Easiest way to bathe dogs (other than taking them to groomer)?

Question

I have a big dog (rotti) and 2 smaller ones. Can't afford groomer's fees, they are all short haired so I know it's not something that is necessary very often. I just want an easy solution to doing it.

Answer 1

I bathe ALL my dogs (small OR large!) indoors. I use a handheld shower head on my shower, so I can bring the water right down to the coat and adjust my spray setting accordingly, and usually baby powder or oatmeal scented shampoo (I buy that from Petsmart). Place your dog into the tub, rinse your dog, rub shampoo into the coat, working up a lather, and rise again. Make sure you have the drain open, so the dirty water will go straight down and not get caught back in the coat!

Answer 2

There's a couple of options here. If the weather is warm, and the dog's will co-operate, you can use a garden hose and allow them to run around outside to dry off. Never leave them in the sun in their crate or anything like that though, they can overheat too easily.

If you prefer you can bathe the smaller ones inside, in the tub or a large sink if they're small enough. Or you can take all three (you'll need help though!) to a 'dog-wash' in your area. They usually have large washing areas, with ramps and tie-downs etc. It can be a bit of a struggle with a big dog if they're not used to it, but it beats trying to put a 120lb Rottweiler in the bath tub - I know this because I've tried!

It's possible to train a big dog to walk into a shower stall if you have one that's not in a tub. Some dogs don't seem to mind, others are afraid. It would depend on your dog, how old he is and how nervous, or not.

To get more info. on the simplest way to bath a dog, plus find some great products, check out the website below.

Good luck!

Answer 3

First things first. Take them for a run. Or play fetch until they're exhausted. I mean exhausted to the point where they can't even be bothered to LOOK at the ball any more.

Put on a bathing suit. You're gonna get seriously wet, lol.

Once your dogs are completely pooped, put their leash on. They should give you a look, like, "are you serious? You want to go for a walk after we just did THAT!!!" then it's time to tie them up outside. Get the garden hose and wash away. My mom's rotti likesit slow and easy. If I move too fast, he puts his head down like I'm gonna beat him. As if. Anyway, when rubbing in the soap, do it with your nails, so it feels like they are getting a really good scratching. Make sure you rinse them REALLY good.

If it is not warm outside, you can try doing this in the bathtub.... but be prepared for a mess.

Answer 4

They do sell dry shampoo that you could use.
It's easiest to take them outside, at least your bigger dog.
The smaller dogs, you can do it in the bathtub. You will have to be careful to keep the soap away from their eyes and make sure you rinse them thoroughly so they won't be itching later. It's easier to bathe dogs than cats. I've seen my husband wash our dog many times and it doesn't take a lot of effort or time. We have a lab/husky mix. He's a medium sized dog. He's not bothered by the bath.
Growing up, we had an irish setter who loved baths. She would be in the tub before my mother would be ready for her.
You just wash the tub afterwards like normal.
It's either you do it yourself or pay someone else to do it.
There is no other choice. Once you get used to it, it will be awkward at first, it won't be a big deal.

Answer 5

alright, so since you have short haired dogs, bathing is only nessacary about once a month so their skin doesnt get flaky, but you should brush them once a week or even more! to get them used to bathing though, start with every day let your dogs each (seperately) sit in the tub or sink (whichever your washing them on) for about 3 or 4 minutes while you pet them, but dont turn the water on until about a week or so later when your dogs are totally comfortable in the tub. then go buy some tear-less shampoo from somewhere such as petco or petsmart and scrub them everywhere from the neck down and do their heads last being bery careful around their eyes, ears, and noses. Also, while your dogs are in the bath, put cotton balls in their ears so no water will get into them, and when youre done, towel dry them as much as possible, they will still shake most of the water off though, but towel drying them mostly keeps them smelling nice longer! good luck!

Answer 6

Even when I had a lab/pit mix, I would wash him in the tub. But if you do not like this, you can wash your dogs outside.

-Make sure bath time is "fun time". Don't make it frustrating or stressful for your dogs, or you will have problems in the future. What I did was put some of my dog's favorite toys in the bathe water and play with them while in the tub for a few minutes before actually bathing them.
-Using a cheap nylon collar helps out alot. It will give you control over your dog and prevent them from jumping out the bathing area and making a big mess. You can tie it to something in the tub (a low rack that won't fall under pressure) or just hold it if you are outside or can't tie it to something. Make sure if your dogs freak out you can release the leash quickly.
-Use baby shampoo or dog shampoo. It doesn't have to be special, but just make sure it's not too strong.
-Put soap in your hands (not a lot at a time- even thought they are short haired, it can still take a while to rinse soap out if you use alot!), lather it, then rub the soap on your dog. Use as much as needed, but not too much and don't scrub to hard! Avoid the head as well.
-Rinse everywhere very good. Don't forget under the paws! Dried soap on paw pads has to be itchy!

Hope it helps! This is the way my dogs become nice and clean easily.

Answer 7

Bathe them on a regular basis. This will help them get use to the idea of taking a bath. It will get easier with time. The little dogs can be done in the tub (make sure you close the door so they do not run out and do one at a time). The big dog you can try to do in the tub, but might be better if you did it outside with a hose (and not in grass).

Answer 8

Heh. We have a Chihuahua and my cousin that lives with us has a Staffordshire Terrier (BIG dog, looks like a Pitbull) (i think that's what he's called). We bathe the Chi in the sink because she's a puppy and she's very small. When the big dog needs a bath, my cousin takes him in the shower with him and bathes him there. It works fine. (Thank goodness I don't share a bathroom with my cousin lol). DO NOT use people shampoo, use doggie shampoo. We use this shed ender stuff from Wal Mart. It was like 2 or 3 dollars for a human shampoo size bottle, raspberry scented, it smells rather nice. =]

Good luck =]

Answer 9

I had large dogs including small, and never did I turn the hose on them with that cold water.

I had a bath which would accommodate for the large dogs and had a bath for the little ones too. I would collect hot water in buckets and combine it with cold water to give me the right temp, which I would feel with my elbow and not my hand. The dogs would enjoy it and not shake with the cold water.

Its good to bath dogs in luke warm water, can also prevent them from shaking constantly and will also prevent them from being afraid of bathing. The little dogs, would also attend the groomer when necessary, but I would bath them regularly.

Its your choice, which ever you prefer. I did both.

Answer 10

For the big dog, you'd want to go outside and use the hose on a warmer day, spray them down real good and you can use Johnson & Johnson baby shampoo, it wont hurt them at all, and if it gets near their eyes it wont hurt them either, and then wash all off the soap off, towel dry them a bit and let them shake and play outside while it drys. As for the little dogs, you could do the same, or you can do the same thing but in a bathtub or sink. Just make sure to wash out the sink/bathtub well, after washing them. :] and if you wash the small dogs indoors you can use a hairdryer to help dry them off, just make sure to keep the hairdryer moving so the dog doesnt get burned from too much hot heat on one spot.