Bathing a puppy?

Question

Hi ,i have an 11 week old cavalier king charles called oliver,we have just got him some frontline and put it on his little body ,but is it ok to bath him once every 2 weeks because i dont want a smelly baby or wont the frontline work as well ?would it be wise to buy him spot on as well.also i keep hearing people say that king charles gain weight easy ,we are always out with him or will be when he gets alittle older ,he has the dry complete food and i know its complete but do they ever get bored with the same food all the time,this is my first doggy and we love him to bits thankyou for your time xx

Answer 1

No, dogs do not get bored with the same food. Dogs have way, way less taste buds than people do. In fact, changing your dog's food will give him diarrhea.

Secondly, DO NOT bath this puppy every 2 weeks. You'll be drying out his skin and coat terribly. He's not a baby, he's a dog, and bathing every 6 weeks is plenty. He should also get about 1 tsp. of veg. oil on his food daily to keep his skin and coat in good condition.

Answer 2

Bathing a dog once a month is usually sufficient to control odor. Bathing more often than that can break down the natural oils in the dog's skin and ruin its coat.

Don't bathe the dog immediately after applying the flea treatment (you'll wash it off), and don't use more than one flea treatment at a time. Keep in mind that all of the flea treatments are basically "insecticides" (poisons) and should not be over-used on any animal.

Many dogs do just fine on a consistent diet, but some dogs can develop allergies to specific food types if they're fed the same thing for too long.

If a dog is having trouble with its diet you'll see it appear in the dog's stools (poop) and in its skin. Dogs that are having dietary difficulties often have runny or poorly formed stools, and may develop very itchy and scaley skin, or suffer from hair loss. Just keep and eye on your dog, and let your vet know if you see any changes his stools or skin.

If you decide to change his diet, don't make the change a sudden one or the dog will get diarrhea; instead, add new items to the diet gradually so his digestive system has a chnace to get used to them.

Answer 3

Firstly I have to say a puppy should not be away from its mother at eight weeks, it should be nearer 12 weeks old. Your little pup has missed out on the confidence building weeks with its mum & siblings, they learn manners, how to play & how to clean themselves during these final weeks with mum., it is such a shame that people do this because they cannot wait to get there pup home or the breeders want rid of the responsibility, it is certainly of no benefit to the puppy. Also he should not need to have been bathed THREE times already either. You should introduce him gently to the water, keep it shallow & make a game out of it. Play with toys in the bath with shallow water up one end & encouraging him to paddle in to get his toy. Puting a towel in the bottom of the bath will stop him slipping & make him feel safer. He may never enjoy being bathed but if you talk to him reasuringly & handle him gently throughout it will become less of an ordeal. Use a small plastic jug to pour water over him & remember things can sound very noisy knocking against the side of the bath. Make sure you have everything you need ready within reach so you dont get flumuxed. I do wish you & your little yorkie well & hope you both enjoy bathrtime soon.

Answer 4

Hi my puppy Diesel is now 6 months old! He had frontline from the first time he went to vets. As long as you wait 24 hours or more after applying the drops it's ok for him to have a bath go into the sea or any water! We have just moved near the beach so he needs baths atleast once a week because he gets covered in sand. When bathing dont worry about flea shampoo as frontline is ecellent instead use mild baby shampoo or special puppy shampoo (baby shampoo is cheaper!!) Only use one treatment of flea stuff each time they can overdose. Diesel was covered in fleas when we first got him because it was summer and he came from a farm, instead of using more than one type we applied frontline every 2 weeks instead of every month (vet reccomended) and used a flea bomb (avaliable from ebay) in the house every month. As for weight as long as he excercises and you are not tempted to give him too many treats he should be fine, vet should give you a chart showing what the correct weight should look like. Dry food is fine, our vet said it was better than wet food, make sure you have enough water for him. We give Diesel wet food every weekend as a treat!
Soon you will need to toilet training, it will seem like hes not learning then suddenly he will just get it. Everytime they toilet indoors show them and put him outside, he will soon relate the two. Put down puppy training pads and keep moving them nearer to the door.
Well I have gone on a bit here, but hope it helps! Have lots of fun, and join the pedigree chum puppy club for money off vouchers and advice. Good Luck!

Answer 5

you seriously need to speak to a vet about his flea treatment. Using 2 products at the same time is dangerous. Ask the vet for something like 'stronghold' instead of frontline. It is more effective. It is a monthly spot on and will get rid of fleas, ticks, lice, mange mites, earmites (cavaliers are prone to ear problems) and it also worms him at the same time, so you know he will never have any kind of parasites. It will cost around £20 for a 3 months supply of stronghold.
Dogs do not get bored with the same food. They thrive on routine. I have owned cavaliers for around 20 years and provided you give him plenty of excersize and off the lead running, he will be no more prone to putting on weight than any other breed of dog.
As for bathing, there is no reason your dog should be smelly. Do not bath in winter as it removes oils from his coat and he will have no protection against cold or wet weather. My dogs like to be bathed in summer as it keep them cool. However I don't bathe them more than a couple of times a year/ Keep his paws clipped and the feathering on his legs clipped up to the hock and he won't get all wet and muddy, then just wipe him down with a damp cloth If he comes in from a walk all wet and muddy. If you allow the mud to dry, you find it brushes out easily.

PLease do not follow the advice of the person who feeds their dog on boiled chicken and rice unless you want a malnourished dog. Carry on with the complete food. Dogs are not carnivores, they are omnivores. Chicken and rice alone it not a balanced diet and will, in the long term, cause serious kidney damage.

Answer 6

As far as bathing, you can bathe him every two weeks and that won't affect the frontline application.

As far as the food, I have two saint bernards and i have to keep them lean to help avoid any hip or joint problems. I feed my dogs a high end lamb and rice food which is low in fat and high in protein. So my dogs are very lean, but have very good muscle mass and in are great shape. You can talk to your vet about any suggestions that may have. I would suggest staying away from the "cheap" brands as they have more fillers and your dog won't absorb anything from the food, and you'll just end up buying more food, and cleaning your yard alot more often. So spend more on the food itself as your dog will get more nutrients from that (most brands anyway, I myself use Nutro). My dogs aren't bored with their food and they've been eating it for years. Actually they won't eat any other brand.

Answer 7

Bathing should be fine, as long as you are using a non-soap/non-detergant based shampoo. Shampoos that contain these products will wash off your flea prevenative.
Never use human shampoos. Humans have an higher level of acid on their scalps. People shampoo can actually burn their skin over time because it is not PH balanced. To note: your flea prevenatives you purchase from the vet are strictly topical and work with the oil glands.

Answer 8

I wouldn't bathe a puppy that much, unless you have a really good reason, yes no one likes a smelly dog, so you should bathe it one a month, you don't want their shin to get dried out! Hope this helps!

Answer 9

A pup should not be bathed this often only when really dirty try dry dog shampoo from pet store its less harmfull to pups skin and wont wash the natural oils out the pups coat but preferably only bathj when dirty

Answer 10

YES you can bathe him once every 2 weeks