Why dyeing your dog's fur is terrible - dog57

The practice of dying dog hair in bright colors is becoming more and more popular. Social networks are one of the main channels for spreading this modern fashion and there are hundreds of dog hairstylists and beauty parlors promoting their extravagant cuts with dye, especially at certain celebrations like the approach of carnival. But can you dye hair?
good dog?

Although there are products designed specifically for dogs, this does not mean that the process is harmless to the animal. If you are considering changing your dog's appearance or are interested in the practice, in this dog57 article we explain why you should not dye your dog's hair, and analyze the physical, psychological and social risks that may ensue. Read on!

1. Health risks

There are a variety of animal dyes on the market that are unfortunately easily accessible. These products have been modified to adapt to the pH of the dog's skin and to avoid serious poisoning if ingested, however, they do not guarantee that the animal will not suffer from any kind of allergy after application. Many dyes cause itching, irritation, and redness in dogs' skin, although they are theoretically harmless. In more serious cases, skin-prone dogs, puppies, or those with greater allergy issues, such as albino, can have very strong skin reactions that require urgent veterinary help.

On the other hand, tinctures for humans should never be applied to animals, as it is highly toxic to them and very easy to swallow by licking. In addition, they can cause serious burns to your skin and, in many cases, fatal organic damage.

2. It is a cumbersome procedure

The level of stress a dog reaches in this context will depend on several factors, including their level of habituation and tolerance to water, or, if we put it in the hands of professional groomers, to the invasive presence of strange people. However, we must bear in mind that we expose the animal to a situation that it does not understand and that, moreover, requires several hours on many occasions.

In general, dogs experience peak distress (negative stress) when exposed to this type of manipulation, especially if they are in an unknown location or with people they do not trust. The smell of dyes, the bathroom, the noise of the dryer, etc., are stimuli before which the animal can feel nervous, afraid or rejected. Their heart rate increases, their breathing rate increases, their thinking skills are inhibited, and the inability to escape can lead to reactive or defensive behaviors, including potential fear aggression.

In short, it is completely unnecessary to put the dog in such a stressful moment, endangering his emotional health only to obtain an aesthetic result that does not entail any benefit to the animal.

3. It hides the dog's smell and causes communication problems

The smell is a dog's most important sense and in this species, it is overdeveloped. Through smell, dogs can obtain a great deal of information, both from the environment and from other individuals, allowing them to adapt to the way they behave in different contexts.

One of the main problems with dog dye is that it seriously modifies a dog's natural scent, and although we can't perceive it, it does. This, on the one hand, is unpleasant for the animal itself, which is alarmed by the smell it emits and can self-harm in an attempt to remove the dye from its body. On the other hand, staining a dog harms his ability to communicate with his peers, as we must bear in mind that dogs greet each other by sniffing each other. The synthetic scent released by a dyed dog can make other dogs reject it or try to attack it, worse.

In addition, on many occasions, dyes are accompanied by ostentatious haircuts, especially in breeds such as the poodle, chow-chow, Pomeranian, and the like. Some of these wounds involve shaving the animal's nose, which means loss of vibrations (whiskers), an essential part of its perceptual system. Clipping a dog's whiskers can cause significant confusion and routing problems.

4. Encourages the avatar of animals

Finally, dyeing dog hair is also an ethical issue, because by trying to turn animals into stuffed animals and treating them like canvases on which we can draw, we are ignoring their right to dignity and encouraging them to be seen as more things than things. As sentient beings, endowed with intelligence and the ability to experience and communicate emotions.

The dog does not need this kind of cosmetic touch, and although we do it in good faith and look for harmless products, we must consider the effects and risks mentioned above to assess whether it is worth dyeing our dog's hair because there is no benefit that the animal can Obtain from this procedure, only damage.