Caring and grooming of the German Spitz

Utensils needed for grooming the Spitz:

- a pimpled brush
- a slicker brush
- a metal comb with narrow teeth
- a natural bristle brush
- scissors
- an atomizer bottle filled with water and some grooming product 

A side tip: It's better to buy high-quality (and therefore rather expensive) brushes or combs, they pay for themselves. Anyone who saves here is saving at the wrong end. However, this does not mean that you have to buy any highly praised slicker brushes for up to €90. I got the old slicker brush on the far left from my grandma, and it is by far the best I've ever had. Doesn't scratch, just pulls out the loose undercoat, and the thick teeth mean the hair doesn't break off. 

Brushing is basically about loosening up the fur so that it doesn't become matted and allowing air to reach the skin - although some Spitz owners seem to think that the purpose of brushing is to get the entire undercoat out of the fur. Of course, after a while there will be hair hanging in the brush and during the shedding process the brush will probably be full after just two minutes, but these are hairs that were already loose anyway. There is no need to pluck out the undercoat, as this will only destroy the texture of the fur. Unfortunately, it can be observed again and again that all the undercoat hair is removed from many German Spitzes in summer. The result is a dog whose fur is no longer off-standing, but instead hangs limply like cooked sauerkraut. What is forgotten here is that the undercoat also fulfills a function in summer - it protects the dog from the heat. 

For normal grooming, a studded brush is the brush of choice. The plucking brush should only be used from time to time for particularly lush hairy ends; the nubby brush is usually not enough here. Since dry hair breaks more easily, spray the dog with a mixture of water and coat care before you start. When you start brushing, it is important to divide the fur into small sections and really brush down to the skin, i.e. to also reach the base of the hair (in our case the scalp) and not just comb the surface of the fur. The dog is then brushed while lying down; it is best to work on the collar at the end while the dog is sitting. You can then work again with a natural bristle brush to give the fur the finishing touch. To achieve a high-gloss effect, you can rub the tip at the very end with a moistened chamois leather.

A bath is often recommended at the beginning of the coat change because this removes the undercoat well. Personally, I advise against this because the Spitz's fur doesn't need to be washed - unless our Spitz has rolled in some excrement. Otherwise, its coat cleans itself and care with a comb and brush is sufficient. Black Spitzes should not be left to dry in the sun after bathing, as the fur will lighten in the sun and then have a (possibly undesirable) red sheen.

During the change of fur, it is recommended to brush the fur daily in order to get rid of the old, dead hair as quickly as possible. By not brushing too much or for too long, you avoid damaging the undercoat. The credo in this case is: shorter, but more often.

Old dog books recommend adding one to two teaspoons of linseed oil and a little cod liver oil every day when changing fur. This makes shedding easier and ensures a beautiful, shiny coat.

By the way, one method of getting the loose undercoat out very fast during the coat change is "carding" or the "hooking method", which is explained very well in this video. This involves working through the fur quadrant by quadrant. However, you should be careful not to comb out the undercoat completely. If the guard hair hangs down afterward, you definitely combed out too much undercoat.

If the Spitz starts to smell, it is usually not due to the lack of a bath, but often it is the dead, detached undercoat that causes the smell. Especially with Wolfspitzes, where the loose undercoat sticks to the fur due to the structure of the individual hairs, you have to use a brush to help. If the shed undercoat is not removed, the end result is matted, bad-smelling hair that can cause skin diseases and is a burden to the dog itself.

You should never simply strip a Spitz of its thick fur so that it doesn't get heat stroke in the summer. Clear-cutting would leave it exposed to the sun without protection and could cause serious damage. Nevertheless, it may be necessary to shear a Spitz from time to time. This can be used to help older dogs who no longer shed properly or who have been neutered  to regain their joy in life, as the thick, woolly undercoat of old or neutered dogs can lead to circulatory problems. However, here too, you should not shorten the fur to a few millimeters, but rather leave it at least (!) 2 cm. 

At the end of the 18th century, it was a fashionable thing in Holland to shear Keeshonden like poodles. At that time, they were given a so-called “lion clipping”. For neutered animals, who usually develop a very thick, woolly and soft undercoat, this might be a way to circumvent the challenge of stressful brushing - for both of you. By the way, the structure of the fur changes so much during castration that everything gets stuck in it, and it takes forever for the fur to dry. For this reason alone, I would advise against castration.

I see German Spitzes wearing clothes more and more often. A coat here because it's raining, a sweater there because it's winter. Sense or nonsense? Let's take a look at the FCI breed standard. There you can read:

"Indifference to weather, robustness and longevity are its most outstanding attributes."

and 

"German Spitz/Keeshond has a double coat."

This also applies to all Spitz varieties. This double coat is weatherproof, water-repellent and both warming and cooling, so that the “Spitz” farm dog is well protected at any time of the year. Naturally. So if there's one thing the German Spitz really doesn't need, it's outerwear. Save yourself the money, your Spitz will be thankful - for sure!

Dog wool

You can also collect the brushed out undercoat of your Spitz and have it spun into wool to knit something beautiful out of it. Dog wool doesn't scratch and is cuddly soft and gives off great warmth and, especially when dense, it can definitely compete with Nordland jackets. Another name for dog wool is "Chiengora", as the yarn can be compared to angora - and it sounds less like dog hair and more like something exquisite. 😉

As with us humans, the quality of teeth in the dog world varies from dog to dog. Some animals still have excellent teeth even in old age, while others develop tartar as young animals. Nevertheless, you should check the teeth of your dog regularly, because toothache or inflamed gums do not go unnoticed. Bad teeth are often noticeable through penetrating smell from the snout, so it's better to have the vet take a look at this. 

I once tried brushing the dogs' teeth, but now I think it's stupid. In my opinion, the best way to care for your teeth is to feed really large bones, which promote abrasion due to intensive chewing. I prefer the-bigger-the-better bones for dental care. It is often not recommended to feed them because they are too hard. But that's exactly the point of the whole thing: a soft bone doesn't cause abrasion, a hard one does. Another advantage is the size of the long bones because they cannot be swallowed. However, with frozen bones you have to make sure that they are completely unfrozen before feeding, otherwise the dog can actually break a tooth on the hard-frozen bone. 

In addition to chewing bones, I occasionally use a scraper to remove plaque, which everyone is probably familiar with from their own visits to the dentist. You can buy these online for a steal and can easily remove stubborn plaque from your dog's teeth.