How Often Should You Wash Your Dog?

No matter the month in the year, taking your dog out for exercise and to stretch their legs could be one of the most important things for them, and for the relationship you build with them. The summer months are obviously the best time to take your dog on a long walk or a trip to the beach, but this doesn’t mean you need to leave them inside during winter. The only problem with winter is that with the cold and the rain brings additional responsibility when looking after your dog. Namely, washing the mud, water, and bits of mother nature your dog gets in their fur.

If you’re a lover of the outdoors, taking your dog with you is always the first thought on your mind. As a companion, dogs are great company, but we all know they like to carry dirt back with them whenever they’re on a trek. And to avoid your house getting dirty and you dogs getting unwell, making sure they get a good, clean wash regularly should be one of your main concerns. How often, though, should you wash your dog? We’ve taken a look at what the best advice is for keeping your pooch clean.

What Is Best Practice?

Regardless of where your dog has been, you should be looking to wash your dog with a good dog shampoo or gentle skin human shampoo once a month. Any more could do damage to the sensitive skin of a dog, but of course, we all know that sometimes you need to wash the dog more, walks and playtime being the main reason. If you need to wash your dog regularly, make sure you’re only using water and thorough scrubbing. If your dog is susceptible to fleas you may be in the habit of washing your dog regularly, but it’s worth avoiding using dog shampoo too often.

Why Wash a Dog?

This might seem like a rather obvious question, but there are a few reasons why you should wash your dog. Firstly, and most obviously, is to keep them clean. Dogs are animals that scrounge around in muck, dirt and leaves most days, eat food from a bowl and go to the bathroom outside. These are just a few ways dogs become dirty, so they will need a wash. But there are other reasons to wash your dog.

Washing your dog can help you make sure they’re in generally good working order. As their hair will fall flat when heavy, you can check for any lumps, bumps and bruises, and whilst you’re giving them a scrub, you will notice any sore areas of their body by the loud yelp they will do if you touch a soft spot.

READ No Raw Meat Or Vegetarian Diets For Your Cats And Dogs

Washing your dog is also a great way to maintain that good relationship with your pet. Animals have likes and dislikes, too. They will like being washed, generally, and it’s good to find out what they dislike in the form of washing and playtime. They will begin to trust you more if you take care of them more.

How to Make Homemade Dog Shampoo

Dog shampoo in the store can often be expensive. Because companies know we need to take care of our pets and we want to keep them happy, they know they can charge a fortune for their products. This is just the natural way of business. However, you don’t need to always go straight to the vet or the supermarket to pick up decent dog shampoo, you can make it yourself at home.

Below is a great, easy way to make a solid dog shampoo yourself:

• Take a couple of cups of apple cider and put into your dog's bath.
• Next, find a clean, fragrance-free dish soap and add one cup on this.
• Next, take 4 cups of water and put in the bath. Determine then if you think you need one further cup.
• Add a few oz of vegetable glycerine.
• Mix before placing your dog in and washing them, making sure the soap suds are cleaned out completely before letting the dog leave.

Cleaning your dog with your own shampoo mix can be fun, cheap and just as good for the dog as over-the-counter products. Most importantly, you also know exactly what was in the mix, unlike mass-produced goods that could be harmful to your dog.

The Benefits of Homemade Shampoo

As mentioned above, one major benefit is the expense of regular shampoo. Regular shampoo can also make your dog’s skin and fur become flaky, something that usually points towards itchy and irritated patches on your dog which would then need additional mixtures to cure. Some dog shampoo boasts the same ingredients as human shampoo, yet our skin - which is stronger than a dog’s skin - is often not used to these chemicals, so how would it make sense to add them into dog shampoo? It wouldn’t, and you don’t need to.

READ 4 of the Most Common Dog Teeth Problems

Warning About Making Your Own Shampoo

Please be wary about making your own shampoo. It’s a great, cheap alternative and can often work as well, if not better than a professional brand, but you need to be wary of putting the right ratio of ingredients in and not putting your dog’s health at risk in doing so. Be wary of whether your dog has any allergies or particularly sensitive skin. Test a small amount on their leg and wait a couple of days to see if they have a reaction. It’s also worth noting that you shouldn’t press ahead with this method if you don’t feel completely comfortable.

Creating your own shampoo is a great idea when done responsibly. Washing your dog can become much cheaper and easier too. It’s a great thing to know how to do if you run out of dog shampoo and can’t rush out to the shop. If you would like to reduce your shampoo further, be sure to add more water to the initial ingredients or put less soap substance into the mixture. Going on walks with your dog no longer needs to be stressful or expensive, especially if you can make your own dog shampoo.