[southernbelle04]

Hey guys! I have a new 13 week old puppy. I have already started a little schedule of brushing her once in the morning and once in the evening. I am trying to get her used to grooming so she will do good with that as she grows. I do have a few questions though...

I notice when I am grooming Katie Scarlett that she has really long hair around her pee pee area and on the inside of her back legs. This is leading to tangles in those areas. I know I read doggies don't particularly enjoy being groomed down there and I am trying to be super careful. She hasn't yipped, cried out in pain, or anything. She just wiggles and won't hardly let me groom down there. She is also starting to smell a little, not too bad, and I don't want her to be uncomfortable. I bought some of those pet wipes for in between cleanings. I plan on giving her a bath once per week. So question...how can I clean this area and make the grooming easier on her down there? Is it too early to take her to a groomer just to have these places trimmed down?

Also, I've been handling her paws as much as I can so she can get used to being handled on her paws when it comes time for nail clipping. I noticed this morning when handling her paws, she has a mat in between one of her paw pads on the left front foot. How do I handle this? Her hair between her paws is pretty long. Can that be groomed yet? She hasn't finished her puppy shots of course and I was thinking that she couldn't go into places like the groomers yet since she hasn't finished the shots. But I don't want to let this mat on her foot be and it cause pain when she walks? Should I try to bathe just her feet and see if I can pull the mat apart with my fingers? Or can I ask my vet about these places when we go for our first appointment this week? Can they take care of those at the vet?

Any help for this newbie groomer? I want to do a good job and keep her not only looking good, but feeling good.

Thanks for any helps you can give me!