spending money

I positively inundate my puppy owners with reams of information before, during and after getting their puppies.  There are blogs, emails, books, chats, more emails, phone calls.  It's never-ending.  I so want all my puppies to have a wonderful life, and for their families to have a wonderful life with them, that I cannot help but to try and share everything I have learned about Lappies from my own dogs and my 8 litters of puppies.

One of the things I tell people is all the stuff they will need to buy.  There is an endless array of enticing stuff to spend one's money on that one's dogs will love (or not - they can be infuriatingly fickle).  To make the shopping list more accessible and to save me typing it out year after year, I once wrote a series of blog posts on the gear one requires before bringing one's puppy home.  Over time I adjust the advice, tweaking it here and there, and of course the links age and self-destruct.  I have gone back over those blogs a couple of times to update them with new links, but I decided to completely re-write the one about grooming products.  So this is that one.

GROOMING

For a puppy, any soft brush is best until they get used to it and their coat grows enough to warrant proper brushing.  This is a pretty good cheap brush for the very early days of a puppy coat: http://tinyurl.com/qdehlsd   Or you could use a cat brush.

As adults, your Lapphund will need 2 or 3 different grooming tools. (Although it goes without saying that some of us have 12 or 13 different ones. Ahem. No, not me. Of course not.)

Stiff bristle brush

Like a Mason & Pearson, for example. These are the best, and being the best, they are eye-wateringly expensive! About £60-£80 for a medium size one. However, you can get them a bit cheaper than that at the bigger dog shows. These days mine is a cheaper brand of bristle & nylon mix from Hindes after having good ones stolen from my bench at a show.  You can find a selection of various brands, sizes and prices on the Petcetera site. 

Comb

Another necessity for the fine hair around ears and under the legs is a comb. I prefer those with varying length teeth. I can't actually find a link to a comb that is like my favorite one, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's no longer available. You need to personalise it, of course - mine has authentic puppy teeth marks all over the handle, making plastic points that are uncomfortable to hold. Ideal. 

Rake

When they moult a rake is the tool of choice. A brush also works, but it’s slow going.  A comb works brilliantly but dogs generally don’t like it because it pulls too much on the skin.  The rake is the thing you need – it gets out the dead hair faster & easier than a brush but without the discomfort of a comb.

When I say rake, I’m  not talking about a product like the Furminator!   Don't use one of those on your Lappy.  And if you take your Lapphund to a groomer, don't let them use one either.  Furminators not only remove dead hair, it cuts the outer fur off, leaving the undercoat behind - the opposite of what we want.  What we use for Lappies is designed to remove undercoat that is already loose without damaging the outer coat. The type with a double row of rotating teeth is best.

There’s a great selection of combs and rakes on the Pet Express site.

Slicker
This is a great tool for small mats, the thick coat in the trousers, and the furnishings when they are thick.  It's also useful for strippiing out loose undercoat.  Beware when you use it, though, that it can really hurt and even injury the skin if you press too hard.  Just try it on your own arm and you'll see what I mean.  My favorite slicker is a small one, a bit like this one.

COLLAR & LEAD

As advised to me back in the day, I now advise that a Lappy puppy's first collar & lead should be the soft nylon cat collar type. There are some good ones by Ancol.  You will need the small, 12-inch one.  It will take a surprisingly long time for a Finnish Lapphund puppy to outgrow this little collar. It can take a day or two for puppies to get used to a collar & lead, and one of these is much lighter & more pleasant for them to get acclimatised to the idea of being restrained and no longer being free to run amok.

When choosing a collar now and in the future, make sure you pick one with an old fashioned metal buckle rather than a plastic snap.  The plastic snaps are not safe for your strong little Lappy; for one thing, they can break, especially if the collar is getting old and brittle.  Mostly, though, you are in danger of accidentally opening the snap when you grab your puppy’s collar.  And collar-grabbing is one of the first things you should be teaching your puppy to enjoy.  So avoid all those pretty, colourful collars with plastic snaps.  You won’t be able to see the prettiness amid all the fur anyway.

And while I’m on the subject of collars, it's worth mentioning this little warning too.  When you attach your ID tag to your puppy’s collar, be sure to attach it away from where you attach the lead, if at all possible.  Some, but not all, collars have two separate rings attached for that reason.  At any rate, never, ever, ever attach your lead directly to the ID tag ring (yes, we’ve all done it by mistake and if we’re lucky nothing bad happened.)  The ID tag ring is not strong enough to withstand the pulling of a Lapphund of any size or age; with one good tug, off comes the ring, taking the lead with it and there you are standing on the main road, traffic whizzing past, and your puppy is out of control.  It’s terrifying.  Be careful with that ring.

SOME OTHER STUFF

Toys, balls, bowls, chews.  There is no end to the stuff your puppy will adore that keeps pet shops in business.

Nail clippers (yes, it must be done). The guillotine sort are easiest to use & are widely available.

A selection of leads, harnesses, head collars, etc.  Yes, you will want and/or need all of those eventually.  Enjoy the early days when your puppy is not yet strong enough to pull you over in the street.  Oh yes, that happens.  What do you mean, no to everyone?  Just me then.

Back to the cute puppy pics after this, I promise.