Grooming is about more than good looks. It is also essential for healthy skin and coat. Just like us, dogs like to feel clean and beautiful. Even dogs with short, smooth coats require regular rubdowns with a rubber curry brush to keep their coats healthy and shiny. Dogs with medium to long coats need brushing and combing to keep mats from forming.

Mats are caused by moisture, shedding hair, dirt, debris, rough-and-tumble play, and even your loving tickles behind Bowser's ears. They can pull painfully on a dog's skin, impede its movement, and lead to irritated skin, including hot spots, or infected weeping sores. Bugs, twigs, grit, and fungal infections can be hidden inside a matted coat as well. When those awful clumps reach a critical mass, brushing them out is no longer an option. The dog must be shaved right down to the skin and the coat regrown. This can be a difficult procedure for both groomer and dog because the skin underneath those mats may be inflamed before the groomer even touches it with the clippers.

Some double-coated dogs shed their coats twice a year, usually in the spring and fall. Their undercoat starts emerging in tufts until they look as if they are molting. Groomers call this built-up hair cushion packing, and like matting, it needs to be brushed from the coat.

Even if your dog is a fluffy little beauty that requires professional styling to look the way it's supposed to, you will still need to do some brushing and combing at home. Your efforts will save money, too. Professional groomers have to charge more to split and comb out a matted coat than to prep a well-maintained coat.

Home grooming sessions also help socialize your dog and build the bond you share. Getting a puppy used to the grooming ritual is also a good chance for you to establish your leadership, setting limits that lead to a better owner/dog relationship. Just like good food, exercise, and training, grooming should become part of your small dog's routine.