If you own a wire-haired fox terrier then you know how amazing these dogs are. Your pet’s appearance depends solely on your resourcefulness.
If you are ready to take a serious approach to your dog’s health and grooming then you’ll be glad to know that there isn’t anything complicated about keeping the dog’s coat neat.
Many dog owners are afraid of taking care of the pet on their own and go to professional groomers for assistance. Obviously, this is the best choice but it’s not always the cheapest one.
How To Groom A Wire Haired Fox Terrier
Here are a few simple steps that can help you learn how to groom a wire haired fox terrier on your own. If you are not sure you can go through with it without assistance, take the dog to a professional groomer at least a couple of times and learn from them.
- Use a pin brush on your pet’s coat and then follow up with a wide-toothed comb.
- Use the knife to strip the body and the neck to create the required length. Do some arching at the hip area in order to create a rounded shape.
- Use clippers to deal with stomach and groin hair. Keep the hair in those areas short.
- Clip (or strip) the head, including the ears.
- Hand strip the ears and be extremely careful when doing the edges. You might want to use scissors to make the edges neat.
- Strip the top part of the tail and use scissors to cut the hair underneath. The hair around the anus should be cut short.
- Use dog shampoo or mild soap to bathe the dog.
- Towel dry the dog’s coat and brush it.
- Allow the hair to air dry. You can also use a hair dryer to do it.
- Take another look at the dog’s coat and trim any stray hair as necessary.
- Comb the hair with a fine comb.
- Cut the hair in between the foot pads and around the dog’s toes.
- Shape the hair on the dog’s legs to get a tubular form. This can be done by shaping the hair with your fingers and then trimming. Use scissors to finish the look.
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15 Ways to Take Care of Your Wire Haired Fox Terrier
Before starting out on your way to getting a perfectly groomed wire haired terrier, you need to buy special equipment. You’ll need gloves, thinning scissors, wide-toothed and a fine comb, regular scissors, pin brush, and a stripping knife.
All these tools can easily be found in the pet stores online or near your home. Take some time to read the instructions for each grooming tool. Brushes and combs must be cleaned on a regular basis, while scissors need to be sharpened after heavy use.
Start grooming your dog as soon as possible. Puppies need to consider grooming as part of their normal routine.
1. Bathe Smart
Bathing your wire haired terrier before grooming can make the coat softer and easier to handle. Make sure to use only special dog shampoo or very mild soap in order to keep the dog healthy and happy.
2. Consider hand stripping
When you hand strip your dog, you have more control over the condition of its coat than when you use a knife or other tools. While this might be a more time-consuming task, you can get better and more impressive results.
3. Prepare the dog
Make sure your dog is well fed and content with the environment before you start the grooming procedure. Agitated and unhappy pets make terrible grooming clients. If you see that the dog is not ready, choose another time for the grooming process.
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4. Accentuate the spots
If your wire haired fox terrier has a spotted coat, you can accentuate the spots during the grooming procedure. All you have to do is keep the hair on the spots longer than the rest of the coat. As a result, the spots will be outlined.
5. Wear gloves
Buy a pair of latex gloves and use them when grooming your pet. The gloves allow you to get a better hold of the dog’s hair, which makes the hand stripping procedure much faster and easier.
6. Take care of the face
Wire haired terriers have plenty of hair on their faces. You need to keep it well trimmed so it doesn’t get into the pet’s eyes. Use a fine-toothed comb and a trimmer to free up the area around your dog’s eyes.
7. Spare the puppies
Most of the time puppies don’t need any heavy duty trimming. However, you need to teach them that grooming is a compulsory part of their regimen. So start with light grooming and surface coat stripping. Five to ten minutes can be more than enough.
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8. Buy baby powder
Using a bit of baby powder on your fingertips allows you to do a better grooming job since the hair won’t be sliding out of your grip. This is a good option for people who can’t work in latex gloves.
9. Don’t Force It
If you start plucking your wire haired terrier’s hair and feel as if the hair just don’t want to be plucked, don’t force it. If you can’t do the plucking easily, it means the hair is not ready yet. Move on to another area.
10. Keep it short
Not all owners of wire haired fox terriers want their pets to become dog show winners. If such is the case with you, you can keep your dog’s hair very short. It can take the hassle out of frequent trimming and stripping.
11. Towel drying
After the grooming is done and you bathe your dog, don’t overdo the drying. Use a towel to pat the animal dry. Make sure to avoid any rubbing since it may cause the hair to tangle. Air drying is the best option.
12. Use Ear Powder
When plucking the hair inside the dog’s ears use ear powder. It will help you pull out the long and short hairs without slipping. Be careful when trimming the dog’s ears since it’s not a pleasing procedure for the animal.
13. Strip regularly
In order to keep your animal’s coat looking good, you need to do the grooming procedure once every 3 months. If your pet is a show dog, you might need to go through with the process more often.
14. Visit a groomer
Consider visiting a professional groomer at least once every year to make sure you are doing the job correctly. A groomer can point out your mistakes (if any) and give you valuable tips to make your pet care easier in the future.
15. Follow trimmer blade tips
When grooming your wire fox terrier, consider the following clipper blade tips: #10 for the tail, #15 for the head, #10 for the belly and groin, #7 for leg hair. You can trim the whole body with #7 blade for a smoother look. However, the head should still be clipped with #15.
16. Be Gentle
When brushing your wire-haired fox terrier, be sure to be gentle. This breed of dog has very sensitive skin. Brushing too hard can damage the coat and cause irritation.
17. Trim the Nails
Trimming your wire-haired fox terrier’s nails is an essential part of grooming. If you don’t cut the nails, they can become too long and cause pain for the dog. Use a nail trimmer designed for dogs to avoid injuring the quick. If your dog doesn’t like having his nails trimmed, try getting him used to it by doing it little by little.
18. Reward Your Dog
It’s important to make grooming a pleasant experience for your dog. Rewards can also help to motivate a reluctant dog to cooperate. While grooming, praise your dog in a soft, happy voice. Take short breaks to pet them while telling them what a good job they’re doing.
After you have groomed your wire-haired fox terrier, give him a treat or two. This food will help to reinforce positive associations with the grooming process.
19. Avoid Matted Areas
When brushing your wire-haired fox terrier, avoid any matted areas. Brushing a matted area can cause pain and irritation for your dog, making the process more frustrating for both the pet and owner.
If you come across a matted area, use a pair of scissors to snip the mats out carefully, avoiding the skin.
20. Use a Leave-In Conditioner
Consider using a leave-in conditioner if your wire-haired fox terrier’s coat is prone to tangles. This process will help to detangle the hair and make brushing easier.
A quality conditioner will leave your dog’s coat soft without creating an oily residue. You can apply a leave-in conditioner between baths, and you don’t need to rinse your dog.
FAQs
Yes, these can make good pets. They are loyal and affectionate, and they require minimal grooming. These dogs are good with kids and other pets and make excellent watchdogs.
Wire-haired fox terriers have a coat of dense, wiry hair. The texture of the coat can vary depending on the individual dog.
No, these dogs do not shed, which benefits some allergy sufferers. However, this breed does require regular grooming to maintain the coat in good condition.
Yes, the wire-haired terrier is a hypoallergenic dog breed. This means that this breed does not shed or drool and is less likely to cause an allergic reaction.
Yes, these puppies tend to bark a lot. This is one of the things that you should take into consideration before getting one of these dogs. They bark to get attention or when protecting their home.
Wire-haired fox terrier puppies typically cost between $1,000 and $3,000. This price range may vary depending on the grade of the breeder and the location.
We hope these wire fox terrier grooming tips will help make the next grooming session fun and enjoyable for both you and your pet. Good luck!