Newton's Journals

Canine Grooming & the Right Tools
7/10/2008

I have had Newton in my life for nearly a year now. I can safely say I have spent hundreds of dollars on doggie supplies. Today I'd like to detail some of the grooming supplies and techniques I have learned in the past year.

First, brushing is an extremely important part of your grooming routine for your dog. It helps to elliminate loose hair making his skin much more comfortable and it elliminates all possibility of sticking to your leather couch. The first brush I purchased was one of those pin-head wire brushes that are very common in all pet shops; this brush had a retractable inset so the wire comb could be lengthened or shortened as necessary. I placed the inset to its shortest "depth" making the wires 1/2" long. When I tried to brush Newton with this kind of grooming brush he coward and skidded away from me. He made quite obvious he did not like being brushed with wires; now granted he has very short hair so there was direct contact to his skin.

Newton was very anxious when I attempted to brush him with the wire brush, so I took it back to the store I purchased it and got a soft headed wire brush; this brush had plastic balls on the end of the pins much like human hair brushes. He still cowered away from when I used this brush, so again I returned the brush and left scratching my head wondering what I could use to groom him.

I was at a grocery store one day and found "The Love Glove"; it was a mitt with soft rubbery "teeth" on one side. When I got home I slipped the glove on expecting Newton to scurry away and to my very happy surprise he enjoyed it! He even rolled onto his back so I could rub his chest and belly with this glove. I though "Eureka!" I now know the kind of material his brushes need to be made out of...Semi rigid rubbery material!

From that brush I moved onto an "electrostatic" type of brush. This brush is all rubber and works by "collecting" loose hair via static electricity. Once I finally found the perfect grooming brush for Newton I brushed and brushed and when I was finished Newton's coat was so shiny and I could tell he felt worlds better since he was happily wagging his stubby tail. I also had a pile of loose dog hair on my carpet!

The day I adopted my dog I went from getting him at the vet's office to shopping at PetSmart, with him in tow! I got a kennel for $25, it's more than he needs, but at $25 it was a steal. I bought a leash, a collar, a harness, dog bowls, dog food, bed and some chewing bones. I also got him his new dog tag to wear proudly on his new collar.

The woman behind me said "He has a real attachment to you", I just smiled, thanked her and went on my way. I thought she was a bit crazy honestly. When I got home I brought Newton in and let him get familiar with the surroundings. I could not let him loose in the backyard because at the time we did not have a gate. When I went to work the next day, I had to put him in the bathroom since I did not put together the kennel yet. The guest bathroom is quite long and I thought that would be enough room for him to not feel overly enclosed.

When I got home I found a different story! The back of the bathroom door had been scratched/chewed away...I was devastated. I immediately put the kennel together and put him there the next day. I felt terrible for locking him up in a cage, but when I told my woes to my boss the next day she told me that it will be the best thing to do for him. After some time he will go into his kennel on his own because it is a safe place for him, instead of protecting himself from all sides, he only has to worry about one direction to protect.

Kennel training was one of the best things I could have done for Newton. If I tell him to go in his kennel when I have to leave, 99% of the time he goes in without a fuss. There is that 1% when I have to coax him in with a treat because he wants to go along.

A few days later I realized I would need to give him a bath at some point. Dog shampoo was something I forgot to buy when purchasing dog supplies. I took myself to PetSmart again, and purchased some cheap shampoo. I bathed Newton and after the bath, found his fur to be very rough. The next time I went to PetSmart, I purchased an oatmeal conditioner. Yes, I purchase conditioner for my dog. It makes the world of difference in his fur, so it is totally worth it! He is much more fun to cuddle and pet when he has soft fur rather than rough fur.

He is not fond of baths, but most dogs aren't. I do think he knows the difference in my cuddling when he's dirty and when he's clean, so over time I do believe he's come to understand that a bath means more cuddle time for him!

Today Newton enjoys being cuddled and spoiled and is very attached to me. If I disappear for a prolonged period of time and he does not know where I am he gets very anxious and starts looking for me. I don't know how that woman in PetSmart knew he would be attached like he is, but I wish I could tell her she was right!

His name is Newton. He is a Pit Bull Terrier/Corgi mix. He has the long body, short bowed legs and ears of a Corgi but the muscle build of a Pit Bull Terrier (PBT for short). He's absolutely adorable. He's absolutely spoiled. And he is most certainly all Newton.

He didn't start life as my spoiled mutt-of-a-dog. Frankly I'm not sure where he was born. I don't know if the owners of his parents were good people or even where he came from. In the summer of 2007 I was looking for a dog I could call my very own.

I originally thought I would like to have a Shih Tzu dog to doll up and put little ribbons on her ears. I filled out an application online but after several weeks of not hearing from the organization I decided to start looking again. And I looked, and called and looked some more. One of my bosses offered to call her vet to see if they had any dogs that were brought in. I said OK not expecting to have the chance to look at any dogs at a vet's office. She spoke to one of the vet-techs who told her they currently had two dogs available, one was female and the other male. The female was a lab mix and the male a corgi mix.

I felt like I was kicked in the head! During my time at university I had looked into two dog breeds that I thought would suit me well, one being Greyhound and the other Corgi. I was so excited about the corgi-mix. My boss told me to hurry over there to take a look at their dogs as it was Friday and 4:45 in the afternoon. I got to the vet clinic at five minutes till 5:00. The lady at the desk was happy to bring me to the back to look at the dogs.

I looked at the female first and decided she would be too large for me to handle. Then we walked outside to the back kennels to look at the male corgi they were housing. He was so adorable! I was told he was found wandering along the road and the woman who brought him in did not want to give him up because he was so sweet but could not keep him as she already had three dogs. They had nicknamed him "Jack" and the female lab was called "Jill"; they were brought in around the same time so they thought it appropriate to give them those names.

I laughed at the irony of the name as it is my dad's name. Once he was let out of the large kennel he went running around in a couple of circles and ran up to me. I told him to sit and he promptly did so. I decided then and there that he was coming home with me and that my fiance, then boyfriend, would just have to find a way to forgive me.

I filled out the paperwork and as I was waiting for some papers to sign I was thinking of a new name to give him. I couldn't call him Jack for obvious reasons and he seemed very smart. I looked down at him and said "How do you like Newton?" he wagged his tail at that. Then I said "What about Spot?" and got no reaction, so I asked him, "You like Newton then?". His tail proceeded to wag again. With that decided, all of the paperwork filled out that day had his new name, Newton, on it.

I brought him home and after six months of being together I can happily say I made one of the best decisions of my life by bringing him home the day I set eyes on him. He knows various tricks, he has a large yard to play in, he gets a treat every day; I try to socialize him when I can by bringing him along on short trips to the post office, gas station, dog park, puppy stores ( to get more treats of course!) and anywhere else I can bring him along.

I will never buy a dog from a pet store, although I will go in to cuddle the puppies. I am not worried about those dogs finding homes as they will almost always do so. Dogs that are abandoned in pounds, and found wandering the streets are the ones in need of a good home. I will always thank my lucky stars Newton and I found eachother. He is my ever faithful four-legged companion.

If you'd like to search for your own furry companion please read about various methods of adoption on the Dog Adoption page: Click Here.