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Paw Spaw Part 1 - How to Clip the Paw Hairs using Bravura and BravMini

Paw Spaw - Clipping the Paw Hairs Using a Bravura and BravMini   Includes a Video Tutorial

Pinky d'Winky aka Pinky d'Stinky will be our model for a tutorial on how we, at Maltese Obsession, clip the hairs around our feet as well as around our paw pads.    

Pinky's nickname is Pinky d'Stinky, because she is the one that has a stinkin' cute personality.      Her favorite place to sleep is right under my neck, which makes it impossible for me to breathe...

We use a few different methods to clip the hairs within the paw pads as well as around the feet.   

1. Wahl Bravura at a #15 or #30 setting
2. Wahl Bravura MINI - which as a #30 blade
3. 4.5" Pixi curved shears + 7" curved shears

Today we will show you the Wahl Bravura and BravMini.

Note:   FLOAT the clipper PARALLEL to paw pad as shown above!

First let's briefly discuss the Wahl Bravura & Bravura Lithium:

If you jump onto grooming blogs and forums, you will read many rave reviews and comments filled with adoration for this cord/cordless clipper.    The Bravura's  claim to fame are:

• QUIET -- this will be demonstrated in the video
• 5-in-1 blade  that doesn't get HOT (does get warm)
• Available in COOL Pretty Colors
• Metal attachment combs that glide through hair - YES!
• Cord or CORDLESS use ( I prefer CORDLESS)
• Newer Lithium-ion battery is said to hold a longer charge

Bravura costs about $129-ish

Bravura Lithium about $149-ish

Bravura MINI runs about $75-ish

Metal Attachment combs run $35-ish

I would NOT recommend buying these on Amazon, unless the supplier on Amazon is a reputable Pet Supply Distributor (eg. Cherrybrook, Petedge, Ryans, Groomerschoise, Showdogstore, Groomersmall, DrsFosterandSmith).    The reason for this, is that some 'random' sellers on ebay and amazon sometimes sell refurbished or 'knock-off copies' of popular items.     

I can't verify this, but I read on some grooming forums that if the battery stops holding the charge, you can send the clipper to Wahl and they will replace the battery for a charge of $35 dollars.    I have had my 'ORIGINAL' Bravura 3 or 4 years and it is still working pretty good for me, although the run time/charge has dropped off.

Switch toggles from Left (LONGEST) to Right (SHORTEST)

5-in-1 Blade and it's cut length uses

There is a toggle switch in the back of the Bravura that allows you to toggle and change the blade settings (see photo above).    Here is a chart for the 5 settings and what WE at Maltese Obsession use the blade settings for.    Our style may be very different then others, so please be aware that this is our personal use for our maltese.   

Note:   When this blade goes dull, you can purchase a new 5-in-1 Blade.   My first blade dulled after 2 years of use.

Toggle Switch and the corresponding Blade#

• Far Left            #9 = 3 mm cut   Best for summer cut on Body
• 2nd from L      #10 a little shorter then 3mm
• Middle             #15 best for tummy, hygiene, armpits
• 2nd from R     #30 best for feet
• Far Right       #40 = 0.1 mm cut    This is considered a 'surgical cut' and I ONLY use this setting under a metal attachment comb.

The Bravura MINI has a SET blade that is NOT removable or switchable and has a #30 blade == great for FEET, but I also FLOAT the blade to do the armpits and tight spots that require a MINI clipper.

Bravura MINI

Safety:   Floating the clipper blade PARALLEL to the paw pad will ensure a safe clipping of the hairs on the bottom of the feet/pad area.

Entire set of Metal Attachment Combs

Shorter Length Cuts (Summer cuts, neck, face)

Longer Length Cuts (Winter cuts, legs, longer sides of face)

The metal attachment combs 'occasionally' come as a FREE SET, when you purchase the Bravura through a big pet supplier such as those I listed above.   This 'FREE SET' special comes out periodically and thus it is best to get on their mailing lists so that you can find out when this SPECIAL occurs.

I personally 'virtually' NEVER use the longer row of combs.   My FAVORITE combs are the RED, LAVENDAR and BLUE (the three shortest).   I use these to keep my maltese in a short body, and I keep their leg hairs in the 'Town and Country' cut legs.    

Most professional groomers will NOT TOUCH the plastic combs that come with the Bravura, as they DON'T work and if there is the slightest mat on your dog, the hair will PULL and hurt them ------ THROW THE BLACK PLASTIC combs away...just saying'

There is much more to discuss on how to use these handy dandy clipper(S) as well as how to take care of them, but we'll save that for future blog posts.

BONUS USE:    I kept my old worn out 5-in-1 blade and use this blade PLUS the metal combs to clip my son's hair!!...works better then any human clipper that we have....

Pinky says Thank You  for Visiting MO!  
Please drop us a note below, on Youtube or FB to let us know if this MO BLOG and Videos are helpful.

Note:   All fluffs as wells as their groomers have different tastes, needs and favorites.   Not every SPAW treatment need be the same.    Maltese Obsession is happy to share our PAWSITIVELY Perfect GO TO Grooming experiences.

Please acquire your dog through an ethical, reputable and HUMANE AKC breeder, or better yet, please consider adopting one of the many maltese or dogs available through your local rescue @ petfinder.com.   
Never, NEVER invest a single penny at a petstore that sells puppies....just sayin'...

I'm a KOOOOOOOOL PUP!

Kool pup dryer for Maltese Obsession Pack! ~ Video Tutorial Included

Welcome to my 'Blow Out Bar'!

Chris Christensen makes one of the better dryers for home and pet grooming.    I will compare the 'Kool Pup' with a pretty sub-standard  'pet dryer' that I am sad that I spent money on.

I am SMILING at you!!!!

The one thing I have learned over the years is that 'YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR', although this isn't always true....but it proved true for dog dryers that I chose

Drying the dogs with a human dryer NEVER worked for me.   The HOT was too HOT and the COLD was simply TOO COLD ~~~~   here we go with the 'Goldilocks and the Three Bears' analogy again!

Dolce with Kool Pup (left) and Metro Air (right)

Years ago I cheaped out and spent $100 on a Metro Air Dryer.   Three tries and I  never touched it again until I had to dig it out for this review (WASTE).     $100 was a lot to spend on a dryer in my mind, but it was LOUD and the tank get HOT HOT HOT and the air is TOO HOT and the tank is UNSTABLE.    

The cord is so short that the dryer has to sit right next to the dog in order to reach, which makes it feel like both of us are in the middle of a hurricane!  The orange canister on this 'thing' gets super hot as well...clunky...hot....oh dear...

The hose on the Kool Pup is about 3x longer

Dolce right after the Youtube Video shoot!

When I fell in love with the Maltese breed 5 years ago, I became consumed and 'obsessed' with everything maltese.   I dragged my kids to every AKC dog show and every grooming show that came near us.    It was at one of these dog shows that I was introduced to the Chris Chistensen KOOL PUP dog dryer, along with many of their other products.

The benefit of visiting dogs shows and in particular grooming shows, is that many of the pet industry vendors will have booths for you to visit.    You can touch and feel many products that are available to us and even newer products that haven't yet been released.   Pet shows are amazingly fun to visit!

See how long the hose is on the Kool Pup?   Hi Dolce!

The Kool Pup just recently went on sale for $220, which makes this a good time to splurge if you have multiple dogs like I do.   I paid $325 for it at the show, but was lucky to have received quite a few gifts along with my purchase.   Kool Pup Dryer

Thanks to our grooming obsessed friends on Spoiled Maltese forum for alerting our SM community that this Kool Tool was on SALE SALE SALE!    Never has it been priced this low.   I might have to get another for the human girls in my home!

The added 'HOLD A HOSE' flexible extra arm, that can be used with the dryer to allow a hands free drying, is currently $85.    The dryer can be used without the arm, but I have to say that the extra arm comes in really handy if you can make the splurge.

This dryer comes in some pretty cool colors and is very small for the amount of air that is forced through it.    The hose on the Kool Pup is plenty long enough that I place the actual dryer as far away as I can front he grooming table, in order to help with reduction of noise for my dogs.

The force of the air on the dryer is quite strong and will reduce the drying time of your dog significantly.   You'll notice in the video tutorial that I had to 'batten down the hatches' and cover my grooming supplies so that I wouldn't have top knot bands flying all over!   The air temp coming from the dryer will warm up after a few minutes of running on FULL POWER.    

Currently $220 for the Kool Pup on sale from $325...thanks for the heads up on the sale SM friends

The 'LOUDNESS' factor plays a role when drying our maltese.    The scientific and R&D side of my brain wanted to measure and compare the decibel levels.

• Hair Dryer on high measured            98-99
• Metro Air on 'ON' switch measured 107-108
• Kool Pup on the highest measured  79-80

Decibel Level for Hair Dryer 98-99

Decibel Level for Metro Air 107-108

I used an app on my iPad to measure decibel levels relative to the hair dryer, the metro force and the Kool Pup.    These levels can vary depending on how the decibel meter is calibrated.

Kool Pup Decibel Level on HIGHEST is 80

Kool Pup Decibel Level on MID LEVEL was 75 

Kool Pup on Lower Setting was 68, but I NEVER use it this low as the air comes out too cool on the lowest setting

The number one complaint heard about the Kool Pup dryer is that the air is not warm enough.    This force dryer pushes the ambient air in your room and does warm it slightly.    The fact that the air doesn't get too warm, makes it amazingly safe to use on our dogs.     On cold winter days when the dogs are really cold after a bath, I will 'FEED' the Kool Pup warm air by facing a warm hair dryer towards the vent of the Kool Pup.    This allows the Kool Pup to push a 'warmer then ambient' temperature out to my cold dog.

My GO TO GROOMING TOOL(s) GTGT that I use when blow drying my dog are the CC wooden pin brush and the Madan pin brush.     The CC FUSION brush is brass plated and is not meant to be used on a wet coat NOR with any types of sprays and solvent.    

When the dog is wet it is more pleasant for your dog if you brush out with the CC Wooden pin brush.     As the dogs becomes dryer, you can switch over to the Madan pin brush in order to fully straighten the hair.

Dolce says YUCK to any other dryer!

The video tutorial will show how straight Dolce's fur becomes after using the Kool Pup.    If I didn't dry her with this amazing little dryer, her hair would be pretty WAVY and CLUMPY.   You can see her natural wavy hair in the beginning of the video.

This battle of the dog dryers was a 'BLOW OUT'!   

The END!!!   'nuf said...

Dolce smiling right after the video shoot was finished! 

Note:   All fluffs as wells as their groomers have different tastes, needs and favorites.   Not every SPAW treatment need be the same.    Maltese Obsession is happy to share our PAWSITIVELY Perfect GO TO Grooming experiences.

Please acquire your dog through an ethical, reputable and HUMANE AKC breeder, or better yet, please consider adopting one of the many maltese or dogs available through your local rescue @ petfinder.com.   
Never, NEVER invest a single penny at a petstore that sells puppies....just sayin'...

Tweety Face/Eye Wash and Simple Top Knot Tutorial

Tweety Face/Eye Wash and Simple Top Knot Tutorial

Tweety is making her debut VLOG appearance.    She was groomed into her Korean cut over a month ago, and we will VLOG her upcoming clipper Korean cut for viewers to see how we do this at home.

This technique of washing her eye area is only one of the many ways that we as maltese owners can keep the eye area as clean as we can.    

One question that I am sure to get is what our thoughts are on Angel Eyes and antibiotic treatments for eye tearing.  My experience working for many years in the pharmaceutical R&D as well as the sales and marketing end of antibiotics, has led me to lean against any unnecessary use of antibiotics for our family (both humans and dogs).    Bacterial drug resistance has become a huge problem in the pharmaceutical R&D world and I lived too close to seeing the human struggles resulting from this.  :-(

Spa Lavish Blueberry Facial Cleanser by Tropiclean

Above is pictured the Blueberry facial cleanser that is used in the video.   

On my other dog, I also use Contact Lens saline solution that contains Boric Acid to cleanse the eye area.   The saline cleansing is followed up with applying corn starch, which helps keep the eye area dry.

There are various different ways to clean the eyes and remove tear stains.    Excessive tear staining could be the result of blocked tear ducts, teeth problems and/or other health issues.

We hope you enjoy meeting Tweety!

Note:   All fluffs as wells as their groomers have different tastes, needs and favorites.   Not every SPAW treatment need be the same.    Maltese Obsession is happy to share our PAWSITIVELY Perfect GO TO Grooming experiences.

Please acquire your dog through an ethical, reputable and HUMANE AKC breeder, or better yet, please consider adopting one of the many maltese or dogs available through your local rescue @ 
petfinder.com.   
Never, NEVER invest a single penny at a petstore that sells puppies....just sayin'...

1st VIDEO BLOG with DOLCE +++ 10% Discount on Madan Brushes and Combs

Video Blog Review:   Dolce will review the Madan Apple Green (FIRM Cushioned) Pin Brush

10% Discount on Madan Pin Brushes and Combs when you mention Maltese Obsession at checkout with coupon code MO10      www.toplinepet.com

10% Discount will be issued in the FORM OF A REFUND via PAYPAL after purchase is completed

Pretty Brush Bouquets

We've already reviewed: 

Baby Bear = Orange SOFTY

Mama Bear = Baby Blue MEDIUM

we can't leave out

Papa Bear = Apple Green FIRM

Welcome to view our FIRST VIDEO BLOG aka MO VLOG.   We also show you how we do Dolce's signature inside out ponytail flip top knot!

Dolce and the Maltese Obsession Pack hope you enjoyed our first video to greet all of our Maltese loving friends.    

Please come back and see more video blogs and tutorials.    We are hoping to come up with a fun idea for a brush giveaway!!!

Note:   All fluffs as wells as their groomers have different tastes, needs and favorites.   Not every SPAW treatment need be the same.    Maltese Obsession is happy to share our PAWSITIVELY Perfect GO TO Grooming experiences.

Please acquire your dog through an ethical, reputable and HUMANE AKC breeder, or better yet, please consider adopting one of the many maltese or dogs available through your local rescue @ pet finder.com.   

Never, NEVER invest a single penny at a petstore that sells puppies....just saying'...

ICE ICE Baby ~~~ Mats don't have to be a BAD word

ICE on ICE Detangler by Chris Christensen






Chris Christensen makes some awesome shears.   Pawsitively awesome GO TO GROOMING  brushes, Buttercombs, Kool-pup Dryers, shampoos etc. etc.

Today I'd like to share with you a reason that I am no longer afraid of MATS!

CC Ice on Ice Leave in Detangler & Finishing Spray contains sunscreen and is a conditioning spray, finishing spray and most useful to us as a DETANGLER.

Mats used to stress both our fur babies out as well as myself.   I have tried MANY detangler's including the Pure Paws line, but ICE ON ICE helps mats SLIP LOOSE with minimal work and zero stress on my fur babies.

How to loosen a mat on your maltese dog:

1. Spray liberally into the mat
2. Pull apart by going first sideways, then up ~~ spreading apart the mat with your fingers
3. After most of the mat has been loosened, then GENTLY use a brush to finish loosening 

ICE on ICE Trial Size

Spray LIBERALLY into the mat

Pull mat apart sideways at first

Spread fingers into the mat sideways and up&down

Still spreading the mat apart with fingers

Spray more ICE into the now opened up MAT

Mat is easily coming apart now.   You can see the ICE sparkling in the sunlight!

Once the mat is mostly broken apart I brush out gently using a soft cushioned pin brush

Once the fingers have separated most of the mat, I can use a soft cushioned Madan pin brush to GENTLY brush out the hair.   I am HOLDING the hair at the base near the skin to prevent any PULLING ...gently...no pulling

Chris Christensen Wooden Pin Brush 7" $25

A FANTASTIC tool to use together with ICE on ICE is the Chris Christensen Wooden Pin Brush.    The wooden pin brush is likened to my fingers and the brush just GLIDES through and separates the mat that has been sprayed with ICE on ICE.

This brush comes in the 7" body for $25 or the 8" body for $35, with choices of some pretty colors such as blue, black, purple (shown above), pink and bright yellow!

CC Wooden Pin Brush

The wooden pins are made of hornbeam, which is apparently harder then bamboo.    We use bamboo chopsticks for all types of cooking in our house, including deep frying.   It is no wonder that a wood that is harder then bamboo, such as HORNBEAM would be such a fantastic wood to use to create this AMAZING wooden pin brush.

Dogs that are heavily matted or puppies that are new to brushing would benefit from this CC Wooden pin brush.      Any dog that is sensitive to brushing will LOVE and ENJOY brush outs with this GENTLE and FANTASTIC GO TO Grooming tool.

After the brush, spray some more ICE if needed and then gently use a grooming comb ...

Hold hair with fingers to prevent pulling ~~~ gently comb out a few hairs at a time

I am now GENTLY working the comb through the loosened mat, but going through just a SMALL section of hair at a time with a 7.5" grooming comb.    I hold the hair with my left hand to ensure NO PULLING nor TUGGING on the skin...

The loosened up mats that came out afterwards. BYE BYE MATS!!!

This mat took only a few minutes to work out of the coat.   The ICEonICE really does a fine job of making the mat slippery enough to loosen out with the fingers.    

You can see from above that I have a little 2 oz trial sized bottle.   This little bottle is great to have at every Grooming Brush Bouquet that I have around my house.    I purchase the 16oz bottle and just refill my little 2 oz trial sized sprays.

ICE on ICE has no distinguishable odor.   

Here is another pesky mat that formed from Dolce's top knot band.   I either cover her eyes and spray the ICE onto the mat OR safer and better yet,  I spray some ICE on my comb and then try and work out the mat.

Ice on Ice Detangler, Conditioning, Finishing spray and Stain repellent with sunscreen is available in

• 16 oz Ready to Use Spray $12
• 16 oz Concentrate (16:1 makes 2 gallons) $37
• 2 oz Trial size bottle available in the $10 KITS 

Ice on Ice

($10 Trial size kits include ICE as well as a choice of shampoo set)

$10 Trial Sized Kits

Daily brushing your maltese will help prevent most mats.   I brush my dogs out every morning and evening.    There are times throughout the year where suddenly, my dog will experience a coat change and virtually MAT OVERNIGHT.     When this happens I am happy to have these great items in my GO TO GROOMING kit to ZAP the MATS!!

Other Recommended Detanglers:    The Stuff, Stasko, Cherrybrook, Show Sheen, Animology, Cowboy Magic...ICE ICE BABY!!!

Note:   All fluffs as wells as their groomers have different tastes, needs and favorites.   Not every SPAW treatment need be the same.    Maltese Obsession is happy to share our PAWSITIVELY Perfect GO TO Grooming experiences.

Please acquire your dog through an ethical, reputable and HUMANE AKC breeder, or better yet, please consider adopting one of the many maltese or dogs available through your local rescue @ 
petfinder.com.   
Never, NEVER invest a single penny at a petstore that sells puppies....just saying'...