[Mary22]

Any suggestion on how to get a dog to like a bath or water in general? The bath time process is like a nightmare! The cat comes out in her and she goes nuts!

She is a Wheaten terrier, and everything I've researched on the dog doesn't really say if they normally like water.

Thanks!

[RonE]

I don't think terriers in general are water dogs, but even some serious water dogs don't like baths.

Bathing my lab was like washing a truck - with the engine running and in gear. He wouldn't exactly fight me but, given the opportunity, he'd just kinda wander off. Usually it took me and two hungry kids to wash him.

Esther, on the other hand, LOVES her bath - a little too much.



Try to avoid things that will make her like it even less (yes, it's possible) like getting soap in her eyes. Also, how often are you bathing her? They're not like you and me. They don't need a bath every Saturday night.

[DOBERMAN_07]

My dobie H A T E S the water, but loves it after I dry him off and he cools down.

[Cassie Nova]

Cassie actually had to learn to like to swim before she learned to like baths. All I did to make her like swimming was take her to a place that had shallow water, let her sniff, and praise for any contact with the water. Then she got in, and 10 minutes later, jumped in the deep part and was swimming away! Ever since then, she hops in the bath tub on command and holds still the whole time.

Here, she's swimming happily and on her own.

[briteday]

I have used the same thing as Ron, a wading pool out back. Be sure the water isn't too awfully cold. I usually bring a bucket of hot water from inside to mix with the cold hose water. Then, when I had dogs like that, I would have one person hold the leash (attached to the dog's collar) and another person to help keep the dog in the pool while I bathed the dog.

Before you bring the dog out, keep on hand a couple of ~ 1/2 gallon plastic jugs that you can mix the shampoo in beforehand. I usually mix a couple of tablespoons of shampoo to the 1/2 gallon of water. Mix the solution first. If you do it this way, instead of putting the shampoo directly on the dog, you will get better coverage, use much less shampoo, and it will be easier to rinse out. Do the same for a conditioner application in another jug.

Just because we happen to dogsit the local neighborhood wheaten...be sure that your dog is combed out down to the skin. Any matting will result in a felted dog after washing. And I would go to one of the professional grooming stores, online or locally, to get a really great conditioner since wheatens are so prone to matting and their coat is very time consuming to keep up. Personally, IMO, if you are not showing the dog, the coat is so hard to keep in good condition...I would opt for a puppy clip on the coat.

[Mary22]

What GREAT Pics!

Actually the first 2 weeks she did have like 3 baths. I normally wouldn't do that but she had a few fleas and then she got poo all over her, then she got poo again... (sorry, but true..)

I like the wading pool idea, once it gets warmer. We have an above ground pool also. Does anyone let their dogs swim in regular pools (w/ supervision of course)?

[briteday]

The problem with above ground pools and dogs is that they can tear the liner. And an above ground pool makes a dog feel stranded and may cause panic because there are no stairs leading out of the pool that the dog can navigate. Dogs don't do ladders. I have several neighbors with in-ground pools whose dogs enjoy the pool in the nicer weather. Otherwise, I think I would have a few strategically placed wading pools around the yard for summer enjoyment.

[Mary22]

Yes, I see your points... As far as the liner, that would be tough to keep her away from the sides. Although, we do have a "floating ladder" in which you can walk up them like in the inground pools. So, I guess we'll see. I am looking forward to putting a wading pool out for sure though.

Thanks!

[RonE]

The day we brought Esther home from the shelter, my wife sent me out to get that wading pool. They are hard to find in August because they've closed them out to make room for the Christmas stuff.

I brought it home and, before I could even start filling it, Esther grabbed it and took off with it. In desperation, I squirted her in the face with the hose. Imagine my suprise when she ran up and grabbed the brass nozzle in her mouth, with the water on full blast. If I didn't know it before, I knew then that she was going to be an adventure.

Once I finally got it filled, I spent about three hours sitting in a lawn chair, pitching tennis ball into the pool from across the yard. She would dive into the pool, bob for the ball, bring it back and drop it into my lap. That's what it took to get her tired enough to actually bring her into the house for the very first time.

That picture of her in the wading pool was taken right after we'd returned from the dog park. I was laughing, along with a bunch of other people, at a dog rolling in the mud like a deranged hippo, when I realized it was my dog.

I brought her home, hooked up the hose to a pole, turned it on and waited for her to attack it. After a bit, I soaped her up (that was the only hard part) and let her back in for the rinse cycle.

On a warm day, she dries in 20 minutes instead of the five days it used to take our undercoated lab. She's nearly wash-and-wear.

[Macky]

Originally Posted by Mary22

Any suggestion on how to get a dog to like a bath or water in general? The bath time process is like a nightmare! The cat comes out in her and she goes nuts!

She is a Wheaten terrier, and everything I've researched on the dog doesn't really say if they normally like water.

Thanks!

If you are filling the tub with water this might scare her (slippery footing). Try putting a bathmat in the tub and don't use a sprayer until she settles down. Wet her down with a plastic cup, soap her up and rinse. If you use a sprayer, cup it in your hand and rub it on her body for rinsing. This feels good to them like a massage and they don't get scared of the sprayer. My boston terrier hated water! He would even tip toe if the ground was wet. It was so funny! But he loved getting his massage in the bathtub as long as the sprayer did not "spray" on him.

[Tess&Coco]

Do you want to clean her or get her to swim? I'm just getting Coco (five-month old) used to the river as the weather is getting warmer. She doesn't like to be out of her depth but goes in up to her shoulders now, after a ball thrown just a little bit further each time (starting from 1 foot from the bank where she could reach it with only her front paws in the water). This can only be done on a very gently sloping bank.

The other option is to wash her without her actually being *in* the water. We have a garden, and I take a bucket of just-warm water out there and just scoop handfuls of water all over the dogs. Then use doggy shampoo or whatever, then rinse. I was amazed at how much Coco liked it after the not-really-wanting-to-go-in-the-river experience. She does run around like a creature possessed after she gets wet though... And like Ron I have a quick-drying short-coated lab cross and one who has grown a thick undercoat and is wet for *hours*.