Coat
Malamutes coats have a thick, coarse guard coat and a dense undercoat.
This undercoat will "blow" twice a year to make room for the new coat coming in. During
this time you malamute will need daily attention to remove all the blowing fur. When
your malamute is not blowing coat it will shed very little (unless you are wearing black!).
During this time your malamute will still require some grooming (once a week) to keep its
coat healthy, smelling good and looking nice. Your dog will also need its nails trimmed
and at times may need a bath.
When grooming your malamute you will
need some basic equipment:
- a pin brush
- a long toothed comb
- a shedding brush or rake
- toenail clippers
- baby wipes
- a good shampoo
- a flea/tick dip can also come in handy!
Ears
All dogs should have their ears checked periodically. Wiping them with a baby wipe
may be all that is needed. If you find that your dog is shaking his head or scratching
at his ear you should see the vet.
Feet
Dogs should have their toenails cut every two to three weeks if necessary. Teach
your mal to stand or sit still and offer his paw, clip a tiny bit off each nail a
couple of days in a row, or have the vet or groomer do the job.
Dog nails have a quick that can be seen as a darkening of light-colored nails
but is invisible on dark nails. The quick has a nerve and blood supply; nicking the
quick not only hurts the dog, it causes profuse bleeding, so keep a quick stop product
on hand or use flour or cornstarch to stop the bleeding.
With a new rescue dog or a puppy you want to slowly introduce them to grooming.
Handling them daily, touching their ears, picking up their feet and making it all
fun will help when you need to do a serious grooming session.
