Grooming Tips for the Long-Haired Maltese Shih Tzu

If you are getting a Shih Tzu for yourself, then you should know what you are getting yourself into. They are very high maintenance dogs with an extensive grooming process, so if you are not up for that, don’t get a Maltese Shih Tzu for yourself as your first dog at least.

Due to their long hair, shampooing, brushing, and combing take up a whole lot of your time, but nonetheless, that shouldn’t demotivate you from getting a Maltese Shih Tzu for yourself.

And to help you through the grooming process, you should continue reading all the steps given below.

Breed Overview

The Long-Haired Maltese Shih Tzu is a delightful hybrid breed that combines the best qualities of its parent breeds: the Maltese and the Shih Tzu. This charming dog is known for its luxurious coat, affectionate personality, and small size.

Appearance:

• Size: Long-haired Maltese Shih Tzus are considered small dogs. They typically weigh between 8-15 pounds (3.6-6.8 kg) and stand 8-12 inches (20-30 cm) tall at the shoulder.
• Coat: The most striking feature of this breed is its long, flowing coat. It can be straight, wavy, or curly, and it often has a silky texture. The coat can come in various colors, including white, black, gold, apricot, and particolor.
• Face: The Long-Haired Maltese Shih Tzu has a sweet and expressive face. They have large, round eyes that are often dark brown or black. Their nose is small and black, and their ears are long and floppy.

Coat Type:

• Single-coated: Unlike double-coated breeds, the Long-Haired Maltese Shih Tzu has a single coat. This means that their coat is less prone to shedding, but it requires regular brushing to prevent matting and tangles.
• Hypoallergenic: Due to their single-coated nature, Long-Haired Maltese Shih Tzus are often considered hypoallergenic dogs. This makes them a good choice for people with allergies.

Overall, the Long-Haired Maltese Shih Tzu is a beautiful and affectionate breed that makes a wonderful companion. Their long, flowing coat and playful personality make them a popular choice for many dog lovers.

Steps To Groom A Maltese Shih Tzu

There are a lot of different steps when it comes to grooming a Maltese Shih Tzu all by yourself. And even though you take your dog to the groomers, you should know these steps to make sure everything is done just right.

So now let’s begin with the steps that need to be done properly to groom your hairy baby just perfectly.

1. Purchase Everything You’ll Need

Before you can start with the grooming process, you need to purchase all the products and tools required for the process. These thighs are as such.

• Dog Brush
• Dog nail trimmers
• Electric Clippers
• Dog Shampoo (preferred if specialized)
• Conditioner (preferred if specialized)

2. Get The Space Ready

Now that you have purchased all the products and tools, you need to prep your home case for the grooming process. There are certain things that you can do to prep your house.

• Put some towels on the floor to avoid a mess and also your dog slipping.

• It is preferred if you have a bathtub or sink right next to where you are gonna do the grooming process. Also, keep a non-slippery cloth beside the sink or bathtub to prevent your dog from slipping.

• If the weather is great, you can have this set up outside the house as well, like in your garden or backyard. You also need to make sure what your dog prefers as well.

3. Soothe Your Dog

The whole grooming process can be a lot stressful for your dog, more so if it is their first time, so it will take some time to get them accustomed.

So before you start anything, sit down with your dog and calm them down, soothe them, and make them as comfortable as possible. You need to make them feel safe before the grooming process starts.

4. Brush Your Shih Tzu

The first thing you should do is comb your Maltese Shih Tzu. So to do that, you need to sit them down and place the brush gently on their skin, and comb till the end of the hair.

Continue this process a few times. You can brush your Shih Tzu on a daily basis, but twice a week is a must. Brush the muzzle area properly, as food gets stuck there quite often.

5. Work Out The Tangles

More often, Shih Tzus tend to get all tangled up, and their fur gets all matted up, and that is when it gets hard to brush them. But you should brush through them as much as possible but in a gentle way.

Although the whole hair is not possible at once if it’s all matted. So start with one area, then move ahead once that is done. But it is always best not to get to the situation of matted fur, so brushing is very important.

6. Wet Your Dog

After the combing and bruising process is all done, it is time to drench your dog, but that too gently. The water that you use should be lukewarm and hot, too hot or cold, then soak your dog down fully.

7. Wash Your Dog With Shampoo

Now that your dog is wet, it is time to shampoo your dog with a dog-friendly shampoo and not a human shampoo. Take the shampoo and then gently massage it on your dog’s fur, but make sure that it doesn’t get in their eyes.

Then while cleaning, rub your hands on their body to properly rinse off the shampoo from their body. Make sure that there is no shampoo residue on their body after the bath, or else it might cause skin irritations.

8. Clean Your Dog’s Eyes

Now that shampooing is all done, the next step that you need to do is clean your Shih Tzus eyes properly to remove all the mucus or rheum. You can either use your own finger or a clean, soft cloth.

Then clean the corners of their eyes properly and very carefully. If the mucus stays in the corner of their eyes for too long, then it can discolor the area, especially in light colored dogs.

9. Dry The Hair

Now that their eyes are clean, it’s time to dry your Shih Tzu properly till they are fully dried off. Wrap your dog in a towel and rub them up and down fully to absorb any excess water till they are dry. Then for the rest, you can use a hair dryer to dry them off properly.

But while using that, make sure that the dryer setting is at the lowest so that it doesn’t burn the skin of your dog. Most full grown Maltese Shih Tzus, like other dogs, get scared due to the sound of the hairdryer, so slowly introduce them to the sound at first.

10. Comb Your Dog’s Hair

After your Maltese Shih Tzu is fully dried and warm. It is now time to comb their long hair. So take a softer brush and gently comb the hair, starting from the top and ending at the tip of the hair.

This time focuses mainly on the matted hair that you couldn’t get out before the bath, and try to detangle them carefully. It is always best to comb the hair twice, before and after bathing.

11. Trim The Nails

Now, with a pair of nail clippers, trim the nails of your dog neatly so that they don’t stick out in an odd way and scratch your dog or anyone else. Make sure to cut till the pink parts of the nail since that’s the skin.

It is very important to trim the nails as it can hurt them. And just in case, while cutting the nails, you accidentally cut the skin, then put cornstarch on it to stop the bleeding.

12. Cut Your Dog’s Hair

If you think that your dog’s hair has grown a bit too much, then you might trim the hair as well to make them look cleaner and well groomed. So take a hair clipper, and the number 10 set is just perfect for trimming the hair of a Maltese Shih Tzu.

While cutting the hair, don’t forget about the ear hair and the beard. You can cut them to a desired length and then move on to other processes.

When you are cutting the hair, there is one thing that you need to make sure of, which is to put your dog on a leash so that they don’t move and cut themselves.

Wrapping Up!

Now that you are aware of the steps that you need to take care of while you are grooming your Maltese Shih Tzu, then now you decide whether you can handle them or not. This a huge undertaking that you need to do if you have a Maltese Shih Tzu. Only get one if you are comfortable with taking care of one. So if you liked this article then give this article a like and comment down below.

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