How often should you bathe your dog?

Oh, that smell of clean and the feeling of soft fur! Really, there is no better place to stuck your nose in it than on a just bathed dog’s neck, right? When my furry babies get a bath I really feel like I want to wear them as a mustache so I can smell them all day long! Unfortunately, that clean like smell doesn’t last forever; at one point, our dogs will not be smelling so nice and clean. Luckily, our dogs can and should take baths! But how often should our dogs be bathed? There are a few factors we should take in consideration before bathing our four-legged friends: Different breeds have different needs! The dog’s health, coat, activity level, as well as where these activities are taking place are all aspects to be considered. Dogs who spend the day outside running/rolling around things they shouldn’t are more likely to need more frequent baths than those dogs who spent most of their time on the couch.

If that in mind, it is safe to say that most dogs can benefit from a weekly bath. This is a great time to assess your dog’s overall condition and also to wipe out their ears and eyes and check their teeth. Baths also provide you, the parent, a great chance to check your dogs while they are wet and the fur is lying down and if you notice anything out of the ordinary, such as any lumps, bumps, patches of missing hair or unexplained weight loss, you should most definitely consider calling your vet and setting up an appointment.

If you apply any topical flea products on your furry babies, consider using certain shampoos that are preferred by these products manufacturers because some of them depend on the dog’s skin oil to spread and the shampoo can strip the oils away and change their efficacy.

And remember, just because a shampoo says tear-free it doesn’t mean it can go straight into their eyes, rather wash around the eyes and rinse right away and always bathe the body first and the head last, as dogs tend to shake once their head is wet.

All dogs and pets should be inspected on a frequent basis, this allows you to assess any changes in their coat or skin health, hair texture, missing hair and presence of parasites or skin masses.

Your fur baby will thank you for this!

Laura