Some dog groomers snip off vibrissae for aesthetic purposes, but this is not a good idea. It's true that dog whiskers tend to appear sporadically, while cats get whiskers in neat lines, but they serve an important purpose and shouldn't be removed.
Some groomers and pet owners are unaware of the importance of whiskers and cut them off for aesthetic reasons. Show dog owners often have their whiskers removed because it is thought to give the head a “cleaner” look.
Whiskers are hairs, but not the same as the hairs in your dog or cat's coat. These stiffer, thicker hairs are called vibrissae and their follicles are embedded deeper in the skin than coat hairs. Although the whiskers are different from the hair coat, they are shed as the hair coat is and will grow back.
While whiskers can be cut and trimmed without causing any pain for your pooch, pulling, twisting or plucking them will definitely cause your dog grief. Of course, the way a dog reacts to this pain will vary depending on the animal involved and the level of discomfort.
If your hand is steady enough, you can try to trim the rest of his hair without cutting the whiskers or you can put the clippers down and use shears to trim around them. The same applies to the areas around his nose and muzzle. If you have a very steady hand, you can use clippers to trim the area or if not, use shears.
If you cut your dog's whiskers off accidentally it won't hurt them. However, a dog can feel a lost with no whiskers. Hairs act as sensory devices to help a dog move around the environment safely. When they're cut off, your dog could lose his sense of navigation and become confused.
The follicles at the base of your dog's whiskers are packed with nerves that send vital sensory messages to the brain. As a result, you need to be careful when handling your pet's whiskers to avoid causing any pain or discomfort.
They simply transmit information to sensory cells when they detect objects or movement. Detecting subtle changes in air currents, dog whiskers transmit information about the size, shape, and speed of nearby objects. Whiskers help dogs navigate the world.
Whiskers also help protect dogs' eyes like human eyelashes. If the whiskers are touched, they blink. So you can safely trim your dogs whiskers (and they'll grow back) but it might be like putting ear plugs in their ears or blinders on their eyes!
It doesn't hurt dogs to cut the whiskers as the hairs don't contain any pain receptors, cutting them off could create confusion or make your dog less spatially aware. It may affect their ability to judge when objects are nearby, which will make your dog a lot less confident.
Once in a while these thick, deeply rooted hairs will fall out, but don't worry because they will grow back! One of these hairs falling out is not going to throw your dog off balance for the rest of their life!
Generally, it's believed that whiskers grow at the same rate as the rest of your pup's hair. Usually, it takes a few months to get back to the original length. Many dogs take upwards of 16 weeks or more.
Cutting or plucking out whiskers before they are ready to fall out not only will cause your pet to become disoriented (and probably stressed) for a few days but can also cause infection. There are many medical problems that could arise if whiskers are plucked, such as the exposed nerve mound becoming infected.
Are Dog Whiskers Sensitive? Like all mammals, dog whiskers are sensitive. Dog whiskers are used as a sensory organ — similar to human fingertips — and have a lot of nerves attached. A dog will feel even a light touch on its whiskers — a dog's whiskers can even detect changes in air currents.
Cat whiskers are similar to human hair and have no nerves so it is not painful to cut them. But cutting a whisker—even just a few inches—deprives cats of an important sensory tool to navigate their environments, he explains. Whiskers should never, ever be pulled out.
While whisker fatigue is most commonly associated with cats, dogs can experience whisker sensitivity.
Trimming the dog's hair which overhangs the eyes is necessary, not only to allow the dog to have clearer vision, but also to prevent this falling against the eye and causing irritation. The thickness of the hair on the dog's nose can also get too long and block the dog's vision from the corners.
The follicles at the base of your dog's whiskers are packed with nerves that send vital sensory messages to the brain. As a result, you need to be careful when handling your pet's whiskers to avoid causing any pain or discomfort.
The vibrissae serve as an early warning device that something is near the face and thus helps the dog prevent colliding with walls or objects and alerts the dog that something is approaching which might damage his face or eyes.
Whiskers also help protect dogs' eyes like human eyelashes. If the whiskers are touched, they blink. So you can safely trim your dogs whiskers (and they'll grow back) but it might be like putting ear plugs in their ears or blinders on their eyes!
Trim the Hair
Hair that bunches between the pads is uncomfortable and hair that folds under the pads can cause the dog to slip and slide. If your dog has hair that grows between his pads, trim it when it gets long and folds under his pads or when it bunches up between his toes.
Matting can cause serious challenges for your dog including reduced circulation on their skin, hot spots, bacteria, infections, scabs/cuts, and more. On top of that, if you don't take care of a matted coat your dog can experience pain on their skin, and their skin and even become raw and inflamed.
Those who uphold the concept of whisker stress point to the following signs: Pacing in front of a food or water bowl. Acting hungry, but doesn't want to eat from a bowl. Pawing food out of a bowl and eating it on the floor.
In basic terms, whisker fatigue is simply over-stimulation of the sensory system of the whiskers. What happens when the whiskers are touched too much, even if it is basic brushing against food and water dishes, is the cat's brain gets an onslaught of sensory messages transmitted to their brain.