First Time Bath Givers
My fiance and I have been dropping Hendrix off at Petsmart for his bath. They have a good puppy package that has baths for $15. Anyways, now he's 5 months and the puppy package is null and void at 5 months. So it looks like we'll be doing the dirty work! We have one of those kiddie plastic pools for him, my question is drying him. Do you strictly towl dry and let him completly dry off inside? Do you use a blow dryer? Any suggestions are appreciated! |
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| Hi:
We give our two sheep dogs bath's inside (in the tub) and then towel dry (using up nearly every towel in the house). Once they are let out of the bathroom they dash through the house, jumping on and off the couch (note: remember to put a towel on the couch to absorb excess water), rubbing their heads briskly on anything they can reach and attempting to kill any towels that are left on the floor. While they are running through the house, I pull out the grooming table (an extremely good investment - saves a LOT on the back) and set up the grooming tools and hair dryer. Then we proceed to dry them down to damp/fairly dry level. The brush is a wonderful tool in helping to dry the fur. Right now I use a conventional hair dryer - although we are budgeting for a dog dryer. By the way - we only do one a day. Don't have enough towels to do both dogs in the same day. Jennifer, Baxter, Cassiopia and Sharkey |
| Same as jennifer_t, except instead of the grooming table and blow dryer after the mad dash through the house, I put my guy in his crate with a couple of oscillating fans on. He'll sleep there for a couple of hours, and once dry I will brush him out. |
| I used to bathe panda in the tub, until she started clogging the old thing up!!! This time of year its the hose in the yard...let her run around like a mad dog, take her for a walk, sprinkle a little powder/cornstarch and brush her out....its just too hot to blow-dry her here!!
Winter is Petsmart...but a new place just opened that I may try...A doggie salon...you do your own pet, but they supply the tub, shampoo and blowdryer...for $20.00 ..I may try that this winter.... |
I have always bathed Beaureguard myself in the tub. He really enjoys bath time and frequently goes and gets in the tub on his own, hoping I'll give in and get him wet! 
Drying him, however, is another matter entirely. I use towels, like Jennifer, and get him as dry as possible. It takes about 8-10 (no kidding).  He thinks this part is a game, though, and attacks the towels while I'm trying to dry him. It can be quite the challenge as I usually end up chasing him around to get it done. 
Darcy- I am always amazed when someone says they bathe their dog in a do-it-yourself type place. There is NO WAY I'd be seen in public the way I look after giving Beau a bath! I'm all wet, hot, with my hair dripping & sticking to my face . You're either much neater or much braver than I am!!  |
| Tammy..I havent done it yet..It may take one time to realize that it may not be worth it...we'll see..but you are right, Im as wet as Panda after her bath |
| Excellent, thanks for the advice! It has been really hot in Chicago these last few days so maybe after towl drying we'll go for a nice long walk. |
| I know the one thing that I've found about blow drying, as opposed to much air drying, is with a little brushing while blow drying, Clyde looks great and never matts up in the process. I've found I'd much rather towel dry him and immediately blow and brush than let him air dry. The puppy coat makes the blow drying a lot faster and easier to get through too.
Luckily, Clyde never wants to leave the bathroom after a bath so I usually just spread out a big dry towel on the floor and let him lie on that while I do the top then I swap towels out and roll him side to side to get the underside. I stick a bone in his mouth and he's pretty agreeable for the next hour or so! Would a grooming table be easier? I imagine so but he's actually used to the routine now and I don't mind sitting on the floor with him. |
I bathe Jasper in our tub too. I use the detachable showerhead with him. As for drying, sometimes I blow dry him & somtimes he air drys. That just depends on how much time I have. His coat looks much better when it's blow dried though.  |
| If your dog has longer hair, remember to squeeze with the towels not rub. IF you rub them they tend to get more knots and tangles. Also, dont scrub the hair when washing. Some scrubbing of skin is necessary but make sure that your fingers are through the hair and not tangled up in it. Been there done that!
And definitely stand clear once they are free of the tub! |
| Advice for new tub bathers: change your shower head to a detachable head on the longest hose you can buy. They ususally come with a 5' hose so I went with the 6' one. Getting those puppy underarms, beards and unmentionables with a scoop just doesn't work well. Also use a shower mat, it will help your dog not slip and protect your tub from nail scratches. I learned the hard way on that one and had to spend thousands to have my tub ripped out and replaced.
I am fortunate enough to live in a great climate where Henry can air dry. We love baths we both get in the tub and have a great time. I am with you about the self-serve places--I can't imagine what I would look like trying to give Henry a bath clothed. I just take my shower after I am done with him so I don't wear anything in the shower.  Once or twice I have been quite completely goosed.  I know some people wear their bathing suits to prevent having a cold nose where it should not go. |
| Benny gets a bath in my laundry tub. I have a double tub, so his front paws are in one while his back paws are in the other. I have a 3ft hose attached to the faucet and an squeeze handle hose nozzle(that I got at the hardware store for $0.99) attached to it. I wouldn't say that Benny enjoys his bath, but he tolerates it... for the most part.
At runs around like crazy afterwards and rubs, rolls, and scooches on everything in site afterwards. I let him get all of his energy out and once he settles I take the brush to him. I would love to blow dry him, but he absolutely hates the hairdryer. He even leaves the room when I dry my own hair! But the wash tubs are an easy place to give a bath! |
| Mojo is a wild thing after a bath. And it usually lasts for hours. We bathe him in the tub then towel him off. I take him for a short walk so he can use the bathroom, then let him air dry for most of the day. He is just too wound up to sit for brushing. Once he has calmed down and is mostly dry I brush and blow-dry the rest. I was concerned about burning him or drying out his skin with my dryer. The low setting didn’t have enough force and the high was too hot. Ronnie disconnected the heating element in it. Now I have good air force and don’t have to worry about burning him. |
| I used to bathe both Demi and Dallas the same day in the bathtub (what was I thinking ), dry them off with towels, use my hair drier, then escort them slowly outside to dry off in the sun and they were both angels about it (I would just look at Dallas and she would jump in the tub by herself!) but it just took too long and I did'nt have any towels left for myself (I actually looked like the third wet sheepie).
Now I do it on seperate weekends (dad needs a break too). Here's a link to a great portable tub that's available. It can be taken apart, you can use it inside or outside and looks pretty tough. http://www.northcoastmarines.com/booster_bath.htm Uncle Pete |
| Bailey's second most hated appliance is my blow dryer (after the vacuum cleaner). He thinks that both are personally challenging him. He'll charge at me when I'm drying my hair, stop a foot short, bark like a maniac, race from the bathroom, then come back and start the whole process over. I can't imagine what it would be like to use the blow dryer on him! Thank goodness we live in a warm, dry climate and have plenty of towels. |
The bath was a success! Hendrix just stood there and let us do our thing! Thanks for everyones input!
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| AAwwww!! What a great puppy! |
| Good puppy!!! I wish Panda would stay that still...she still has to be on a leash!! |
| I think it helped that he's been having baths since he was 10 weeks old. I'm glad we started him off young with baths and pretty frequently too. |
| Bath, no problem for a Super Hero !
Good job, Hendrix! |
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