How to Calm a Cane Corso Before Grooming

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How to Calm a Cane Corso Before Grooming

Medium

10 - 20 Minutes

1 Week

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Introduction

The Cane Corso is not a dog for the faint of heart or the first-time dog owner. They are large, powerful dogs that are strong-willed with a domineering personality. While these characteristics make for the perfect family protector, they can leave you with a furry friend who tries to avoid those things he doesn't like, such as grooming, and may become quite agitated if you have already taken the necessary steps to teach them how to be calm.

Dog's Perspective

Your pooch is going to do everything he can to prove he should be the "Alpha" in the pack. He has a natural tendency towards a "take charge" attitude that can make things really tough. But if you start out from day one showing yourself to be the leader of your pack, then keeping him calm during grooming time should be relatively easy.

The Nap Time Method

Effective

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Step

The right time of day

The best time of day to start working on this training method is any particular time of day when your pooch is typically at his calmest. Often, this is late afternoon or late evening before bedtime.

Step

Create the space

Create a nice calm spot in your home, one you can use each time you groom your furry friend. This builds a sense of familiarity.

Step

Take a hike

Take your fuzzball out for a nice long walk. Give him a chance to pee and stretch his legs. The more exercise he can get in, the more tired, calm, and relaxed your pooch is likely to be. This is the perfect time to start working on grooming.

Step

Meet your brush

Since your pup's hair is short, the only tool you should really need to groom him is a slicker brush. Grab his brush and hold it out where he can see it and smell it. Give him plenty of time to get used to it. This will make the next step that much easier.

Step

Slow and easy does it

Start out nice and slowly brushing your pup's coat in the direction of hair growth, typically front to back on the body and top to bottom of his legs. Keep working it, while you don't need to brush his coat more than once a week, the more often you do so in the early stages of training, the faster he will learn to calm down and enjoy it.

The Get Used to My Touch Method

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Step

Burn off the energy

Your pooch is typically going to be pretty full of energy, and if you don't do something to burn a large percentage of this energy off, you won't be able to calm your four-legged friend down. So, take him for a nice long walk around the neighborhood first.

Step

Touch is important

The more you handle and touch your pup, the better. From the moment you pick him up from the breeder's spend time with him touching him all over, pay particular attention to his face, paws, and private areas as these are places he likes being touched the least.

Step

Deep tissue massage

Let no one ever try to tell you that your pup doesn’t need a good deep tissue massage from time to time, as in every time you need or want to groom him. Not only does this help him get used to being touched, it also helps to relax him.

Step

Create the perfect ambience

Choose a spot in your home that you will always use for grooming during the training process and use things like soft music and aromatherapy to create an inviting and relaxing atmosphere that will affect the way in which your pooch views being groomed.

Step

And now for the brush

Time to take out the brush, show it to your pup and let him sniff at it and get used to it before you start using it to brush his coat. Take your time, go nice and slow, letting your pup get used to the feeling of being brushed. It will take time, but he will eventually learn to enjoy it and even look forward to it.

Caution & Considerations

Like any larger dominant breed, if you feel there is a risk your pooch might snap at you, consider putting a muzzle on him.
Go slow and gently at first to ensure using the brush does not spook your pup.
For training purposes, try to find a nice quiet place in your home that can be used every time.
Give your pooch plenty of time to get used to the brush first, this will help to keep him calmer at grooming time.
If for any reason you need to use shears to trim his hair or cut out a mat, be sure they are sharp and have rounded safety tips.
Never scold your Cane Corso for getting things wrong, this will only make things harder.

Conclusion

Consider this: the biggest reasons your Cane Corso gets anxious around grooming time are probably that you are introducing tools he has never seen before and you are insisting on touching virtually every inch of his body. The calmer and more relaxed you are, the more your fuzzy friend is going to pick up on these vibes and remaining calmer himself.

How to Calm a Cane Corso Before Grooming

Introduction

Dog's Perspective

The Nap Time Method

The Get Used to My Touch Method

Caution & Considerations

Conclusion

Success Stories and Grooming Questions

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