DogMouse's first bath

[Elibean]

the time has come, I think, or very nearly

Should I do what I used to do with my last dog? In other words: lock us both in bathroom with minimal clothes (me), large towels, and 4 inches of warm water in tub and lift shaking, pitiful woofer in, do the job, rinse with shower, lift out and howl pitifully (me) while he shakes himself all over the place?

I used to blow dry my old boy when it was chilly...or put him in front of fire...

I am very very out of practice, and would welcome tips or be told how others do it please...

I just went for it. Jasper isn't keen, but isn't yet big enough to escape the tub . He did shake all over me in revenge, though. Oh, and he hated the hairdryer and barked at it from behind the sofa.

We had to do one today, with the filthiest, sandiest, saltiest pup you can imagine! Went for showering in the end. He doesn't particularly like it, but doesn't try to get out or anything and is pitifully grateful to be 'rescued' afterwards!

ok, so just a case of steeling the nerves and preparing the mops...

I do remember my last dog not resisting once in, then loving the towelling dry, shaking in revenge, getting warm by the fire part

Mouse is covered in dog spit from playing with every single dog in a 5 mile radius that is prepared to tumble around with him, on top of the layers of dirt he already had, and I swear he looks at least two shades darker than last week...so...

make sure you shut all the internal doors in the house....

our old dog used to tear around the house like a mad thing rolling on every surface she could find as soon as she got out of the bathroom. The whole house was covered in damp dog smell then and she was much happier!

Ours is put straight into his crate after a good towelling down and stays there till he's dry. He's all snuggly and lovely now. Oh, he was SO filthy! You couldn't even see his black bits for the muck. And it took me about half an hour to clean the bath (which DD then pooed in, helpfully!).

i cheat. i have a mobile groomer come to the house, and he sorts the dogs out in the van. but ralph is too big for me to lift these days.

how is Mouse after his trauma bath?

I decided to wait till the dds were at school...I had visions of them begging to wear swimsuits and get in the bath with him, shrieking with glee. Made me feel so faint I had to eat a handful of jelly beans and watch X Factor instead

So Mouse is reprieved for one more night!

Your method sounds how I do it! I too would welcome any tips...

ok tips - bathe/shower dog when the bathroom already needs cleaning. sound obvious but at least you only end up cleaning it once. do it when you know you can thoroughly dry dog, wet dog smells horrible. i try to do it when i know they can be towel dried as much as possible and then go out for a walk. i used to use hairdryer but oldie is scared of that now. i have had treats by the bath and give a few during the 'procedure'. oldie looks at me with disgust when i try to bribe her so treat dont always work. i always give them a bone/dentastix after they are towel dried so they know they have that to look forward to. i dont wash them often as i think it spoils their coats. they are always wiped after walks and furminated weekly

top tip - avoid eye contact throughout the 'procedure' unless you like feeling guilty

one of my strange dogs actually likes having a shower so you never know dog may like it

My dog, (cocker spaniel) loves her baths and is so good, jumps in lets me wash her, jumps out is dried let in garden to dry in the sun and to eat her denta stick, in the winter she dries out on her bed,

she has always been good, im lucky, but i talk to her normal rubbish while i was her keeps her calm and she likes it,

she is pro groomed and bathed 4 times a year too, to keep her looking lovely.

good luck for when you give mouse a bath, x

Thanks!

I need to get some detastix, someone else mentioned them today (visiting plumber, as it happens )

Bathroom is really quite clean....and Mouse is collapsed in a heap after walk, looking so peaceful...

Done it [hgrin]

Both Mouse and I smelled of fish (I didn't realize, till dd1 whispered tactfully out on our walk 'you stink mummy') after an outing with Fish4Dogs treats. And Mouse smelled of quite a lot of other unpleasant things: it was the Last Straw.

He did shake a lot in the tub, poor lad, but was very good so it was fast - and he loved the warm towels afterwards! Remarkably unmessy

And he's all fluffy and gorgeous now....just in time for his next outing

warm towels? lucky dog

what are the odds that he rolls in fox poo tomorrow

odds are very high

[hblush] warm towel was because I grabbed dd1's towel off the radiator. I stuck it in the wash before she could notice!