How often do you bathe your dog and which shampoo do you use?

Stiff Knees

Stiff Knees

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Ours have a proper shower at least once a fortnight and I use Animology Dogs Body shampoo, wth spot cleaning in between. They walk into the cubicle of their own accord and sit very happily. Our old girl, Spot, would roll in fox poo on a walk and then walk straight into the shower cubicle as soon as she got home and sit and wait for me to follow her without even being prompted! She would fall asleep too under the shower stream. As soon as I get the dog towels out the other two queue at the door. Nothing like a good warm shower to loosen a moulting coat either. It is also a great opportunity to check for lumps and bumps. They love being dried too, and being told they smell heaven scent...🐾😍❤️❤️
 
I must admit (as per fairly recent post) I was despairing of my latest rescue greyhound Ace. I adopted him on the Friday of Easter weekend and - unlike any kennel dog I’d had before - he was refusing to throw off his coat

I posted in desperation whereupon he started throwing off his kennel coat with abandon!!! So my vacuum cleaner is overwhelmed and my world is covered in brindle dog hairs.... but he might look OK for the rescue show at the end of June! Maybe..... 🙄
 
It's individual choice isn't it, we choose to bathe them regularly and our dogs love it but some people choose not to and that's fine too. I see it as a really nice bonding thing, our old dog, Spot loved to be fussed over in the shower and if she was feeling particularly creaky I think the warm water helped with that. She had the kind of coat that took ages to get wet as she was practically water repellent, then after shampooing she'd get drier the more water you put on her, it would just bead and run off her.
 
I think I was put off as my last dog, a setter, had lots of allergies and had to be bathed often. the dog before that was a beardie x border that was determined to roll in any type of shit that he could find-so he was bathed a lot too. One is double coated and the other is a retriever, in Scotland I put up with wet dogs quite enough without doing it deliberately :D If others want to bath then thats fine, I tend to bond with mine in other ways.
 
MotherOfChickens said:
I think I was put off as my last dog, a setter, had lots of allergies and had to be bathed often. the dog before that was a beardie x border that was determined to roll in any type of shit that he could find-so he was bathed a lot too. One is double coated and the other is a retriever, in Scotland I put up with wet dogs quite enough without doing it deliberately :D If others want to bath then thats fine, I tend to bond with mine in other ways.
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I can see how your previous experience would put you off, there's nothing quite like the smell of a wet dog is there and even a freshly shampooed wet dog still smells like a wet dog! I often wonder why that is? When we wash our hair it smells of shampoo as it dries, but a dog just smells like a wet dog regardless...🤔
 
Luna will be 2 in a couple of weeks, and she’s only had one bath since we got her at 10 weeks. She only had a bath then because she was scratching like bilio! That turned out to be fleas, although we didn’t see a single one.

When we got Bo, he came from a kennel environment. He smelled bad. Wanted him to settle in at home, and not overload him. Just brushing and fussing, and the smell went. He loves the hose, and will play with it when I’m filling horses buckets etc, but not had bath yet. Am quite sure, if given the opportunity, he would get in the shower with me 🤣
 
Daisy probably gets bathed by me every three weeks (if she needs it that is), but she’s at the groomers every five weeks. Can’t remember what her shampoo is called, but it’s oatmeal based and organic. She does get finished off with Panten conditioner though 🤫

She hates it, so I really don’t do it unless it’s necessary.
 
amymay said:
Daisy probably gets bathed by me every three weeks (if she needs it that is), but she’s at the groomers every five weeks. Can’t remember what her shampoo is called, but it’s oatmeal based and organic. She does get finished off with Panten conditioner though 🤫

She hates it, so I really don’t do it unless it’s necessary.
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If mine didn't enjoy it I definitely would only bathe them when absolutely necessary. I once had to bathe the cat, after it crawled under a parked car and got covered in engine oil, that was not a positive experience, so I can only imagine how traumatic it would be to bathe a dog who didn't like it. The Yellow Peril was a bit unsure when we first got her at 16 months but now she loves a shower.
 
Stiff Knees said:
If mine didn't enjoy it I definitely would only bathe them when absolutely necessary. I once had to bathe the cat, after it crawled under a parked car and got covered in engine oil, that was not a positive experience, so I can only imagine how traumatic it would be to bathe a dog who didn't like it. The Yellow Peril was a bit unsure when we first got her at 16 months but now she loves a shower.
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I had to rinse off shouty cat the other day, he's a big chap (over 7.5kg) and very very fluffy. Unfortunately he had snaffled something that disagreed with him, so his rear end needed a shampoo as he stunk!
 
The Fuzzy Furry said:
P dog goes to groomers every 6 to 8 weeks, I chuck her under the shower at least every 2 weeks, poss trim her eyebrows in between too. She's a Shih tho, so doesn't moult, but can whiff of yard etc, so needs to be non equine smelling to go into work with me 😊
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I've only ever had ours to the groomers once (when the bathroom was being refitted), the groomer did a great job and when they came out they smelled amazing and looked so shiny you could see your face in them, but their facial expression was one of horror, they looked traumatised so I never took them back, that level of attention from strangers was just not their thing, although they probably would have been more settled second time around. 😬
 
I must be a horrible owner, cos mine only ever get the hose! I bathed them on their arrival here; they’d both been horribly travel sick and it had rolled round in the travel box with them. I’m lucky that they don’t roll in stinky stuff. If they do get dirty, I throw a ball in the river last thing.

Bathing strips oils, so I’m not keen. The dogs coming out of the groomers at the yard smell strongly of Johnson’s baby powder. 😂

I once had to bath the cat because a housemate had put blue food dye on him. That was very unpleasant.
 
Ours will drink from a hose pipe but if you turn it on them they'll run a mile! Spot used to like having her paws hosed after a long walk or a long paddle in the beck, I think it took the heat out of them for her, she had very arthritic paws. The hose pipe would be easier and it would save the inevitable clean up operation in the bathroom following a dog shower 😬 I always use very dilute shampoo, I once used the dog shampoo in the shower myself when OH had moved the human shampoo to the side if the bath, left my hair looking great!!
 
Daisy, on average, probably every three weeks. She just loves to roll in s*** and dead things 🤮 I use Johnson and Johnson baby shampoo - cheap, cheerful and surprisingly good a getting rid of the smell of fox poo! Plus she always has a super shiny coat 😁
 

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As I show my girls they get bathed roughly every 2 weeks. For Tiva I use Dezynadog black magic shampoo and Meera has dorwest oatmeal, then both get conditioner. Thorough rinsing takes longer than shampoo.
I have just invested in a blaster rather than hair dryer and both girls are almost asleep whilst drying them.
 
Only when she smells really bad she doesnt like it so normally just gets hosed off after she has been swimming, the stream is muddy and not too sweet smelling
 
Mine have a pre summer holiday and Christmas bath. Otherwise, they may join the kids in the river or paddling pool. The BT would get a bath after swimming in the sea though.
 
We used to regularly bathe the Labs in the days when there was licensed anti-flea shampoo. They weren't madly keen on the idea although they all loved swimming.
The Rotters love playing with the hosepipe but aren't happy to get wet, they have to be made to go outside on rainy days! The only time they get a bath is if they have rolled in something unpleasant, then we use wet cloths and 'dog dissolver' (washing up liquid).

I am not into bathing dogs, or horses, unnecessarily but I find that stroking etc, is an opportunity to check for lumps and bumps, let alone 'bonding'.
 
I bath my dog when she’s dirty. That could be anything up to monthly but I don’t do it for no reason. She has had skin issues before so I always use Double K Furst Aid shampoo which is very soothing.
 
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