Most of what people believe about pet grooming is outdated and doing more harm than good.
Pet grooming isn’t just fluff and bows—it’s biology. And unfortunately, a lot of the stuff floating around TikTok or passed down from your aunt’s best friend’s groomer is flat-out wrong. From coat care to paw pad health, our pets deserve better than old-school advice. The truth is, science has already moved on. Here’s what you should be doing, based on actual evidence—not backyard opinions.
1. Shaving double-coated dogs doesn’t keep them cooler.
While it might seem like common sense to shave a thick-coated dog in summer, it often does the opposite of what people intend. According to the American Kennel Club, a double coat actually insulates against both heat and cold. Shaving it disrupts that natural barrier, exposing the skin to sunburn and messing with temperature regulation. It can also permanently damage how the coat grows back. Once the protective layer is gone, dogs often become hotter, not cooler, and develop skin issues they didn’t have before.
2. Bathing too often can ruin the skin’s natural balance.
Clean isn’t always healthy. Frequent baths with harsh or scented shampoos can strip essential oils from your dog or cat’s skin, leading to dryness, flaking, and even secondary infections. As discovered by veterinary dermatologists in the Journal of Small Animal Practice, overbathing can cause more harm than underbathing, especially in breeds with sensitive or allergy-prone skin. Sometimes people are treating what they think is dirt when it’s actually an irritated skin barrier reacting to too much soap. Using a mild, pH-balanced shampoo and spacing out baths makes a bigger difference than lathering up every week.
3. Paw pads are not indestructible—they dry and crack like human heels.
Many pet owners assume paw pads can handle anything, but that’s far from true. Surfaces like hot pavement, icy sidewalks, or salt-treated roads cause significant damage. As stated by the ASPCA, pads are prone to burns, cuts, and dehydration—especially in extreme weather. The myth that “they’re tough enough” leaves too many pets limping through avoidable pain. Moisturizing with a pet-safe balm, rinsing after walks, and checking for abrasions should be a normal part of grooming, not a luxury. Ignoring paws because they “look fine” is where most of the damage starts.
4. Deshedding tools can overdo it and leave coats patchy.
Those heavy-duty grooming rakes and brushes advertised as miracle de-shedders often take more than just the undercoat. Used too frequently or with too much pressure, they can thin out areas that aren’t supposed to be thinned and leave uneven growth behind. Pets don’t just shed hair—they shed strategically. Removing too much disrupts the coat’s seasonal rhythm and can even lead to sun exposure issues. A gentler brush, used less often but more intentionally, tends to work better in the long run.
5. Human shampoo isn’t just wrong—it’s harmful.
Yes, your $40 salon shampoo smells better than the oatmeal pet wash, but your dog’s skin has a different pH than yours—and your lavender bottle wasn’t made with that in mind. Even one wash with human shampoo can cause itching or trigger allergic flare-ups. It’s not about luxury, it’s about chemistry. What’s fine for your scalp can wreck your dog’s protective skin barrier in minutes, and recovery takes far longer than people think.
6. Matting isn’t just a visual issue—it can cut off circulation.
That cute tangle behind your dog’s ear or under the collar isn’t just annoying, it can become a painful, skin-strangling knot. Mats pull tight with movement and trap dirt, moisture, and bacteria underneath. If left long enough, they restrict airflow and circulation to the skin. This causes sores that can easily go unnoticed until they’re infected. Regular brushing prevents mats, but more importantly, it prevents discomfort your pet can’t exactly explain to you.
7. Nail trims should happen way more often than most people realize.
If you wait until you hear the nails clicking on your floors, it’s already too late. Long nails alter a pet’s natural gait, leading to joint strain and posture issues over time. For some dogs, it also means splitting, breaking, or painful pressure on the nail bed. Most pets need trims every 2–4 weeks, depending on how fast they grow. Skipping it turns a basic grooming habit into an orthopedic problem.
8. Cats do groom themselves—but not nearly enough for some situations.
Cats are notoriously clean, but that doesn’t mean they don’t need help. Older cats, long-haired breeds, and overweight cats often miss entire areas when grooming, especially around their lower back or rear end. That buildup leads to mats, dandruff, and skin infections. Brushing even short-haired cats a few times a week prevents those issues and reduces hairballs. Self-grooming is great, but it’s not the whole picture—especially when age or anatomy gets in the way.
9. Just because a pet looks clean doesn’t mean they are.
Coat appearance can be wildly deceiving. Oil buildup, skin infections, yeast, and parasites can all exist under a shiny-looking coat. Some of the cleanest-looking pets have the most skin issues underneath. Grooming isn’t about what you see on the surface—it’s about what’s happening just beneath it. Running your hands through the coat, checking for texture changes, and parting the fur to peek at the skin should be a regular habit, even if they “look fine” from across the room.
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