I need some bath advice

[Rocky's Mommy]

Hi everyone. I'm planning on giving Rocky his first bath tomorrow night and I want to make sure that I do it right! I read somewhere that he should have cotton in his ears? Is this true? Does everyone use a shampoo AND a conditioner or is just shampoo ok? I'm nervous about the first bath. I don't want him to catch cold or anything!!! Let me know if you have good bath advice! Thanks so much.

Karen

[orinskye]

i use puppy shampoo and occasionally use conditioner.....i do not put cotton in his ears, i have a spray nozzel that can be easily directed away from the head, and then i wash the head using a washcloth and puppy shampoo....

[Oscar's Mom]

When I give Oscar a bath, I make sure the bathroom is really warm. That way, when he gets out, he won't get too chilled. Try really hard not to get water in the ears. I use a puppy shampoo (tear free) on him and also a creme rinse conditioner (I use Dove Conditioner and it works really well and smells nice too but don't get on the head or face...don't want this in the eyes). I wash, rinse and condition. The last time I bathed him, I combed the conditioner thru his hair and he was much easier to brush when I got him dry! Then I wrap him in a towel and hold him a couple of minutes and let the towel pull as much of the water out of his hair as possible. My husband got me the neatest hair dryer stand for Christmas. My hair is really long (to my butt) and he thought it would be easier for me to have a hands free dryer...did not work for my hair, but I love it for Oscar. I set the dryer, get far enough away not to burn Oscar and then I can hold him and rub or brush him in the warm dryer air til he is dry. He likes it this way a lot better...not scared at all...he just thinks he is getting petted in warm air!

Good luck on washing your baby...try to make it as stress free and not scarey as possible. You don't want your baby to dread a bath...it is a necessary evil!!! Always finish with his/her favorite treat! Makes it a tasty memory as well!!!

[Connie]

One thing I do when I bathe Maddie is put a couple of towels in the dryer beforehand to warm them up, so when she is done with her bath, I wrap her in the warm towels and hold her for a while. Once when I didn't do that, she shivered so much, but seems to shiver less with the warm towels around her. I also use the tear free dog shampoo. Good luck...Rocky's going to smell so sweet!

[Chelsey]

u got good tips in the above posts, ive never thought of putting cotton in the ears before the bath to prevent water from getting in the ears so i will do that next time, i take Chelsey in the shower with me so i can hold her against me when it gets too much for her, also i keep talking to her it seems to calm her, the water should be lukewarm, i regulate the water to 36c, u can feel the water temp. better on ur own wrist like u would fix a baby bath, when we done we get out and i wrap her up in warmed up towels and keep her in there for a few minutes before i dry her, she hates the hairdryer i use conditioner while drying her, when shes dry i put her in her bathrobe and keep her there for an hour then i put on her pjamas to keep her warm and pop her into bed.

make sure the rooms are warmed up real well and keep Rocky warm, their temprature drops quickly, they are a lot smaller wen they wet, i know when i bathed Chelsey for the first time i was like oops mg: this looks like a mouse, was kinda scary to see how small she really was..... now its become routine and its a lot easier after a few times i shower her every week and wash her everyday i also brush her teeth everyday so she gets used to it, we all know that our furbabies can get bad teeth at a later stage so this way i am trying to prevent that

relax urself while ur bathing him that way u will both feel at ease and remember, u are allowed to make mistakes, we all do

Goodluck, i know ur gonna do just fine and Rocky will love the afterbath time treat


Mandy

[Rocky's Mommy]

Thanks for your advice! I guess the one thing I'm really nervous about is getting water in his little ears and not knowing that I did so. I will be really careful and hopefully I'll be able to tell!

[lickthestar]

I just throw Archie in the tub, and wash him. He's getting used to it...especially the part after the bath where he runs to the kitchen cabinet for his treat. After I take him out, I have the towels ready to dry him and then the blow dryer. I set it at a cooler setting so it feels like he's in a car with an open window. He loves it! I wish I could show you guys how he poses while getting his hair dried. Then he runs around and goes nuts and gets a good brushing.

I think bath time is a great time to bond with your yorkie, so don't be afraid to have fun. If you get really nervous, they can sense it and it's no fun for them, either. Best of luck!

[chachi]

I use sponges and kinda sponge bath him. I use the comb in conditioner too. Then I put on a doggie deodorant that makes him smell like baby powder. You can get this at petco. I liked the idea of warming the towel in the dryer. I am gonna have to try that.

[Babbie]

If the hair is not that long, conditioner might now be necessary (but it does make a difference on the shine ) I always put cotton balls in Mojo's ears, and most of the times i change 1 or 2 times during the bath...just be careful when you place the cotton ball don;t push it in too hard, it can really bother them...also you can try rubbing some mineral oil (like baby oil) on the cotton ball (i spread some oil inmy hands and rub with the cotton ball) this will prevent the cotton ball to get soaked with water since oil doesn;t mix with water....

And like was said before (you got some great tips right there) just make sure that blow dryer is not too hot and not too close to Rocky...and reward him when you;re finished...that way he can associate bathing with something pleasurable!!

Good luck and let us know how it worked out!!

[Ilovebaby]

Is blowdrying a must??? Baby hates anything that makes uneccesary noise.... she would not let me use one on her.. Instead we dry her off, then we get a new dry towel and dry some more....then we let her down and she scoots around and rolls on the floor and in 5 minutes she is dry. I can't bear to see her so scared with the noisy dryer??? Also..what happens if she gets water in her ears??

[Rocky's Mommy]

So.... Rocky is not a fan of baths and he really doesn't like the blow dryer!!! I ended up toweling him dry. He didn't want to be brushed even with treats, but I decided that I could only do so much the first time. I'll try to snag him for brushing later! He's a little pip, I tell ya

[schatzie]

Originally Posted by lickthestar

I just throw Archie in the tub, and wash him. He's getting used to it...especially the part after the bath where he runs to the kitchen cabinet for his treat. After I take him out, I have the towels ready to dry him and then the blow dryer. I set it at a cooler setting so it feels like he's in a car with an open window. He loves it! I wish I could show you guys how he poses while getting his hair dried. Then he runs around and goes nuts and gets a good brushing.

I think bath time is a great time to bond with your yorkie, so don't be afraid to have fun. If you get really nervous, they can sense it and it's no fun for them, either. Best of luck!

lickthestar I do the same exact thing you do. It is definately "bonding" time!!

[ldenise]

I LIKE THE TOWEL IN THE DRYER IDEA. THANKS!
thats what i like about this place you can get some of the best tips for every day things.
Ahia only likes the blow dryer on her when she really don't need it anymore. she runs around the room to create her own blow drying. then sits in front of the blow dryer with her head held high.

[Mydogkelsey]

Originally Posted by Connie

One thing I do when I bathe Maddie is put a couple of towels in the dryer beforehand to warm them up, so when she is done with her bath, I wrap her in the warm towels and hold her for a while. Once when I didn't do that, she shivered so much, but seems to shiver less with the warm towels around her. I also use the tear free dog shampoo. Good luck...Rocky's going to smell so sweet!

Good idea...