How Regular Grooming Can Improve Certain Pet Behavioral Issues

Keeping your pet looking good can provide more than just a good trim. The American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior recommends regular grooming to help improve specific behavioral problems as well. Grooming can stimulate your pet’s skin. This triggers changes in your pet’s body. Here is how regular appointments with your groomer can improve your pet’s behaviors.

Canine Behavior and Grooming

Caressing your pet has physical and emotional benefits for you and your pet. It can lower your blood pressure and relieve your stress. The right kind of human touch can condition your pet to the right kind of relationship with humans. An animal’s first reaction to touch is aloofness or defensiveness. Proper handling at a young age can lead your pet to enjoy the human touch.

Pets that experience rough handling will not be pleasant during grooming. Your pet will not trust the groomer; this will not result in a good experience for both your pet and the groomer. Improving the way you interact with your pet at home can help prepare your pet for regular grooming. Setting a regular grooming schedule can help your pet know that it is part of their routine.

Common Pet Behavior Issues That Can Improve With Regular Grooming

Your pet can experience the value of human touch through regular grooming. Making the grooming session comfortable for your pet can bring more balance to your relationship. It can allow you to correct specific behavioral issues. Some pets are easy to groom, while others are not. Here are some of the behavioral problems that regular grooming can improve:

 

• Movement issues can make grooming extra challenging. Pets often run away or wriggle at the groomers. Others go limp or even tremble at the sight of the groomer. When problems with movement happen, grooming may end up incomplete or even unsuccessful. Regular grooming can correct this issue. Your pet can get used to the process of grooming.
   

• Aggression can manifest during grooming because of a pet’s distrust toward the groomer, who is a stranger. There are cases when a pet may growl or bite the groomer. Other pets can lash out at the other animals being groomed as well.
   

• Fear, anxiety, or stress can come out when the pet arrives at the grooming facility. Whining, howling, barking, or hissing can be so loud that it can interrupt other groomers or distract other pets. Regular grooming can tone this behavior down, especially if the groomer exerts effort to gain your pet’s trust.

Some groomers refuse to groom pets that are too difficult to handle. They decline because they do not want to get bit or stress the pet. If they accept the task, they tend to charge extra for the difficult experience. Regular grooming can improve your pet’s reaction to the groomer and the process of grooming.

Regular Grooming Starts at Home

You set the foundation for your pet’s attitude toward grooming. The way you care for your pet—including proper grooming, feeding, and playing—will stay with your pet. Your daily touch will communicate safety. It can strengthen your bond. This type of interaction and trust can extend to your pet and the groomer with regular grooming schedules. Since you started proper handling techniques at home, your groomer will have an easier time getting the job done.

Regular grooming sessions can correct behavioral problems in your pet. At Liberty Pet Resort & Wellness Center, we take time to know our furry clients before grooming them. This will make the session easier and more pleasant for our groomers, the pet parents, and the pets themselves. Feel free to drop by our center in Cumming, Georgia, for an in-person consultation. Call 770-886-9936 to set a grooming appointment or ask about our pet grooming packages.