Hi there. When I first got Mandie, it was a constant battle to clean and groom her face. I totally understand what you are going thru. What I did was little bits at a time and gave a lot of praise and treats.
Before I tell you my routine, I want to say that use tearless puppy shampoo on the face. It is fine to clean around the eyes..it won't burn his eyes if you use the tearless.
For baths (I still do this because Mandie freaks out with water around her nose):
Have a cup of luke warm water already, have a wet wash cloth already soaped up with tearless shampoo before you even get Jinx to the tub/sink. Cup your hand around his eyes, holding his ears down to keep the water from going in his ears and pour the cup of water over the top/back of his head (don't let it go down the front over his nose). Then use the wash cloth, wet and soapy to wash his nose and around his head and eyes. Use the wash cloth over and over again (rinse well) to rinse out the soap. Using the wash cloth, you can clean well around the nose and corners of the eyes.
When brushing/combing/ grooming:
I recommend the right tools. Get you a Madan Pin Brush (trust me, it matters...I went thru several before finding this out) and a Madan mustache comb (it has wider teeth on one side and close teeth on the other). Again, use a damp wash cloth and wipe around the corners of his eyes. If he won't let you wipe, just moisten the goop with the wet wash cloth.
So, here's what I did:
Wet and wipe. Stop - treat, praise praise. Wet and wipe other side. Stop - treat, praise, praise. Use wide side of comb and do one side of mustache. Stop - treat, praise praise. Other side of mustache. Stop, praise praise. Then, the fine side of the comb. Yep, one side at a time..treat..praise.
If you have a take a break and let him run around, do it. Also, try to catch him when he's tired from playing and about to go to sleep. Some say it helps to do it when they are sleepy. Never made a difference with Mandie..it just woke her up and she was raring to go.
Basics is little spurts, use a damp wash cloth, tearless shampoo for baths, and a Madan mustache comb for the face is a must have. That fine side, catches any goopies.
