Home bath tips..

Hey,

Scout is a bit smelly so I have told him he is having a bath tonight. The problem is that we have a rather nice new bath which I would rather not get scratched up. Up until now it has always been a bucket bath in the garden but it is to cold for that now, so..

I'm thinking of putting socks on him during the deed but does anyone have any other/better tips on how to do this without it being an utter disaster?

A bath mat or a towel in the bottom of the bath sorts out any scratches also I use a check chain and a very short lead which attaches to the hand rails to keep them still. The check chain is only used as fabric ones get very smelly when wet and are hard to rinse shampoo from underneath it. We also had (until my mum threw it away ) a shower/tap attachment that would reach all over the dog so that they didnt have to experience jugs of water at one time.


Hope this helps

And...


Good luck - I'd stick towels all over your bathroom...adn when you realise him from the bath - run!!

Ditto to a mat/towel on the bath, I imagine socks may get slippery and make him panic more. If you have a shower attachment you can just intermittently get him wet enough to lather the shampoo, Kiki prefers this to filling the bath. Alternatively only fill it a few inches and use a jug to scoop the water up over the dog when needed.

Mmm, dreading this bit, think will get one of the extra long bath mats and put a towel over the top too just to be on the safe side when our new bathroom is fitted in january!

Going to try a bath in then old one first!

Springers love water - so I shouldnt think it'd be too bad fro you of course you'll have to introduce him to it slowly.

This will also help OP as it may affect the number of scratches

With Sadie she is terrifed of baths, so I did a desensitation of it...
- dog on landing
- dog near door
- dog in bathroom, door open
- dog in bathroom door closed/baby gate
- dog near bath, door closed/baby gate
- dog in bathroom with the taps running
- dog feeling my hands under her
- dog feeling me push up on her body
- dog being picked up/put down
- dog in bath - no water
- dog in bath with taps running
- introducing the jug
- rubbing the jug against the dog to get used to it
- wetting the dog - take this one extra slow (unless your dog is already used to water on it's back

Sadie went through all these steps with treats and will go in the bathroom with me but still hates being put in the bath but once she's in it she's fine And no scratches

Edit:
Shampoo is easy - you just massage it into their fur with your fingertips - all mine love it.
We've been putting Louie in the bath since he was 8 weeks old - no shampoo just warm water - just to get him used to it - he loves to ruin my bubble baths now! >.<

When I used to have a house with a bath I used to line the bath with numerous towels that seemed to stop any possible damage. Also I used to cover the bathroom floor.

Luckily now my house has a wet room so I just walk him into the room. Still use a ridiculous amount of towels though.

I seem to spend half my life bathing dogs !

Mine are all taught to jump into and out of the bath as they are too heavy to lifted ! They also have to 'Turn' on command so I can do the other side. They also learn to pick up their feet in turn.

I have two of those plastic bath mats on the bottom of the bath and use a shower head to wet them down. I put an upturned washing up bowl at one end to stop puppies running up and down.

I decant the shampoo into a washing up liquid bottle and dilute it slightly to make it easier to squirt.

Then I work the shampoo in from the tip of the tail forward stopping just behing the ears. I then rinse them off. I do the head and ears last as dogs shake themselves when their heads get wet.

After a second shampooing and rinsing I rub conditioner into the feathers, rinse off and squeeze out the excess water. I am ready to collapse at this stage !!

A quick rub down with a towel and they are allowed out for a 'wee' and then in onto the grooming table for a thorough towelling then drying with a dryer.

It's important to get them thoroughly dry especially at this time of year and make sure they are dry under their tummies and armpits and feet.

It's extremely hard work - good luck !

T alice's Mum

OH MY WORD!!!!

After reading all of these replies I feel really lucky. I have a mobile dog groomer that arrives at my home once a month with her trailer. The dogs go into it and get bathed and groomed and come out smelling like puppies. If they get too dirty between groomings then I'll bath them myself.

They are so good and love their baths. They both fight about who will be bathed first and afterwards they love the hairdryer in Winter but now that it's Summer they get a rub down and then a brush in the sunshine.

One evening while I was running my own bubble bath I found Georgie standing in the bath (luckily I had run hot and cold together and the water wasn't too hot for her!) waiting for her bath! My dogs get bathed in the second bathroom so she was really taking a chance this time. They love it when I have a bubble bath - they lean over the side of the bath and get bubbles on their beards - too cute.

Good luck with the bathing and I agree on the comment about having lots of towels available.

well the bath happened, I took advice on board (thanks )and had most of the bathroom covered in towels/bathmats, 3 pairs of hands, plentiful offerings of cheese available, and a staged escape plan made. But...

I didn't need most of it. Scout hopped in and got showered like it was the most natural thing in the world. Didn't shake once during the process and then stood still quite happily while being dryed. I think I have the worlds most laid back doggie

It's times like this I get sad that someone got rid and he was in rescue kennels for sooo long, he is such a good dog!!

put a big bath sheet towel in the bath then use the shower on the dog instead of 'bath water'