Here is how to give a dog a bath without all the fuss and hurt feelings
Have you seen what your dog rolls in when frolicking out in the field during your exercise times? If you haven’t, you’re one of the lucky ones. It’s awful. All kidding aside, your animal needs your help to get clean. With options for home (indoor or outside) or pet cleaning businesses, it’s imperative to know the proper cleaning methods at your disposal.
If you choose to do it yourself, there can be complications. Like a dog running like a bat out of hell through the house, you chasing, it slipping through your fingers. When the family gets home to see your canine has shaken off his shampoo and all the water stuck to his coat on the computer, TV, beds, kitchen, and Timmy’s new science project, they may ask that you learn the proper techniques for cleaning your animal.
Thus, below, we’ll delve into methods and practices, and the dog grooming supplies, to keep you and Fido clean. So, without further adieu, here’s how to give a dog a bath.
Getting the Humans Ready
You’ll need:
- A grooming brush
- Dog shampoo
- Towels, at least two large ones
- Dog treats
As well, you can use cotton balls for a pet’s ears, mineral oil to protect their eyes from soapy water and shampoo, and a conditioner if your pooch has longer hair. For the actual tub (if that’s what you’re using), try to obtain a “non-skid” mat in order to minimize slipping and sliding.
For those without detachable shower heads, a plastic pitcher, bowl, or super-sized cup can help to rinse your pet after you’ve applied shampoo.
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Getting Your Canine Ready
This would be where you pray. Just joking — Simply entice your pet in with a few well placed treats. Speak in a calming voice, close the door behind you to close off any potential exit strategy the animal might have.
You can put the cotton balls (if you’d like) in their ears to protect against water getting in; as well, you can apply the mineral oil to protect their eyes from shampoo. Use one drop in each eye before you begin.
The Actual Cleaning Process
Start with lukewarm water and be sure to read your shampoo directions (follow them closely). Get the body wet and leave the head as the last thing you wash. According to RaisingSpot.com, this will mean that the animal won’t shake as animals with a dry head have less of a tendency to shake out.
Work a small amount of shampoo into a lather after you have applied water to the coat. Start from the neck and move back towards the tail — Hit everything in between to cover every square inch of your pet.
From here, you’ll rinse the soap out with the help of your shower head, or bowl. Be sure to get all of the shampoo off, and re-rinse if necessary to make sure. For the head, be careful as you rinse to keep shampoo away from their eyes.
Do one last check for any residual shampoo, as if it is left on it may cause a skin irritation for the animal. Pull the nearby towels and dry with vigor. For those animals with a longer coat — a coat conditioner may also be helpful to apply just after the shampoo has been rinsed out — you may want to use a blow dryer on low to get maximum dryness.
A quick brushing can help as well to collect some of the hair that has been loosened during the bathroom experience. And then it’s time to let the animal run free and watch as he or she slides on the carpet, dries off repeatedly, rubs up and down on beds and sofas, and then collapses due to sheer exhaustion. And with that, you know how to give a dog a bath. Wasn’t too difficult, was it?
Resources:
Pet Finder: How to Give Your Dog a Bath.
Raising Spot: How to Give Your Dog a Bath.
Above photo attributed to caterina