Cleaning Pets

Pets can be a wonderful source of comfort and entertainment. That being said, pets can also be a major source of irritation. Next to children, pets are often one of the leading causes of household messes after all. While pretty much everyone knows how to go about cleaning up after a pet, not everyone knows what to do when it comes to cleaning a pet. Cleaning pets can be a rather overwhelming task if you haven't ever done it before, but it is something that can be done if you simply follow a few guidelines.

• What type of pet? It may seem a little silly, but the first step in cleaning pets is determining what kind of pet you are going to clean. Dogs are cleaned differently than cats, and both are cleaned completely different than birds or horses. Each of these types of pets require different cleaning or grooming needs which should be understood prior to attempting to do any cleaning yourself.
• Regular grooming is important. Regardless of the pet, regular grooming is not only important for good health, but also for the sanitary conditions of your home. Most cats and dogs can take care of basic grooming themselves, but even they will need to have some deep grooming done at least once a month. In the instances of cats and dogs, this will usually entail things like washing and brushing the coats and even trimming the claws.
• Do it yourself, or hire some one? One of the biggest questions to ask yourself when cleaning pets is if you should do it yourself or not. If you have never done the grooming for your pet yourself, then you really should look into hiring someone to do the work for you. If you are interested in learning how to do it properly (such as trimming the claws without hurting your cat or dog) then you need to see if you can watch a professional as they do it.
• Washing and grooming your dog. A dog is perhaps the single easiest pet to clean. Usually dogs will only need to be washed about once a month (unless they get into something nasty smelling), and brushed about twice a week. For the most part, dogs are fairly easy to wash since they usually like to play in the water, just be aware that dogs will often think that you washing them is a game, which could lead to a very messy time. When brushing your dog, make sure that you have the proper brush for your breed. You can usually consult your local pet store to ensure that you have the right kind of brush to use.
• Washing and grooming your cat. While it is possible to wash cats, it can also be a fairly painful experience. I strongly suggest that if you are interested in washing your own cat that you begin doing so when it is a kitten. This will help get the cat sensitized to the water. Otherwise, I would strongly suggest dropping off the cat with a professional to get the job done. As with a dog, ensure that you have the proper brush for your breed before you begin brushing the cat's coat. Cat's should be brushed a minimum of twice a week, particularly if they are long haired breeds.