Not sure if Luna can still be classified as a pup but she acts like one most of the time at 15 months. Has anyone got a magic formula for bathtime? Luna hates it. I have tried hoses, buckets, wet towels (nightmare) she goes mad and cries and cries. I can't attach her lead to something as she would throttle herself. My last resort is to put her harness on and attach her in that though it would be difficult to wash her properly under it. She REALLY needs a bath as she has rolled in a rather unsavoury area of the fields and she reeks. At 22kg its not easy and probably my worse bit of being a puppy mummy!
I've stopped bathing my lab when he rolls and use Cowboy Magic Greenspot Remover instead. If it's really stinky it doesn't get rid of it 100%, but it gets rid of it enough to be tolerable and the rest fades in a few days. Of course it's a bit late for that as you need to bathe her asap, but something to consider for the future I just spritz it on a towel and rub it in, he actually really enjoys it, it's like a massage Hopefully someone has some insight for you - would a watering can be any better? I think I recall some members having luck with that, but I've never tried it personally.
Ooo a watering can is a good idea and I will have a look at the Cowboy Magic Greenspot Remover. I just tried her with the harness, she was just as upset but I wasn't so worried she would hurt herself so that's something. I have given her a pigs ear to cheer her up!
We give Bailey a plastic duck that he is allowed to hold while we use the shower attachment on him - he is only allowed the duck while having a shower (he regularly rolls in stuff I REALLY don't want to think about!) but our advantage is that he absolutely LOVES being towel dried....and that is his treat at the end of it all!
I took Duggan into the tub with me once. He loved it. Now he wants in everytime someone uses the tub so we got him a small toddlers swimming pool and use that for rinsing off the bad stuff. We put a kettle of hot water in to make it warmer. He really hates the cold water from the tap. Sometimes he'll take himself in and clean his own feet after romping in the mud after a rain.
Can you just take swimming instead. They come out nice and clean, especially if you can use sea water followed by fresh. Ours are such water dogs that spraying them with a hose is is fine with them. (Cooper is the dog that hates being brushed, but hoses are fine. Go Figure) On the rare occasions that we bath our dogs, we just take them in the shower with us, but they don't object to a bath too much, so it is not hard.
I would take her swimming instead and see if that does the trick Axel comes out soooo soft and shiny after a swim in the lake
Sparky was really afraid the first couple of times trying to bathe him. We started bringing him to the groomers so he can get used to that kind of situation and they said he is an absolute dear. We bathed him the other day and he took it like a champ.
We used to lift Lilly into the bath, with a rubber bath mat, and she always looked so dejected, but didn't try to scramble out too often. The problem was getting her dried afterwards without a complete soaking of persons and bathroom. The wet wasn't awful, but mixed with dog hair, no...... We slowly introduced the shower cabinet to Lilly after that, but it took time. Initially she didn't like it and we lifted her in then shut the door with us (either nekkid, or wearing undies/cossie ) and used a regular stream of treats, with the shower on but directed to a wall, and only using a low flow and minimum amount of actual showering time. We just built it up over time. She will now voluntarily step in the shower if you take a handful of treats in. Now the beauty of this for me, is that the mess is all contained. We do the wetting, the shampooing, the rinsing, have a "shake" on cue, a towel dry, then pop on a hotter-dog fleece before releasing her out the shower cabinet. Keeps all the mess in the cabinet, and allows us to just shower ourselves and the cabinet down afterwards. Honestly, we were in the exact same situation as you around Luna's age. We also took Lilly to hydrotherapy swimming around that time and strangely, showering there was less of an issue. Not so the blow drying after . But just like the showering, little bits at a time and she got used to it. Now, you can tell, she loves it - arches her back the way they do when you have "that spot" And I think, as they get older, they do less rolling....famous last words......
If I can, I take Harley for a swim as it gets most things off, but on the odd occasion I can't, she comes in the shower with me. She hates the hose and buckets of water, but will happily go in her paddling pool to wash her legs off, but won't lie in it or let me rinse her off in there!
Does she like water at other times? Do you have anywhere close by to take her for a swim? Or an outside space for a paddling pool? We've got a cheep blow up kiddies one (which has lasted ages) Homer will go in for a wallow which rinses him off.
Minstrel our 5 year old chocolate lab does not realise she is a lab as she is scared of water!!! She even used to be frightened and freak out over puddles! This was a big surprise to us as our previous lab absolutely loved water, she loved to swim and relished dirty water. We use foam on Minstrel if she gets dirty. She still walks around puddles and puts her breaks on if we try to get her to walk through. So we have never resolved her water phobia and just accept that it is part of her character. Lisa x
@Sophiathesnowfairy I don't bath my dogs and only do a spot wash with Animalogy Fox Poo Shampoo for those much needed clean ups. I use a watering can with warm water as it's a much gentler sprinkle rather than a gush which might be frightening. Charlie gets a constant stream of Primula cheese to distract him from his shampoo and set! Works for us. Hattie was trained not to roll thankfully! xx
Ella is the complete opposite! Happy to be brushed but won't go near the hose! She will happily have a bath though...
We live by the sea so i could take her in, if she weren't afraid of the waves!! However I do a bit of open water swimming in the summer so i was thinking about taking her in with me.
I, like @charlie, do a spot clean with Animalogy Fox Poo shampoo. I dampen the area first with a cloth, then clean with the shampoo and then rinse a few times with a wet cloth. Then towel dry. I've only used a hose once and she didn't like it and I got soaked! She is totally fine with the above method and seems to particularly like the towel rub
