Pet Grooming Salon | Low-Stress Handling Certified™ Pet Groomers - The Grooming Table Singapore

Experience gentler grooming for your pets. Since 2012.

  • Services & Prices
    • Dog Grooming Services & Prices
      • Microbubble Spa
    • Cat Grooming Services & Prices
    • Rabbits and Guinea Pigs
    • Grooming FAQ
  • The Salon
    • Contact Info
    • Groomer Profiles
    • Total Wellness Concept
    • Job Opportunities
    • Articles
      • Dog Articles
        • Dog Grooming
        • Dog Health
        • Dog Nutrition
      • Cat Articles
        • Cat Grooming
        • Long Live The Cat
        • Katty Diet
      • Links
  • Book An Appointment Online
You are here: Home / Archives for Cat Grooming

Diseases: Natural cures to chronic skin problems

January 30, 2013 By Sunny Lim

Have you wondered why your pet’s skin problems keeps recurring after spending so much money on vet bills? Even if you’re the lucky few who don’t face the problem, please read on. Given the rise of unscrupulous breeders, there’s a high chance that your future pet is going to develop chronic skin problems. Besides, the recommendation I’m going to give today will help to improve your pet’s overall well-being. That in turn is going to save you a lot of medical bills and more importantly, heartaches.

I have two dogs and they are both on the same diet. Why is that only one of them is suffering from skin problems?

Unfortunately, whether your pet is susceptible to diseases is already written in the genes and others, are more prone to certain problems because of their physical attributes. The reason? Let’s go a little into the details. Female dogs ovulate twice a year and this period is the only golden windows in the year when breeders have the potential to earn money from the dogs in holding (or what we call the ‘breeding stock’).

puppy millsBecause of this pressure, they would try to breed whatever dogs they can, usually resorting to in-breeding or line breeding (mating siblings or close relatives). This act results in what we commonly see in humans when genes of both parents are closely related, the incidences of birth related defects or genetic problems would be higher.

Furthermore, because of the defects, it lowers the animal’s chance of getting bought, the breeder in his effort to utilize all resources efficiently, would use the defective pet for breeding again and in turn, creating a next generation who are carriers of the faulty genes.

In addition, businesses being businesses, would seek to minimize costs and maximize profits. With that in mind, would you think that the animals in the farm would receive quality care? Would they be fed quality food that is essential to good health? That is why so many animals grow up with poor immune systems that’s so prone to diseases.

Secondly, some breeds are more susceptible to skin problems than others. E.g. Dogs with wrinkled skin (Shar-pei, Pugs etc) are more prone to Skin Fold Dermatitis where because of moisture trapped between the folds causing bacterial and fungal growth.

My pet has not have skin issues for the last couple of years up until recently. What’s wrong?

Just like in our human bodies, viruses, parasites, malicious cells are present in and on your pet’s bodies all the time. They lie dormant only because they’re being suppressed by the body’s immune system. Whenever your pet is exposed to long term stressors physically or mentally, take for example separation anxiety, possessiveness, change of environment, pregnancy, heat cycles, illness, allergens from food or the environment, it may cause the body’s immune system to weaken and cause skin problem outbreaks and other problems like intestinal parasites and obsessive paw licking.

What do I do then?

Like humans, they can be stressed about anything and allergic to anything, therefore, a process of trial and error is inevitable.

If your dog is calm and you don’t think it is mentally unbalanced in any areas, you can follow these recommendations:

  1. zymox Shampoo & conditionerSee a vet and get skin tests done to see what might be causing the problem (Bacterial? Fungal? Demodex or Mange mites?) Medications can be prescribed to ease symptoms for a moment. Zymox is a range of enzymatic products usually prescribed for bad cases of bacterial and fungal infection. It’s usually my choice too because of its natural ingredients which doesn’t have any of the harmful side effects that other medications, steroids or antibiotic does. You can get it from the vet or from The Grooming Table.
  2. Identify if there’s any changes in your pet’s lifestyle or environment lately. Food, new member in the family, new pets, pregnancy, products,  floor cleaners used etc.
  3. Feed your pet a high quality, grain free diet, or even better, commercially available raw diets (commonly known as BARF diets). If you see an improvement, you can try reading up on how to prepare raw diets at home for your pets. A complete, raw, varied diet that is close to their ancestral diet helps to bring the body back into balance. (More on this the next time.)
  4. Eliminate any forms of bread, biscuits, commercial treats. They either contains carbohydrates which fungus feed on, yeasts  oBragg's Apple Cider Vinegarr contains toxins that just wrecks the system. Here’s how to make your own.
  5. You can also try using raw, unfiltered apple cider vinegar aka ACV (Bragg or Solana Gold) in their diets or as a leave on treatment. For small dogs, add a teaspoon into their food daily, 2 teaspoon for a medium breed and a full tablespoon for large dogs. It contains numerous enzymes and minerals which has a variety of benefits, including improving digestion, balancing the body PH levels, anti-fungal, anti-bacterial  properties  and much more. As a leave on, dilute 1 part ACV with 3 parts water and apply to the body after shampooing and conditioning. Dry as normal.
  6. Bathe your dog every 1-2 weeks. Too much sebum will be removed if bathed too often which will stress the skin to produce more sebum. Too infrequently, the bacterial flora will over colonize on the dogs skin especially if the skin is already weak.
  7. Always apply conditioner after bathing. This helps to bring the skin back to balance after being exposed to cleaning agents. Also rinse the conditioner thoroughly as too much product left on the skin will also encourage bacterial growth especially in hot and humid weather. For more information, read our article on how to give your pet a bath.
  8. Dry thoroughly after its bath.
  9. Do not use any fragrances on your pet.
  10. Although Singapore is warm all year round I have customers who claim that during cooler periods their pet’s skin did show signs of improvement. If really so, have your pet stylist give Fido a shorter clip or have the undercoat removed. Or place a metal sheet in sheltered areas to serve as a cooling pad.

Remember, the key is really a lot of trial and error. It is a tiring and painstaking process, but it is essential to solving the root of the problem. It is a long term solution to save your pet and your pocket, not antibiotic and steroids. I wish you all the best and please take a before and after picture of your pet’s skin and post it on our Facebook page will you? Or did you have any similar experiences? Please share it on our Facebook page.

Filed Under: Cat Articles, Cat Grooming, Dog Articles, Dog Grooming, Dog Health, Featured, Long Live The Cat, Natural Cures, Pet Articles Tagged With: chronic skin problems and diseases, natural cure for skin problems, skin problems in dogs cats and pets

Pet Grooming: The Never Ending Struggle With Ticks

December 26, 2012 By Sunny Lim

In Singapore, ticks are just like mosquitoes. Even as the weather turns cooler, I’ve still been getting a lot of complaints about ticks lately. Inevitably, I’ve brought a few home from the grooming shop and passed it on to my poor dogs.

This.Means.War! 

Some of you who bring your dogs out for daily walks may often find ticks on them and you may have chosen monthly spot-on treatments as a form of convenient solution. However, based on personal experiences and feedback from customers, it’s effectiveness

on subsequent applications is questionable. Why? I really do not know and neither have I found any answers online. Instead of answers, I found more people complaining about the same problem on the internet.

Bio-X d-Bug Flea & Tick Spray

What I have realised that works though, is using sprays and switching around brands often. Although I do not know why spray works better, but it may be possible that some factors may be preventing spot on treatment to spread evenly throughout the body. So the most obvious advantage of using sprays is that you can make sure that the whole body is evenly treated. Secondly, be it sprays or spot on, the effects do wear out. So with sprays, you are able to give the protection a boost when ever needed with just a spritz here and there.

Resistance is Futile

It could be that some sort of resistance has been formed that made spot on treatments less effective as it should be. Also, I’ve experienced scenarios where I applied the spot on and the same brand of spray a week later, the spray did not work as effectively as before. Luckily, I had another brand of flea and tick spray with me and it worked quite well in the end.

Apart from having a different brand, it’s useful to note that you should have different active ingredients as well. Try switching around Fipronil, permethrins, Pyrethrins, as well as natural alternatives like Etofenprox. Neem and eucalyptus are more of a preventive measure than an insecticide. But if you have the patience and is meticulous enough to give your dog thorough checks, then of course I would recommend using natural alternatives.

I Will Find You, And I Will Kill You

Even after applying flea and tick products, it is still necessary to give your pets a thorough check to remove any dead creepers as well as to see if there’re still any live ones. It would really help if you pet has a short coat. If it doesn’t, I would recommend you bring it to a pet a stylist and get it trimmed short for ease of checking. Don’t give yourself too much credit for being meticulous. I even have problems finding those pesky ticks on my Maltese.  The animals’ health should be of top priority and it’s looks should come later.

If there’s really a lot of ticks on the body, you may request your pet groomer to remove the ticks for a charge. Just make sure the services includes the physical removal of the ticks rather than just soaking your poor dog in a chemical dip and just letting the ticks die attached to Fido. Worse still, sometimes they wouldn’t even die.

As a word of caution, do not let your pet groomer charge you by the number of ticks removed. It’s a good indication that the groomer is a rip-off. Charges for a small dog is usually $20-$30, maybe $40 tops (rarely), if the condition is really bad.

How to remove them

how to remove a tickOther than keeping a keen eye during daily grooming sessions, a particularly good time to groom for ticks is after bathing your dog and its body is still wet. The coat would stick would stick together and close to the skin, giving you a better view of the skin. If your dog’s coat is just a centimeter long, you can use a flea comb and by placing it almost flat against the dog’s skin, comb against the lay of the coat. Remove any ticks you have found on the flea comb with sticky tape.

Otherwise, you can use a strong hair dryer, set it to cool and use it to part the dog’s hair. Remove the tick  by holding the tick at the mouth and pulling straight up. Squeezing the tick or killing it whilst on the skin will risk releasing toxins and pathogens into your pet.

If you do find baby ticks crawling around your house, try to find where they hatched. But unfortunately, fogging your house is usually the solution.

Prevention is better than cure

Ticks usually wait on grasses for animals to pass by and latch on them. But I also have owners who let their pets roam around without having any tick problems. Similarly, I have also found that there are areas around my house where my dog commonly get ticks from. After I change the walking route, my dogs seldom got ticks any more.

For topical prevention, mix water, a few drops of dog shampoo, neem oil and eucalyptus oil into a bottle and apply over their body. Towel lightly and dry them as usual. This method usually lasts two days tops.

Remember, keep your pets away from grass, apply flea and tick spray every 3-4 days and check everyday.

—

If you find this article useful, please share it and if you like us particular grooming tips, please share them in the comments below!

Filed Under: Cat Articles, Cat Grooming, Dog Articles, Dog Grooming, Featured, General Dog Care, Long Live The Cat, Pet Articles, Uncategorized Tagged With: cats, dogs, natural tick prevention, pet care, pet grooming, the grooming table, tick problems, ticks

  • « Previous Page
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3

Job Opportunities

The key to change in the world is massive collaboration. We are constantly finding people who are better than us to fulfill our social mission of creating a better world for animals and humans alike.

There’s nothing that collaborative effort cannot achieve. Want to make a difference? Find out what positions we have available.

Careers with Us

  • Services & Prices
  • The Salon
  • Book An Appointment Online

Copyright © 2021 · The Grooming Table Pte. Ltd. · Log in
Dog Grooming Services & Prices | Low Stress Pet Grooming Salon in Singapore. Gentle & Safe. | Pet Groomers in Redhill & Bukit Merah | Grooming Serivce For Rabbits and Guinea Pigs | Cat Grooming | Book A Grooming Session