We all know that most dogs aren’t big fans of bath time but the good news is you can make it a little easier for one of you at least. We take our dog Zuma to Old Town Doggie Wash in Alexandria when it’s time to give him a bath. I’m a huge fan of doggie self washes because it is so much easier than trying to bathe your dog in your tub at home. Most will supply you with shampoo, towels, and of course a tub to use – you just have to bring your own dog!

Here is a step by step guide on how to give your dog a bath. While these were written for bringing your dog to a doggie self wash, you can easily adapt them to bathing your dog at home.

1. You should never leave your dog unattended in the tub so make sure you have everything you need close by before you get started such as towels, shampoo, conditioner, brush or comb if you’re using one, and lots of treats to reward good bath time behavior.

2. You want to lift your dog into the tub by placing one hand in front of the legs near the chest area, the other hand behind the rear legs, and lift with your knees, never with your back. Many self washes will have tubs with a ramp for larger dogs so you don’t have to lift them.

3. Start to wet down your dog using warm water (be sure to test the temperature first!). The best place to start is the back of the neck, then work your way down the back, along the sides, down the back legs, the tail, and between the legs. Then start working back the other way, wetting down the belly, chest, and down the front legs. I always do the head last because that seems to be the part most dogs really don’t like. When you wet the head, be VERY careful not to get any water in the ears. You always want to keep the ears down and also try to avoid the eyes. You’ll just want to wet down the muzzle, cheeks, and beard. Alternatively, you could skip the head and face and just gently wash it with a wash cloth later.

4. Now that the dog is completely wet, it’s time to start shampooing. To conserve water, be sure to turn it off while you are shampooing. I usually start by just squeezing a line of shampoo starting at the back of the neck, down the back, to the base of the tail. You then want to start lathering up the shampoo in the same way that you wet down the dog, starting at the back of the neck, working down the back, sides, back legs, tail, rear end, between the legs, and then the belly, chest, and down the front legs. Add more shampoo as needed. You’ll then want to go over the whole body and really massage the shampoo in to break up any dirt. You want to pay special attention to the legs, feet, and belly.  Most people only shampoo the top of the back and miss these areas but it’s important to clean them because those are the closest to the ground and tend to be the dirtiest. Lastly, you’ll want to wash the face. Again, be sure to avoid the eyes and not get any water in the ears. If you want to use a wash cloth, just put a little shampoo lather on it, and gently wipe the muzzle, cheeks, and beard.

5. After shampooing, it’s time to rinse. Follow the same directions as when you wet your dog down making sure to completely rinse off all the shampoo. Remember to always work from the top down so the shampoo doesn’t run into where you already rinsed. Make sure to feel with your hand that all the shampoo is being rinsed off as you never want to leave shampoo on your dog. Don’t forget to pay special attention not to get any water in the ears.

6. Lastly, you’ll want to dry your dog. Start with a clean dry towel and dry off the head, beard, cheeks, and muzzle by massaging the area with the towel. Next dry the ears and underneath the ears. Then work your way down the back, sides, legs, tail, chest, and belly. You may need 2-3 towels to make sure your dog is well dried. Now I usually just towel dry my dog and leave it at that but some self washes will have a forced air dryer you can use if you want that will really dry your dog and blow out any dead coat. If you do use the forced air dryer, be very careful to never get the air stream near the eyes, nose, or mouth. You want to start at the back of the neck and work your way down, avoiding the head.

All you have to is follow these six easy steps and you’ll have a clean dog in no time… well at least until your next trip to the dog park.

Some of the doggie self washes in the area are: Old Town Doggie Wash, The Muddy Mutt, and aka spot.  If you know of others, please post them in the comments!

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The Arlington Pet Guru is written by Amanda Carlson, a professional dog walker, pet sitter, and pack leader of Amanda’s Pet Care in Arlington, VA. www.amandaspetcare.com