Articles

Bathing Your Dog: 3 Simple Tips To Help Keep Your Sanity

First of all, you must be adequately prepared. When giving your dog a bath, do you want to have a pleasant experience or do you want to get frustrated like most dog owners do? Obviously the first choice is preferred so below are a few simple tips when giving your dog a bath.

1. Preparation is key and the last thing you want to experience is your dog jumping out of a tub full of water and ruining your carpet all because you had to leave the bathroom to get something you needed. In order to prevent this from happening you must place everything that you will need inside the bathroom or your preferred dog wash area before starting your dog's bath.

Keep in mind, you may need the following:  shampoos, conditioner, any brushes you may use, and of course plenty of towels. Make sure to place all of the things you'll need in an easily accessible area while you are giving your dog a bath so that you can always keep one hand on him while the other and is reaching for a supply item. This way, you won't have to leave your dog to look for something you needed which will give your dog the chance to hop out and drive you crazy while he gets everything in your house soaking wet.

2. Also keep in mind you will get dirty and wet! Putting on your favorite piece of clothing before giving your dog a bath is the last thing you should do. Put on your raggedy old pair of  jeans and a T-shirt that you could care less about. You may even want to just put on a pair of swimming trunks like I prefer to do. Your clothing is going to be drenched when you're done so might as well prepare yourself for it.

3. As soon as the bath is over be sure to leash your dog and get him outside immediately. If you do not do this, then your entire room will be soaked with water and suds from him shaking it off. To make sure your dog does not ruin anything inside it's just better to take him outside since it is impossible to prevent your dog from shaking off water.

If we are referring to a larger dog with longer hair this advice would be more appropriate than if we were to be referring to a smaller breed with shorter or less hair. For example, when bathing a full grown German Shepherd there will be more stress than my situation where I own three Chihuahuas and giving them a dog bath is a lot less stressful of a situation.