Dutch Shepherd Forum

so a question about grass fed beef has turned into a discussion about dryer sheets and bathing dogs

My guys don't get bathed very often, every few months maybe (2-3 times a year). If they get muddy, I will let them run and dry in the back, if that's not enough then brush it out quickly but usually most of the dirt falls off or I might just hose them off. If it's ugly outside and they're a little muddy from a walk, I just wipe them off with a towel and throw them in the crates to dry off, then clean the crates. I will some times wipe them with a damp towel, so give them a "dry bath". That will usually get a lot of the dust/dirt off the surface. They get a bath if they get extra dirty and stinky or if I'm in one of those moods and have the time and feel like having an extra clean dog. They do feel super soft after a bath

Ripp hates baths, she pants and gets very tense so I don't want to put her through that unless it's needed. She does a pretty good job of keeping herself clean. The others don't mind and I think Athos actually enjoys being washed, he just stands there with his eyes half open.

Sugars Mom wrote:I wonder if the people that don't bathe their dogs...do they (the dogs) go swimming?

All the time! Ivil even swimms when it freezes Idiot...

I don't hang my clothes out to dry anymore. Used to, but I found out that it dries too quick (planks!) and the sun bleaches the tops of most shirts, so dryer it is for me too.

Dog bathing, not often at all. But Americans are less tolerant of dog smell than Europeans tend to be. When working my k9s at schools, you open yourself up to snarky remarks of doggie smell, even if (you think) there is none. The most prevelant thing is when the dogs get hot and come from the outside in the airconditioning. There can be a brief embarrassing smell in the transition that does not happen when they are fresly bathed. I use the rinse and swim and wipe methods myself, but contrary to popular belief: they can still smell a bit under the right/wrong circumstances. At the same time, I understand the 'my dogs don't smell' of our European members, since I have gotten dogs over from Holland that you would have to ride hom with the car windows down (not kidding!) Horrible! Compared to that, most well kept dogs don't smell (much) but it really is all relative and related to expectations, trust me.