How young is too young to bath?

awesomeleanne

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I have a 4 month old labrador puppy and i was wanting to get him used to bathing and water earlier rather than later and he rolls in poo sometimes and i want to be able to wash it off, how young is too young to give him a bath? Opinions? What harm can it do so long as i make sure he doesnt get a chill?
 
Ha I started bathing my JRT pup when he was 3 months old after he discovered straw muck heap is fun to play on! Just use the mildest soap, and dry him really well if possible keep him warm for while afterwards, My pup (he's one now) loves being towelled dry then a little chase round then rolling on to his back for the hair dryer at lowest setting.
 
yes I would but if you have any doubts check with your vet. Leo was about 12 weeks old when he had his first bath because of some dandruff.

Hes 2 now and its bathtime every sunday but more often when required depending on whats hes rolled in!!
 
We bathed ours from about 10 weeks old. We took her to farm and once she had had all her jabs let her run round. Of course she would come back black (she is a cavalier) and went in the bath with about 3 inches of water. No trouble and a good towel dry afterwards. Then she runs round the house rubbing her face on the carpet for about 20 mins. She gets a bath every couple of weeks cos she stinks after coming to farm.
 
Hi, I'm Suzi and new to this part of the forum, but have raised, and shown salukis for 30 years before moving to England. We only have rescues now so don't breed, but I can give you a little advice from an old hand!
I've bathed mine at as young as 3 weeks old if they needed it, but had a professional dryer and made sure puppy was very very dry before leaving it with it's mates. Most of my puppies were going to go on to live lives as show dogs, so first proper bath and trim (including nails) usually happened at 6 weeks with the same precautions of drying them thoroughly. I ended up with dogs who would jump in the tub with no struggle and could sometimes get through bathing 10 salukis by myself in one day because they LIKED it!
CAUTION: DO NOT USE DISHWASHING LIQUID TO BATHE YOUR PUP!!! In the US there were tons of pups killed because an owner didn't have time to go get some real shampoo. And never use head and shoulders on a dog as it contains zinc which can kill them.
Hope this helps!
Love ya
Suzi
 
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