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Bathing a dog

May 9, 2010 by  
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lab bathBathing a dog needs to be given more emphasis.

This is because of the fact that if you are careless in bathing a dog, the animal may end up having some infections.  For example, if you do ít to close the ears , the water may enter into ear canals and may cause some ear infections with signs like constant discharge from the ears and shaking of head.

How often should i be bathing a dog.

Frequency of bathing actually depends on the breed of the dog. If the dog is of a hairy type like the cocker spaniel, then the bathing is to be carried out once in six to eight weeks. If these breeds are bathed too frequently, then the skin and coat loose the protective characters.  However, when the dog has defecated on the skin due to the frequent digestive upsets leading to diarrhea, to avoid the bad smell, the dog may be subjected to frequent bathing some times by the owners.

Take more care in avoiding some irritant soaps or human soaps. The soap materials used for human beings are not suitable for dogs.  Similarly, many human shampoo products are having some ingredients that are not suitable in the proportions that are to be used in dogs. Hence, always try to use the shampoo products that are mentioned mainly for use in dogs. Take more care in using any new product.

Be prepared before bathing a dog.

Always allow enough time before you start bathing a dog,give your dog a good brush down,this will help do get rid of any loose fur and knots,take out any matting,because no amount of shampoo or conditioner will help to remove them,in fact this could lead to skin problems later,try doing this outside as the fur flies every where.  Dogs love the sprinkling of water, rivers, and oceans.  Even when you are using a bathtub, have everything in one place and then start bathing your dog.Start by wetting him down,avoid the head for the moment,now shampoo his chest working your way down to his tail,pay special attention to his bottom and back legs.Here comes another very important part RINSE,RINSE,RINSE,and again rinse,this can not be stressed enough, by leaving any shampoo in the coat can cause itching,and skin problems.

The finishing touch to bathing a dog.

When you have finished the above wrap a towel around him,this will stop him shaking every where.Start drying him down with the towel,you will probably need more than one towel depending on the size of your dog,a good toweling down can save a lot of time and stop your dog from getting cold.At this stage if you wanted to speed up the drying time you could use a hair dryer,be careful,do not hold the dryer to close to the skin put it on the lowest heat setting if possible.

TIP:-Try to have a leash, conditioner,a lot of towels, and shampoo in the bath place.

Conditioner can be a help to make the combing activity easier later. Bathing a dog should be a convenient activity to both the dog and the owner,try getting your dog used to being brushed and bathed at an early age. Have fun and remember bathing a dog should not be a burden.

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