End of Winter Bath

Our dogs' hindlegs have gotten smattered with winter rock-salt and sand, their paws are perhaps a bit salty even after a good paw-washing, and their coats are all-around smellier than we want to admit. It's almost time for that end-of-winter bath!

A lot of us have gotten behind on washing our dogs because as soon as we wash off all the gunk and the instant they have that nice silky fragrant coat again, they go pouncing in dirty puddles and shovel their way through telltale yellow snow-banks. 

I've been adding ten minutes per dog for toweling off after walks on rainy days such as this one. And what dirty towels they are! Sorry, folks, for making you do more laundry than usual. Though we can all agree that extra labor is better than trying to clean a dirty couch or carpet.

Here are some tips for keeping your dog calm during a bath:

• My main advice is that you use a rubber mat. Because this will prevent your dog from slipping, s/he will be much more secure, and therefore calmer, as you bathe him/her (which as you know makes the job go at least twice as fast).  
• Second, protect your dog's delicate eardrums from water by washing his face with a washcloth; don't pour water over his/her face. S/he will possibly even enjoy the sensation.
• If possible, use a hand-held shower-head.
• Make sure to comb out any mats beforehand, so that the tangling does not worsen and hurt your dog. Whatever mats you cannot get out, you may want to "spot-treat" and massage out with conditioner in advance.

Protecting your dog's skin:

• If you don't have a good dog shampoo and conditioner on hand, the key is simply to go with the most natural, gentlest shampoo and conditioner you know of. Herbal shampoos with lavender or tea -tree oils can help stave off fleas and ticks, as well. 
• Just like with humans, you don't want to dry out your dog's skin too much - and there's no need to bathe your dog unless he's getting smelly. Better to just use that towel when you come in the door, until a bath is really necessary.
  

Drying off:

• Use lots of towels, and dry your dog on an old blanket. The messiest part of the bath is often when a dog decides to engage in a nice, complete coat-shake. One dog-person says: "We bring him out onto the blanket immediately after drying with towels, we lay him down, and we kind of sit on him to keep him there. His first instinct is to run and find a good place to rub every inch of his body. But, his idea of a good place is on the couch or on the new bedspread!"