Bathing a puppy, the frequency of washing an adult dog, how to do it correctly, auxiliary equipment, how to remove an unpleasant odor from its coat. How many of them are small, large, short-haired, long-haired, curly-haired and even bald. These are all your pets - dogs. You take care of them, love them, devote all your free time to them. An indicator of a good owner and the health of a pet is its appearance. How pleasant it is for you when, looking at your pet, they say: "What a beautiful, sleek dog!" Along with the daily care of your four-legged friend, walking and feeding, taking care of his hygiene plays an important role in the life of your four-legged friend. Moreover, it must be observed from puppyhood.
Bathing a puppy
The hygiene of the puppy also needs to be monitored, but observe its own specifics, it differs from caring for an adult dog. A small pet grows and develops, its body is still fragile and reacts with increased susceptibility to any irritants and infections. Even the shoes in which you walk on the street are recommended to be removed in a place inaccessible to the puppy, because we can bring various bacteria and fleas on them, and this threatens with unpleasant consequences.
In the first two months of life, until he has undergone routine vaccination, he is rarely bathed, as urgently as necessary, when he is heavily smeared. If the puppy has made a bunch and gets dirty, they just wash it off with water a little warmer than room temperature and blot it with a napkin. After all vaccinations, at the age of about four months, the pet can be bathed, but not more often than once every one and a half, two months, long-haired boys twice a month.
Of course, for the successful conduct of water procedures, the pet is taught gradually and unobtrusively. He's already used to washing his paws and washing himself, now it's time to try bathing. For the first time, you can put the puppy in the bathroom on a rubber mat so that the paws do not slip, put toys there to improve the procedure - after all, he is a child. Lightly wet his coat with your hand, if he resists do not insist, wipe it off and repeat the procedure after a few days. Increase the exposure time each time. Reward your puppy with tasty treats for good behavior. So gradually the dog will get comfortable and will allow you to wash his fur.
To avoid accidents, do not leave your pet alone in the bathroom. When bathing your puppy, it is imperative to keep water and detergents out of the ear canals and eyes. Use only specialty medications purchased from pet stores and pharmacies.
The shampoo is diluted with water and applied to a well-soaked coat. Wash your pet's coat very thoroughly. If part of the product remains on his fur coat, this can harm the animal - the dog is licked and may be poisoned. For long-haired dogs, conditioner is used, then it is easier to comb their hair. After the procedure, thoroughly blot the pet, wrap it in a towel and place in a warm place without drafts. To make the puppy feel more comfortable and dry safely, you can prepare a warm heating pad for him.
How often you wash your dog
In most cases, an adult short-haired dog should be bathed once every two or three months. Longhaired breeds (Golden Retriever, Spaniel, Yorkshire Terrier, Scottish Shepherd, Papillon, Lapdog, Shih Tzu, Afghan Hound) should be washed more often three or even four times every month. In hot summer weather, pets can be pampered with water procedures more often, and less often in winter, when it is cold.
Pedigree dogs with KSU documents need to be washed more often. Their coat should be of a show kind, because they participate in exhibitions. It is not advisable to bathe dogs that are sick or pregnant bitches at all. Puppies are washed only two weeks after the completion of all routine vaccinations. And of course, if your pet is very dirty, he cannot do without water procedures.
How to bathe adult dogs?
Of course, bathing different breeds has its own characteristics, but still there are general rules that apply to all dogs. Before bathing, the animal must be combed well. If your pet has tangles, you must disassemble them with your hands or with special tools, for example, a collar cutter. By buying a dog with mats, you will further aggravate its condition and then you will have to cut all the hair. If the pet's fur is already combed out, feel free to proceed with further manipulations.
Water treatments can be taken directly in the bathroom. It is not advisable to close the drain hole. To prevent the pet's paws from slipping, and the claws will not leave scratches on the bath cover, you can lay a rubber mat on the bottom. First, the pet's coat must be well moistened. Then dilute the shampoo with water and massage it onto the coat in the direction of growth from head to tail.
Bathing should not cause negative emotions and stress in the animal, so the water should be slightly warmer than summer water. That being said, you should avoid getting water into your shaggy's ears. Excessive moisture in the ears can lead to diseases such as otitis media. You can plug your ears with a cotton swab lubricated with baby cream, since it is not convenient to close your hands. The cream removes excess dirt and protects against water. You also need to protect the eyes of the animal from detergents. To eliminate negative effects, you only need to bathe your dog with a specialized top quality shampoo. After shampoo, you can apply a special balm or mask to soften the coat. All products must be well washed off under running water. You need to wipe the fur of the animal with blotting movements, with towels made only from natural cotton fabric.
Next, the dog dries naturally on a warm bed in a draft-free room. Some owners prefer to blow dry their pets, but it is advisable to do this in the direction of hair growth. The air should be warm. The dog is combed during drying. For better combing, spray is applied.
You can take your pet out into the street only a few hours after the procedure, otherwise it may catch a cold, and the wet coat has every chance of getting dirty again even faster. Therefore, it is preferable to bathe him at night, so the fur coat will have time to dry well until the morning and the dog will be ready for a full walk.
Auxiliary bathing equipment
When bathing both adult dogs and puppies, it is important to observe not only the basic rules, but also to use high-quality and correctly selected equipment. It is obvious that using specialized hygiene tools for dogs is very convenient and effective.
When buying it, it is important to consider many factors:
- Pet age - for puppies, pregnant bitches and dogs of an age, the care products should be softer.
- The length of the coat - Shampoos and other tools for long-haired pets will be different from those for short-haired breeds. It is important to take into account the fact that long hair gets loose and shaggy, therefore it is also necessary to use additional means: conditioners, softening sprays and sprayers, and so on.
- Features of the exterior of the breed - show dogs have their own hairstyles, for the creation of which there are various aids.
An indispensable item for dog hygiene - a stiff brush for combing out, suitable for all types of wool. In such a brush, bristles made from natural materials are more preferable. But, unfortunately, this device is not enough for pets with long hair, since it will comb the upper guard hair, but it will not even reach the undercoat.
For a thorough and high-quality combing of the undercoat, you also need to purchase a brush with fine wire bristles and a metal comb with long and sparse teeth, rounded at the ends. But the koltunorez should be used very carefully and if you do not know how to handle it, then in order not to harm your pet, it is better to consult a specialist: a veterinarian or a professional groomer.
Today you will not surprise anyone with an abundance of detergents for dogs, but how to choose exactly what your beloved four-legged friend needs?
Shampoos are classified according to the following criteria:
- type of product - liquid or dry;
- composition - with various herbal extracts, microelements or hypoallergenic;
- purpose - medicinal, moisturizing, nourishing, strengthening, sparing;
- length and type of coat - long, short, soft, hard.
Dry shampoo is indispensable when you are traveling with a family friend and cannot be fully washed. Sometimes breeders of purebred dogs use it well before a show. The application is very simple - apply it to the animal's fur and comb it out well.
How to remove odor and stubborn dirt from a dog's coat?
Many dog owners are confronted with an unexpected phenomenon: their precious pets, whose hygiene they carefully monitor, after a walk appear in such a form that "neither tell in a fairy tale, nor describe with a pen." What exactly are we talking about? About the passionate affection of four-legged friends will fall out in everything that is most fetid and, from our point of view, very unpleasant.
And how skillfully a doggie can find some rotten stuff or fresh poop, covered with green grass or white snowdrifts. There are several versions of why the dogs are doing this, but the conclusion is still one, to wash you. And, dear dog breeders, you will have to upset, but the usual shampoo will not just remove an unpleasant smell, but will not even interrupt.
If the dog is very dirty it should be washed with a super cleansing shampoo to remove all the dirt well. After shampooing, take two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar in one and a half liters of water. This solution is rubbed into the damp pet's coat and rinsed off. Then the fur of the animal is evenly sprinkled with ordinary soda in order to finally remove the persistent smell of "wonderful perfume", it is well massaged and combed out.
For more details on how to bathe a dog at home, see this story:
