Before starting to bathe the dog, carefully check its coat and skin.  The coat must be free from tangles and mat.  Sometimes, tangles and mats are hard to undo or remove.  There are times when you will need to cut them off with scissors or use a de-matting comb.  Check their skin for any wounds or cuts.  If there are any and are still fresh, don’t bathe them yet.  Allow the wound to heal or be covered with crust.  Usually, it will only take a few days.  While checking on the coat and skin, you should also notice if the dog has mites or fleas especially near the ears.  To help get rid of fleas and mites, there are good dog shampoos that eliminate them.  As a preventive measure, it is best to use that in dog bathing even if you don’t see any of those crawling insects.  It actually helps keep the dog from being infected.

If the dog is used to bathing in a tub, it is sometimes better to do so.  Dogs don’t usually shake off water when they’re still in it.  For bathing dogs with the use of a handheld sprayer, be prepared when they shake off the water.  When applying dog shampoo, take extra care not to get them into the eyes and ears.  If the dog has a thin fur coat it should be easy to massage the shampoo on the entire body.  For thick and long haired coats gentle strokes are needed to avoid entangling the fur.

Be sure that before dog bathing you have the dog’s towel prepared.  If the bathing is done outdoors, the dog should be on a leash so she won’t run away during or after bathing.  After bathing, allow the dog to shake off a couple off times.  It is one way for them to make sure water does not drip inside their ears.  Then rub them with the towel after shaking off.  The designated place for the dogs to dry off should be clean and afterwards, finish the job with a good blower. It is also healthier to dry off the dogs under the sun than blow drying.

Related posts:

1. Dog Bathing Essentials
2. Bathing a Dog; Some Tips For Dog Bathing
3. Do it Yourself Dog Grooming – You Can Do It!