though it does mean keeping the vacuum handy. ;)

GoldenLady :)