should we bath?
Thanks Gareth |
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| Hi and welcome to the forum.....
I also heard the same from someone who shows OES, but my vet told me that if your dog is not for shows and just a house dog including OES, should be bathes at least once a month...in very hot weathers once every 15 days.....with Pisco I usually do it once a month properly (shampoo and all) and every time he needs it a legs, tummy and mouth bath..it seems to work ok for him.....apart from the fact that he doesn`t like very much his bath water..... but playing with the garden hose...or a long dip in the sea he adores!  |
| I'm afraid I agree with your friend that shows Sheepies. The breeder from whom we got Woof also shows her dogs (Woof's brother and Sister AND mother have all qualified for Crufts this year!). Anyway, her advice to us, knowing full well that Woof was to be a family pet and not a show dog, was to only bath him once every six months or so.
Now, we live in the middle of the countryside, and I take the woofer on walks daily through the (very) muddy and wet fields around our home. On our return, we keep him with us in the Kitchen and utlilty rooms until he dries out a bit and then groom him for a minimum of 30 minutes - I can assure you that we get him looking pretty much like he does in the photo opposite! |
I have always bathed my OESs and others once a month. I find it keeps them from getting matted (no matter that I brush her everyday), having a professional do it once a month helps me keep her in good shape. I have never noticed her losing any of her coat or shine, just the opposite. I also like her to interact with a groomer once a month so she knows she can't just roll over to her favorite side for brushing.  It also keeps her smelling... how should I say this....less like a dog. But what works for me may not work for everyone. It's just like raising kids.  |
| Shanti has a professional who comes to pick him up for his "bathing session" - every 20 days.
He does like maintenance to him: - bath, brushing, nails, takes away the hair from his ears, etc.  Now that I’m writing this… I realize that he is having more time for “beauty” than me!  I would like to be treated like that too!!!
Before He used to have a bath once a month but I couldn't stand the way he smelled!!! |
| I actually saw a post of a dog whose owner had taken things a step further and actually had the dog's nails painted / varnished BRIGHT RED after a groom and manicure..... |
That's to much!!!  isn't it? |
| We asked our vet and he said that it was our call. Whenever we feel they need a bath to give them one. We usually give them both one every month. We brush everyday and comb through every week. No, I can't say that I have ever painted their nails or ever wanted to. These dogs seem to love their grooming. We just say bath and Jack will go jump in the tub. He gets so disapointed when the bath is for Joey our son instead. |
| Abbi runs to the bath too! But I have some type of joint disease ... no one knows for sure what, but if I stay in any one position for too long I cann't move much. Right now I am dancing around while I type this.
So the monthly baths were reduced to bi-monthly. Now it has been reduced to quarterly baths, but daily grooming. I figure at this rate poor Abbi will be groomed every other day and bathed twice a year. Unless I can talk Teresa, my 13 year old, into doing it. I actually wash her beard with lemon juice and water, dry and comb it out every couple of weeks. Since we live in a very hot, humid environment I trim her hair every month to 6 weeks ( I take off all of her stomach hair, hair around paws, under ears, and under anus. The rest only gets clipped down to about an inch around April. Sometimes she gets poodle cuts if I am bored. Like a saddle clip, that type of thing). Time at the grooming table is never as hard on my joints as a bath. Probably because I believe in taking breaks and playing fetch or chase. The grooming table is usually outside on the patio. I do not think there is any harm bathing monthly, but I can assure you that if you brush and comb the dog from head to toe every other day to daily you will never see a mat. The doggie odor seems to become worse with moisture, so I keep Abbi dry. And I use a baking soda/cornstarch bathing powder on her once a month when I brush her out. Nobody has complained about her odor yet. And I must admit, I painted her toes one time. I used to have this standard poodle and we used to do his nails when we clipped him. So one day my daughter decided to do Abbi's nails while I was clipping her. It was a riot. I ended up having to go get the hair dryer and quick dry oil while Teresa kept Abbi from trying to lick off the nail polish. Then we had to remove all of the polish that had gotten on her hair from Abbi's failed attempt to get the stuff off of her. She still kept licking her paws like they were hurt, so I just took the stuff off. Total time with nail polish on-- 2 hours. And no photos were taken (it had messed up her hair and I was a bit embarrassed by the whole meess--and I am the family photographer). Why would Alex(standard poodle) let us do it and not Abbi? Dogs are all so individual. So the bath question, the hair clipping questions, like so many other questions are best answered by the individual owner and their pets. What works for one will not always work for everyone. |
| walter HATES taking baths... any suggestions on how to make it more enjoyable for him? |
| we have had joby 2 weeks now. when we got him home his hind end had poopie on it so we bathed. made him so fluffy. the next weekend we sold an above ground pool and our backyard was a swamp. he and the aussie shepherd were like bambi on ice - they had so much fun!! so another bath. after worming joby again had nasty backside so another bath the next week. my vet says he has the fullest coat any oes pup she has seen. i brush him when he feels clumpy and only those spots. i am worried that this is too much for his coat. we do not plan on conformation, but animal assisted therapy and agility in the future. how do i clean his backside? thanx!! |
| Simple: Warm water, a flannel, a very small amount of bit of hypo-allergenic soap and patience.
I also found that baby-wipes (again hypoallergenic non-medicated) are superb for cleaning immediately after any accidents, especially whilst out walking... |
| i agree with the baby wipes. i use them after he goes with me. the problem is when he home alone for a while or after my kids take him while i am at work. it gets all clumped up and nasty in his hairy end if you know what i mean. is there a way to help keep this to a minimum? thanx!! |
| I always keep the area below the tail shaved... of course the dogs I've had all had a little bit of a stump of a tail that can be kept with some longer hair to keep things covered. |
| can you shave the area if you plan on showing? i know he is too young now at 8 weeks, but it would take time to grow back. |
| I bathe Vivi once a month, and she loves bath time. The only dog I've had who, anytime you make for the bathroom, she runs in front of you, hops in the tub, and stares expectantly. She doesn't like the hair dryer though, I think it hurts her ears, so I dry her in her cage with a big box fan. About the nail painting...my family had a black poodle, and when we had her groomed, she would get her nails painted and a bow in her hair, and she loved it! We don't paint Vivi's nails, but we do put her hair up in a bow sometimes, its quite a sight. |
| I guess if a dog did not want to take a bath, you could "desensitize" him to where he would at least put up with them.
Like get him to jump in, even if you have to help, then give him a small treat and a lot of praise and tell him to get out. do that a few times. Then run some water in the bath tub, have him jump in, small treat and praise, then have him jump out onto a towel and dry his feet and release him. Just work up to the actual bath and do not use a shower attachment the 1st time, just fill with water and rinse him off. It would take effort, but might be worth it if you are going to bathe the dog frequently. You may even be able to teach him some part of it as a trick. Abbi will "retrieve" Angela's toys from the bath tub and bring them to us. We have taught her to shake even when she isn't wet. That sort of thing. Make it enjoyable for BOTH of you and it will become more of treasured time and attention than a chore. |
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