What should I do if my dog refuses to take a bath? The reason why my dog refuses to take a bath may be because bathing leaves a bad impression on it. It is necessary to slowly establish a comfortable bathing experience; if the dog is resistant to being bathed, spend some time first. Allow time for the dog to accept bathtubs and baths, and the gear should be turned down when showering; for dogs that are extremely resistant to bathing, you can use a simple dry cleaning method to clean the dog's body.
1. Establish positive bathing memories
There are two major taboos when bathing dogs: 1. Do not hold the shower head too high, or suddenly turn on the water. These behaviors can easily scare the dog. 2. Dogs actually don’t like to have their hair washed, so when taking a bath, use slow water and gently rinse against the dog’s skin, and keep the dog’s head slightly upward to avoid the water from choking its nose. . Slowly establish a comfortable bathing experience, and use a gentle tone of voice, supplemented by snacks, toys and other encouragements to tempt the dog into submission and let the dog associate "bathing" with "happiness".
2. Induction slowly and step by step
If your dog feels anxious every time he hears bathing, or even gasps and shakes, you should not be too hasty at this time. You can take your time and slowly let your dog know that bathtubs and bathing are not scary. For example, use snacks to create a path leading to the bathtub and let the dog walk into the bathtub by himself. The setting of the shower head should be as small as possible. It is best to use a small basin or ladle to scoop water and pour it down gently. The reason why many dogs hate bathing is because of the shower head and hair dryer.
3. Use dry cleaning to reduce flushing times
For dogs that really resist bathing, pet owners can try using a simple dry cleaning method to clean the dog’s body first. Dilute the body wash with water, then pour it over your dog and work it into a lather. The advantage of this method is that the dog only needs to flush once, which reduces the time the dog feels uncomfortable.
4. Wash the parts that are easily dirty first
Generally speaking, a dog’s four feet, butt and mouth are the parts of the body that are prone to getting dirty. So before taking a bath, you can wash these parts with soap first. Soap has a strong stain removal ability and is easy to rinse off. Then wash the dog's whole body with bath soap, so that it will be very clean. This eliminates the need for long-term confrontation with the dog during bathing, which is good for both humans and dogs.
Under normal circumstances, dogs do not need to be bathed every day. Since dogs’ skin doesn’t sweat as easily as humans, they don’t need to be bathed as often. Of course, there is no answer to how often a dog should take a bath. “It depends” is the best answer. Unless your dog has special needs or is directed by your veterinarian, it is not recommended to wash your dog more than once a week.
