# How do you bathe your dog?



## Zeeva (Aug 10, 2010)

All I do is every week hose them down with a power hose real close to their body so it gets down to the undercoat. Simply doing that makes them look and feel fluffy and pretty. I make sure to get every part of them real well. I do it in the yard and let them sun/warm dry since it's been hot around here...Is this a bad idea? Should I be using shampoo and conditioner? Is once a week/once every 2 weeks too much?

What do you do? Do you use shampoo? Conditioner? In the bathtub? Groomer?

P.S. I like the smell of wet dog...I dunno why


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## wildo (Jul 27, 2006)

I tell Pimg "Do you want a bath!?" and she sprints to the bathroom and jumps in the tub. I have one of these hooked up (the water pressure is great even for human showers!  )









...And I just give her a shower. It's on a hose, so it's real easy to maneuver. If she's really smelly, like she has been this summer after dock diving trails, then I'll use a normal dog shampoo and let it set for a minute or two. Then rinse it off.

There was a recent thread called something like "show me your bath time pictures" and I was shocked at how many people actually gave their dog a _bath_- like, with water filled up in the tub. Pimg has no issues what so ever with a shower, but almost never will she lay down in a bathtub full of water.

BTW- I recommend the RapidBath even if you don't want to use their shampoo. It has a High/Low/Off switch and has really good pressure. You can get it pretty cheap ($20) at Walmart.


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## 4TheDawgies (Apr 2, 2011)

My dogs play in the sprinkler nearly every day. Baths are like twice a year per dog, sometimes more for dog shows and trials. Its bad to strip their coat of oils. Brushing out usually makes them look super awesome and stimulates blood flow to the coat for a healthier coat and shine.


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## angierose (Apr 20, 2009)

Sam gets bathed outside or in our shower. He had a skin condition so for a while, he was getting baths once a week. It has never fazed him in the least. 

Kaylee hates it though. She shakes and pulls away constantly. I give her a hosing off after we come back from swimming, but otherwise she doesn't really need much maintenance. If I can't just hose her off, I need my husband's help to place and keep her in the tub.


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## marbury (Apr 3, 2012)

wildo, can you re-purpose those little 'shampoo satchels' and re-fill them with your own shampoo or is it strictly one-use and you're forced to buy their product?


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## wildo (Jul 27, 2006)

marbury said:


> wildo, can you re-purpose those little 'shampoo satchels' and re-fill them with your own shampoo or is it strictly one-use and you're forced to buy their product?


Good question. I've never tried. I'll take a look tonight and let you know.


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## Anitsisqua (Mar 25, 2012)

Gabe gets rinsed off with the hose every time he gets muddy, and gets baths maybe once a month. I get in the shower with Gabe, shut the door, and turn the water on. When we're good and soaked, I scrub both of us down with a baking soda/water solution (1 tablespoon baking soda per cup of water) Scrub scrub scrub. Rinse with water. Rinse with an apple cider vinegar and water conditioner (1 tablespoon ACV per cup of water). Rinse. Towel off. Done.


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## wildo (Jul 27, 2006)

How about that- great idea!

There's a cap on the end:









It can easily be popped off with a small pair of scissors:









And then just a little rubber plug thing:









You'll probably need a baby feeding syringe to pump the new shampoo in their, but it shouldn't be tough. As you can see- the current stuff comes out quite easy without the plug thing.


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## marbury (Apr 3, 2012)

Cool! Thanks for the sleuthing! This might make show-bathing a whole pack easier, great suggestion!


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## Scarlettsmom (Jul 12, 2011)

I have a dog who is terrified of the hose and water! Bathing her is a tedious chore that I hate. I take her to a DIY dog bathing place where I can tether her in the tub (which is at waist level) and I can wash and dry her in the same place. I have help getting her in and out of the tub and all the mess stays there. Totally worth the $19!


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## Freestep (May 1, 2011)

The power washer is a great idea, the pressure will blast off dead undercoat, dirt and debris! I'm a pro groomer and I use a recirculating system. You run a small amount of warm water in the bottom of the tub, add a couple squirts of shampoo, and then this apparatus (basically a pool pump) mixes the water and shampoo together and then onto the dry dog via a hose attachment. It saves time, water, and shampoo, and really gets the dogs CLEAN.

It's costly, though, so I doubt anyone except a professional groomer could justify it. But man oh man, is it nice. When I started grooming, we bathed dogs the old-fashioned way. But since getting the "Bathing Beauty" (that's what the recirculating system is called), I can't imagine going back to shampooing by hand. One summer, my Bathing Beauty broke down right in the middle of a horrifically busy week. I called the company and had them overnight me a new one. I couldn't even comprehend the thought of bathing all those dogs and cats by hand--I'd never have been able to get it all done!


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## HarleyTheGSD (Feb 13, 2012)

Mine doesn't mind baths, but he would rather do without. He gets a bath about 2 times a year, unless he gets unbelieveably dirty, then he gets more. I have him stand in one of those little plastic kiddy pools outside while I spray him down with the hose, then I rub in shampoo, then I wash it all out. I usually tie him to the fence while I do this, because he gets distracted very easily and will just run off.


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## marbury (Apr 3, 2012)

Freestep, I can't imagine how fantastic that must be! Wow. Just another example of working "smarter, not harder"... when I got my new vacuum I had a similar experience. I was picking up dog hair I didn't know existed in my carpets. One day I'll aspire to one of these Bathing Beauties of which you speak.


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## Zeeva (Aug 10, 2010)

marbury said:


> when I got my new vacuum I had a similar experience. I was picking up dog hair I didn't know existed in my carpets.


owee! what vacuum do you use? I use the pet cyclonic by Wind Tunnel! i love it but wouldn't mind getting something better


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## marbury (Apr 3, 2012)

Zeeva said:


> owee! what vacuum do you use? I use the pet cyclonic by Wind Tunnel! i love it but wouldn't mind getting something better


Lol, not to derail the thread but this puppy: [ame]http://www.amazon.com/Navigator-Professional-Lift-Away-Vacuum-Cleaner/dp/B005KMDV9A[/ame] has changed my life!


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## Elektra2167 (Jun 18, 2012)

We do the wash and rinse (vetrolin usually) outside with hose. Also have an LP tank hot water wash for when it gets cooler. But they don't get baths that much unless it has been raining a lot and they have been rolling in the mud or digging a new den. They do get their paws rinsed before coming in the house all the time though.


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## Anitsisqua (Mar 25, 2012)

Freestep said:


> I can't imagine going back to shampooing by hand.


I spent some time working for a groomer, and as a perk, we were allowed to bring in our own dogs after hours and bathe and groom them using company equipment for free. I MISS that...


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

when he's bathed outside i hose him down. i have a bucket
of shampoo and water waiting. i pour the bucket mix all over
him. sometimes i give him a squirt from the bottle. i rub
it all in and hose him off. if he needs a bath during the colder
months he gets a bath in the tub. my GF lines the tubs floor
with wet towels. she tells Loki to "get in". he steps in the tub.
she shampoos him up and uses the shower hose to rinse him off.


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## Mooch (May 23, 2012)

I bit the bullet and bought a 2nd hand Hydrobath (one of those water recirculating pump setups in a bathtub) I worked out that about 5 trips to the groomers for both my dog would pay for it. It makes washing them a breeze and getting the heavy duty dryer was the best thing ever!


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## Gilly1331 (Apr 16, 2011)

Depends on the time of year... Cold weather the dogs hop in the bathtub with me in it with them (we have glass doors that one knocked off when trying to wash from outside. During the warm months we use the hot water outside (we have hot/cold set ups at 2 ends of the house). We use either a flea/tick or medicated dog shampoo during icky seasons and regular human shampoo/cond during nicer seasons.

My guys also love to swim so they get "free water" baths when they swim.


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## Zeeva (Aug 10, 2010)

Gilly1331 said:


> regular human shampoo/cond during nicer seasons.


Wow I didn't know we could use human shampoo/conditioner on dogs! Good to know! Thanks. Which one do you use? Any human shampoo/conditioner that you cannot use?


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## Freestep (May 1, 2011)

Human products are really not good for dogs. In a pinch you can use human shampoo, but if you don't have pet shampoo, the next best thing is actually mild dishsoap like Ivory or Dove. The pH is closer to a dog's skin than human shampoo is. Dilute it down to a couple of squirts in a bottle of water and you have a pretty decent dog shampoo.


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## mygsdgypsy (Jul 20, 2012)

Gypsy (GSD) gets bathed as needed, lucky for me she does not mind in fact she likes them.

Depending on the season she is either bathed outside/or inside. 

If i tell her it is time for a bath while inside I will find her standing in the tub in the dark lol waiting for me to come back with her shampoo and to turn on the light (i have a flexible hose sprayer in that bathroom and a sprayer attachment for the hose outside). 

I have a large shop vac that I use in reverse mode to blow her dry and is where I end up soaking wet and furry with all spray that comes off her undercoat :laugh:.. she stands still and enjoys it all.

Grader (mix gsd), would rather die of strangulation than get wet with a bath or rain LOL, but when he is done and toweled dried (no blow off for him)... he is one hyper happy camper.


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