Coat

The Spanish Water Dog naturally has a curly coat. When the fur gets longer, it forms cords. When a Perro is wet, it shakes its coat vigorously, in sections, dry: it starts from its head, then head and body, and finally its body and tail. The coat of a Perro generally does not smell. Our climate is much more humid than the Spanish one, which means that a Perro will dry up less quickly after a heavy rain shower or a swim. This can cause the fur to smell in the long run. Drying well (pat dry, do not rub) after swimming does help to slow down this process. If your dog stinks because it has rolled in the mud, you can 'wash' the dog with cold water and a mild dog shampoo (must be diluted with water). Do not wash the perro too often, because the use of soap reduces the natural protection of the coat (temporarily).

Hypoallergenic

An advantage of the Spanish water dog is that it does not shed. This breed is often suitable for people who are allergic to dogs, but this is not always the case! If you have an allergy to dogs, it is recommended to visit places where Spanish water dogs are found several times. The visit should preferably last several hours, during which you make a lot of contact with the dogs. Also test this in a small space.

Shave

The coat must be shaved at least once a year, but more often is always allowed! The entire coat must be shaved off (including on the tail and ears) to maintain the breed-typical appearance. So no model is shaved. The Perro's coat grows about 1 cm per month. Puppies are often shaved for the first time at 4 months of age. When you decide to let your dog's coat grow long, you must take extra care of the coat into account. Often it doesn't happen 'by itself'. In addition, your dog brings in extra dirt (sand, twigs) in its long coat.

Oren

The ears of the Spanish water dog also grow hair, this hair must be removed from the ear to prevent the dog from getting ear mites or ear infections. You can gently remove the hair from the ear canal with your hands or tweezers. After removing the hair, it is advisable to clean the ear with a suitable ear cleaner, because the perro can suffer from 'too much' earwax.

Eyes

The Spanish Water Dog's eyes can catch dust and dirt when the dog's coat is longer. It is advisable to check the eyes every day for dirt, there may also be hair in the eyes that you must remove from the eye. If there is a tear line, you can remove it with a cotton ball dipped in cooled boiled water.

Teeth

You should regularly inspect the teeth and, if necessary, remove tartar. Scrapers are available for this purpose. Chewing on a floss rope or various bones reduces tartar. You can also regularly brush your teeth with lukewarm water or special dog toothpaste. If you regularly give your dog a bone/raw root to chew on, he will naturally keep his teeth clean.

Care tips

Reu

Keep the hair on (the top of) the penis short for hygiene reasons. Some males suffer (recurrent) from an inflammation of the foreskin: a pus-like yellow discharge comes out of the penis. This is easy to treat with the following means:

Prepusol (available from a vet) Betadine solution (available from a drugstore)

With a (injection) syringe you can suck up a little of one of the above substances and inject it with the plastic attachment (instead of a needle) under the foreskin, then keep the penis closed and massage gently for 1.5 minutes. Keep a tissue or other material at hand to wipe up / clean up the moisture. Repeat this 4 days in a row. After a while, the discharge will disappear.

Female dog

It is best to keep the hair around the vulva short for hygiene reasons. When a bitch comes into heat, the vulva will swell and initially a dark red later light red discharge will appear. The heat usually lasts about 17 to 21 days. Ovulation takes place around day 9/15. At that time the bitch can be mated, as she is then most fertile. The perro is in season about 2 times a year. Tips:

Blood spatter on the floor can be prevented by wearing 'heat pants'. These can be purchased at a pet store, but this material often cuts at the groin of the Bitch. Therefore, make sure you have pants made of soft material (e.g. terry cloth). Note the day on which your bitch's heat starts. For example, you could calculate when the next heat is likely to take place, so that it will not be a 'surprise'.