How to Bathe a Dog - Stress Relief for the Whole Family

The many benefits of a great bath and cleaning for your dog will go far beyond the pleasant scent. In addition to maintaining and improving the overall health of your pooch, a superb benefit of bathing your dog can be psychological. Knowing how to properly give a doggy bath will induce feelings of love and a sense of being cared for.

Bathing frequency

Understanding the correct frequency to give your dog a bath will ultimately depend on breed, age, and the amount of time spent rolling around outside. Bathing too frequently can rob the coat of natural oil and could dry your dog's skin. Usually, on average, you should bathe your canine once every 2-3 months. This is not including the occasional skunk or emergency bath.

Tips for successful bathing

A helpful tip to remember, gather tools beforehand. There is nothing like forgetting something and coming back with a soaking wet dog writhing around on the floor of the bathroom. Items of interest should be brushes, shampoo, towels, and obviously a sink, bathtub or something of the sort.

Prior to bathing, take a brief minute to brush your dog's coat. This type of grooming will remove any loose or matty hair that can prevent the shampoo from serving its purpose. A bonus to this step is to avoid letting the mats and knots from getting wet and tightening. This can cause an irritating pinch and can create a negative experience.

Now, place your dog into the sink or bathtub. Use a rubber-non-slip mat on the bottom of the sink or bathtub to remove any chance of canine-slipping. This can be a serious hazard for you and your pet.

The water temperature should be lukewarm. Begin to saturate the coat of the dog, making sure the water is NOT too hot. Remember, be careful around the eyes, ears, and face - these areas are especially sensitive. Make sure not to get water in your dog's nose - especially small dogs, this can be a choking hazard. As a precaution, lightly cover the nose with your palm or gently rinse the face with a wash cloth.

Begin at the tail. Add the shampoo and massage into a lather, repeating this process as needed across the body. Following the body, move to the legs and finally onto the head. Do this until the entire dog is covered in a soapy lather. Talking to your dog through this can help reassure him that everything is calm and provide a gentle experience. Many dogs will begin to fidget, just remember to avoid over-restraint or raising your voice, this can cause him to struggle more aggressively.

Again, starting at the tail, work towards the head, across the body and rinsing off the shampoo thoroughly with lukewarm water. I must emphasize rinsing thoroughly, irritation can occur of the shampoo is effectively washed off.

Begin to dry your dog using towels to help remove water from the undercoat. Practice caution during this time, unless you want a face and mouthful of doggy flavored water. The natural reaction of dogs is to shake the water off. Another helpful hint, using a blow-dryer, if he or she will tolerate it of course, and make sure to use a cooler temperature setting so not to burn or irritate skin.

By following these basic tips and tricks, you should be able to relinquish any built stress, for you and your dog. These experiences can be a great learning and bonding experience for all involved. I urge you to include family and children. Children can be taught great lessons for compassion and can help grow their love for pets and animals.

Isaac Macalister is a frequent contributor for Hartz Dog Grooming and has written many articles pertaining to cat and dog needs. Including anything from dog training to summer fun with your dog including tips on Hartz UltraGuard Flea Control.

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Train Your Dog Without the Stress

No one has ever argued with the statement that a dog is man's best friend. What becomes frustrating for many new dog owners is the accidents, the disobedience, and probably the chewing of furniture or shoes that their new bundle of joy has burdened them with. Dog owners want to love their new canine friends but find their stress level of keeping their new friends well behaved a struggle.

One thing to understand is that, with a new puppy or an older dog that hasn't been trained you must start with simple commands and then progress from there. Teaching your dog how to come, sit, stay, and give you their paw are the first commands dogs tend to learn. Once they have mastered these easier commands and have shown that they can learn and will learn more complex commands, things become much easier when training your dog on how to listen to harder commands.

One key point to remember is that training takes a lot of your time and consistency. Before you start a training program with your dog, make sure you have the time, the desire, and the energy to follow through. Often times people need to take 30 to 45 minutes of their day every day for several weeks to see significant results. Another great incentive for your dog to become trained is having dog treats on hand to reward them for making progress following certain commands.

Begin training your dog with easy commands. When training your dog, using these simple commands will teach your dog that you are in charge and you call the shots. Start with a simple command such as "sit." When your dog follows the command, pat down on your dog's back while giving them a treat so they know they are doing the command correctly. Continue this for each easy command and be consistent with rewards for your dog as they will learn more quickly.

Once your dog learns and masters easier commands, it is time to move on to more difficult commands. Once your dog has mastered "sit," you can begin teaching him more difficult commands such as "give paw" and "come." These commands are usually followed by the "stay" command and are pretty easy to teach your dog. When training your dog how to "stay," start with the sit command. While your dog is sitting, keep your hand held up like a stop sign which is the hand signal for "stay." Continue doing this hand gesture when your dog sits until he automatically stays when you raise your hand. Again, this may take several weeks and don't forget to reward your dog for following this command.

Training your dog isn't easy and doesn't happen overnight. Be patient, consistent, and don't forget to reward your dog every time he follows a command. These dog training tools are a start of a more difficult training process that only time can prove your dog's ability to follow these commands.

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