Problems cleaning nose wrinkles! Help

[Gigi's Mom]

HI all! We adopted Gigi 2 weeks ago. She is 16 months old . My husband and I attempted to clean her nose wrinkle and it was impossible. We used treats, sweet talk, he held her while I attempted to clean with a babywipe, I held her while he attempted. She jerked around so much it was impossible. We tried to hold her like the sticky thread on this site suggests, she went nuts. It was impossible with 2 people, I don't know how one of us would ever be able to do it alone. I really don't know what to do. It's really stressing me out ... One side of her nose is definitely dirty and even looks a little crusty and I know this is something we are going to have to do on a regular basis. I'm so nervous she is never going to allow us to do this. Does anyone have any advice? Thank you

[paxe]

Well they gotte get used to it so one step at the time, make sure she lost her energy(night are perfect to do it)
Then take a cotton pad or something without smell and slowely carres the face area with it untill ur able to get in there.
Every time you do it gets a little easier.

I also have a guy here in the neighbourhood who's pug neva got used of the cotton or towel it so he uses his finger ;)

[Colleen H]

We also have had a lot of trouble getting our rescued pug to cooperate with wrinkle cleanings, so you have my sympathy! A couple of things that have helped us are to find his favorite treat (it's beef jerky for Max) and only give it to him after the stuff he really hates (for us, eye drops and wrinkle cleaning) and to wait until he is very tired and doesn't have as much energy to fight. There is no magic bullet, unfortunately, but paxe is right - it should get better over time.

[Nina_W]

if nothing else works, tuck the pug under an arm, grab the head with the hand on the side with the pug, wipe with your other hand. It's not nice, it's not pretty, but they're not that strong and it has to be done. Afterwards, lots of treats and praise. It gets better with time - I saw this at our pug rescue. I'm lucky, my puggy has never minded too much.

[West Coast Pugs]

Nose roll/wrinkle cleaning can be a real challenge in the beginning, but persevere because as difficult as the task may seem now, they do become used to the drill, and the wrinkles/nose roll area must be cleaned to prevent bacterial buildup which can result in tenacious pyoderma. How often you need to clean the area really depends on the facial anatomy of your dog....some need cleaning daily, and others less. I feed my dogs a raw food, which they tend to get all over their faces when they eat so I have to be more diligent with the cleaning.

My younger pug is now six months old and she is not crazy about the nose roll cleaning either, but getting much better. I put her on my counter on a towel so that she is at a better height for me to work on her, and better height for her to see my face....and safely confined between the back of the counter and my body. I focus her attention off of the task by putting a treat between my teeth and directing her attention to the treat. I then use a small piece of a malacetic wipe that I buy from the vet. With her attention on the treat in my mouth, I take the thumb of one hand to lift the roll and with the other hand I come from the other side with the wipe which I have wrapped around one finger....gently working (not rubbing) the wipe from one side of the roll to the other, being careful not make contact with the wipe with her eyes. After this, I giver her a bit of the treat....and then repeat the drill to dry the roll with a plain gauze pad...and then she gets a little more of the treat. After I'm finished, I put her back on the floor, praise her profusely, sing her a song (lol) and then give her the rest of the treat. This routine has worked for me, and my pup has become more accustomed to the wrinkle cleaning drill.

My older pug is now a real sport with all the hygiene details...ears, nose, teeth and getting eye ointment, but it definitely was a struggle in the beginning.

Personally I'm not a fan of baby wipes, as the PH of a dog and a human are different. Instead, for a general nose roll clean, I use a malacetic wipe which are specifically formulated to clean/dry facial folds on dogs. If I think there may be a bacterial issue brewing, I will use a short term diluted solution of Hibitane (a low sudsing, antibacterial solution available from a pharmacist or your vet) and water (ratio: one part Hibitane to ten parts water) on an organic cotton pad and squeeze it out a bit so that the solution is not dripping into the dog's nose, mouth or getting into the eyes. Again, after the area is cleaned, it must be dried with a clean dry gauze or pad of some sort. There is also a terrific recipe posted on here for a cleaning solution that you can make yourself and I have read that many pug owners have used it with great success in cleaning wrinkles, rolls and ears.

Hang in there....keep on going... and take heart, it will get better :-)

[pugsrule222]

Ha! Yes the dreaded nose roll cleaning.Thank goodness only one of mine needs it done,she has a huge wrinkle that almost covers her nose!I find it easier to stand from behind the dog and lift up the wrinkle with my left hand and wipe with my right.She can not go anywhere as she is butted up against my legs.They never really get used to it as mine will still run when they see me coming with a wipe,but will resign themselves to having it done.And with an extra large wrinkle it can take lots of wipes to get all the gunk out!Where does it all come from?Its like she has eaten dirt or chocolate and I just cleaned it!EWWW,lol

[paxe]

Ha! Yes the dreaded nose roll cleaning.Thank goodness only one of mine needs it done,she has a huge wrinkle that almost covers her nose!I find it easier to stand from behind the dog and lift up the wrinkle with my left hand and wipe with my right.She can not go anywhere as she is butted up against my legs.They never really get used to it as mine will still run when they see me coming with a wipe,but will resign themselves to having it done.And with an extra large wrinkle it can take lots of wipes to get all the gunk out!Where does it all come from?Its like she has eaten dirt or chocolate and I just cleaned it!EWWW,lol

It's earth from the ground and everything else they stick there face in, with a little bit of sweat of all the trashing that they do in the house hahaha.
If i go with Peanut to the beach he is taking the whole beach home in his nose roll lol