Grooming your Australian Terrier

Australian Terriers are cute little terriers that look a little like Yorkies, though they hail from Australia. They have some specific grooming requirements that must be kept in mind, even if you do not intend to put yours in any show.

Australian Terriers aren’t terribly hard to groom if you’re only interested in keeping your dog clean and tidy, because their sturdy overcoats keep out most dirt and grime, protecting the soft undercoat. However, there are a few things which should be kept in mind when taking grooming your Australian Terrier.

Lower maintenance

Unlike other breeds of terrier, your Australian Terrier is a little lower maintenance. It’s recommended that you only bathe your Australian Terrier once a month or less because this terrier’s outer fur is supposed to be hard and over bathing will make your dog’s fur appear lank and dry out your dog’s skin as well. It’s also easier to brush your dog’s fur-several times a week, brush out the dog’s outer fur and then use a comb and brush on your dog’s soft undercoat. Doing this alone will spread around the terrier’s natural oils and lead to a glossy dog.

Extreme reactions to flea bites

Keep an eye out for fleas and mites – Australian Terriers are known for having extreme reactions to flea bites. Sometimes you will want to clip your terrier’s toenails and trim the excess hairs from the dog’s paws and face. An Australian Terrier’s paws for show should look ‘cat like’ and for that to happen, the paws must be trimmed. The other unique feature of the Australian Terrier is the ‘topknot’ of fur on the dog’s head. In order to maintain this look, you have to brush the lighter colored fur up and then out.

Next, pluck any long hairs from your dog’s ears using your fingers, not scissors as their ears are very small and easy to damage with anything other than your fingers. You also have to carefully groom your dog’s ruff; it’s meant to stay as long and full as possible and you can allow for this by pulling out any scraggly hairs and letting the healthy hairs grow through.

Brush the teeth – Keep the doggy smile white!

Finally, always brush your dog’s teeth a few times a week in order to fight back plaque and prevent gingivitis. This way, your Australian Terrier can have a nice white doggy ‘smile’ all of the time. This takes a little bit of socializing on your part-no dog likes having foreign objects in their mouth and the Australian Terrier is no different.

If you want to know more about how to groom your Australian Terrier, you can always ask a groomer. He or she will be able to groom your dog once and show you what to do so you can mimic it. Clipping can be especially nerve wracking in this way, leading most experts to say that when in doubt, don’t clip. If nothing else, groom your dog daily to keep your dog’s coat glossy and healthy. It can be fun for you and your little terrier once your dog is socialized to it.