So dirty, but trying not to over-do it!

[Lightplum]

I absolutely second this sentiment. I would never leave my puppy or dog dirty. I have also never found that dirt "just falls off" white fur or anywhere else, whether or not they are being shown. When they're truly dirty -- down to the skin dirty in anything nasty -- nothing substitutes for a bath. And even older dogs can get messy in crates, for various reasons such as upset stomachs!

agree! Its that grimy feeling they get from the dirt, and even with the adults in mud season, I can look at them and go ohhh that is definitely not drying up and coming off without assistance of a hose/bath

All mine no matter what they are doing if they dont get a bath every 2 months they are getting one. Its just much healthier for their coat to get all that grime outta there..and besides they tend to get that doggy smell after say 6 weeks..I dont do that smell especially with 6 dogs in the house, im anal about clean!

and aahhhh yes those wonderful "surprises" in the crate from upset stomachs

 

[Lysette85]

Both my pups constantly get compliments like "I've never seen whites that white on a dog before...you must have just bathed them." This is never the case. Both my dogs will go running through the mud at the dog park, dig through it at the lakeshore, and get stinky walking in low tide waters. However, as soon as they are dry-they do somehow manage to get their whites pure white again-and they don't wash themselves like a cat...I'll be at the dog park for several hours and they'll literally transform before my eyes from being muddy up to the chest to dry and sparkling white within an hour. I don't know how they do it but I hope it stays that way! And I have 2 different coated dogs-a silky very plush bi black and a coarser, thinner coated sable. The only times I wash my dogs are if they get "poopy pants", weekly private area washing to get urine out of the coat, or every 4-6 months I'll give them a full bath. Other than that it's regular grooming and dirt/water resistant coats that keeps them looking freshly bathed and smell-free. Shelties' coats are supposed to drop dirt as they dry-they are a working dog that wasn't meant to be manicured and bathed back in the day..do their coats are supposed to drop dirt aren't they?

As for puppies-yes mine got bathed every 2 weeks if necessary. Partly BC it was so fast and easy, I wanted to get them used to water, grooming, hair dryer, etc. But even as pups they didn't retain dirt very well..but they weren't waterproof as pups with those puppy coats. Weekly bathing on a puppy's sensitive skin is not recommended-regardless of the shampoo. I'd just use water if its really necessary.

 

[Justicemom]

Both my pups constantly get compliments like "I've never seen whites that white on a dog before...you must have just bathed them." This is never the case. Both my dogs will go running through the mud at the dog park, dig through it at the lakeshore, and get stinky walking in low tide waters. However, as soon as they are dry-they do somehow manage to get their whites pure white again-and they don't wash themselves like a cat...I'll be at the dog park for several hours and they'll literally transform before my eyes from being muddy up to the chest to dry and sparkling white within an hour. I don't know how they do it but I hope it stays that way! And I have 2 different coated dogs-a silky very plush bi black and a coarser, thinner coated sable. The only times I wash my dogs are if they get "poopy pants", weekly private area washing to get urine out of the coat, or every 4-6 months I'll give them a full bath. Other than that it's regular grooming and dirt/water resistant coats that keeps them looking freshly bathed and smell-free. Shelties' coats are supposed to drop dirt as they dry-they are a working dog that wasn't meant to be manicured and bathed back in the day..do their coats are supposed to drop dirt aren't they?

As for puppies-yes mine got bathed every 2 weeks if necessary. Partly BC it was so fast and easy, I wanted to get them used to water, grooming, hair dryer, etc. But even as pups they didn't retain dirt very well..but they weren't waterproof as pups with those puppy coats. Weekly bathing on a puppy's sensitive skin is not recommended-regardless of the shampoo. I'd just use water if its really necessary.

Of course the big chunks drop off. Diva was playing outside during a rain storm with Grizz and in the end she was no longer a Tri but a black sheltie. Seriously you could not see 1 speck of white on her. Put her in the kennel to dry and in 1 hour all the dirt was on the bottom on the kennel. Brushed her out and she looked pretty darn good. Does that mean she was clean and didn't have mirco grit on her skin. No.

I wasn't compelled to give her a bath that day as I was rather busy and it wasn't an emergency but after a week of playing in the mud. Yep she needed a bath. I really can't tell you that number of dogs that I use to see in practice with skin infections, seborrhea, danduff, hot spots just because they were not kept clean.Over time that dirt is going to irritate the skin.

I use to practice in SD where people had actual working/herding dogs Border collies and ACD mostly from generations and generations of working stock and their skin and coats were always a mess(infections ,missing hair, wounds, scrapes etc) and smelled like they just rolled in a pile of dung. If that is what you want in your house more power to you.

 

[Lysette85]

Right, I think the baths mine get every 3-4 months takes care of any risk of developing a skin problem. Mine don't normally play in conditions where they get soaked head to toe but if they get really muddy there's usually a place nearby for them to run through water really quick to get most if it off. Mine are due for a bath next month but their coats have the texture of being just bathed, maybe BC I groom them well enough and often. But they also don't have their full coats at just 1 year old. They havent shed hardly at all.

 

[Jess041]

Thanks for all the replies. I was asking mostly about puppies, especially since Missy doesn't have her adult coat or guard hairs yet. But input about adult coats is helpful too, so I won't have to ask a few months from now .

A couple times, I did just brush the dirt out, and she looked fine. But there have also been a couple times when she got so dirty, that no matter what I did besides bathing, she was very "dingy" looking. When I did give her a bath (with one of those spray hoses you attach to the shower head) there was a stream of brown, dirty water going down the drain . Luckily there have been no accidents in the crate, but if that was the case, she would be getting a bath then too!

Dr. Shelli- thanks for addressing my concerns about skin issues with dirt getting trapped! Like my thread title mentions, I'm trying not to over-do the bathing and cause dry skin and irritation because it's stripping her skin of the natural oils, but I also don't want to cause dry skin and irritation from dirt or whatever else she's picking up at the park! I'm using a puppy shampoo and conditioner, plus spray in conditioner/detangler when I brush her.

 

[Lightplum]

Thanks for all the replies. I was asking mostly about puppies, especially since Missy doesn't have her adult coat or guard hairs yet. But input about adult coats is helpful too, so I won't have to ask a few months from now .

A couple times, I did just brush the dirt out, and she looked fine. But there have also been a couple times when she got so dirty, that no matter what I did besides bathing, she was very "dingy" looking. When I did give her a bath (with one of those spray hoses you attach to the shower head) there was a stream of brown, dirty water going down the drain . Luckily there have been no accidents in the crate, but if that was the case, she would be getting a bath then too!

Dr. Shelli- thanks for addressing my concerns about skin issues with dirt getting trapped! Like my thread title mentions, I'm trying not to over-do the bathing and cause dry skin and irritation because it's stripping her skin of the natural oils, but I also don't want to cause dry skin and irritation from dirt or whatever else she's picking up at the park! I'm using a puppy shampoo and conditioner, plus spray in conditioner/detangler when I brush her.

Sounds like you got a good plan there that is working well!!! Wouldn't change a thing!!!

 

[BarbV]

I absolutely second this sentiment. I would never leave my puppy or dog dirty. I have also never found that dirt "just falls off" white fur or anywhere else, whether or not they are being shown. When they're truly dirty -- down to the skin dirty in anything nasty -- nothing substitutes for a bath. And even older dogs can get messy in crates, for various reasons such as upset stomachs!

Oh, for heavens sake! Did I ever suggest that you leave your dog dirty and wallowing in dirt? Absolutely not!

But I can attest to to dogs in mud puddles. Up at the cottage, we have an underground stream that runs down behind the cottage. Bacca thinks that the mud in the water must create extra fiber or something because he insists on standing in this mudpool and drinking this stagnant water.

When he comes out, of course, he is covered with mud. I towel him down and a few flicks of a brush once his fur is dry and its gone. Truly! The only time I resort to a full bath is if I don't have time for the fur to dry outside.

For sure, bringing in a wet and soggy pup is a disaster. But if you have the luxory of getting them to dry out outside, the dirt really does fall out easily. I swear this to be true. If it wasn't I would be bathing the dogs every week.

 

[Lysette85]

Oh, for heavens sake! Did I ever suggest that you leave your dog dirty and wallowing in dirt? Absolutely not!

But I can attest to to dogs in mud puddles. Up at the cottage, we have an underground stream that runs down behind the cottage. Bacca thinks that the mud in the water must create extra fiber or something because he insists on standing in this mudpool and drinking this stagnant water.

When he comes out, of course, he is covered with mud. I towel him down and a few flicks of a brush once his fur is dry and its gone. Truly! The only time I resort to a full bath is if I don't have time for the fur to dry outside.

For sure, bringing in a wet and soggy pup is a disaster. But if you have the luxory of getting them to dry out outside, the dirt really does fall out easily. I swear this to be true. If it wasn't I would be bathing the dogs every week.

Barb I agree! Back when C and LB were younger I remember posting on here about bathing them too much and you were one of the people that told me that shelties are "waterproof". I didn't know what to think at first, but I gave it a shot and sure enough-my boys dry off with one good shake! This was not as much the case when they were less than 6 months old-with all that plush puppy fur. Also, when you have a new puppy, you're more inclined to hurry up and get them a bath because it's a new "baby" and you want to keep them looking new haha.

I took my boys out off leash for 3 hours yesterday at the park. A good hour and a half of it was them playing fetch at a ball field-half red clay, half grass. And let me tell you-after just 20 minutes, my dogs were stained and filthy up to their chins from running in the clay puddles and tumbling over each other running. For the second half, they ran around in a non-wet part of the park and by the time we got back to the car, you never would have known how dirty they were. This is them today-haven't run a brush through them in about 5 days, and they've gone hiking with me through the mud and dirt every day. Not bad eh?



If the dirt didn't fall off, the dog washing fairy must have gotten to them without me seeing because they are sparkling clean by the time they are dry. Thank goodness too! Because it takes me at least 30 minutes to bathe each dog because of how effective their coats are at repelling moisture.

 

[BarbV]

Well, thank you! I feel somewhat better now. I was starting to imagine that I was the only one whose dogs didn't stay dirty....and was I dreaming it up?

I do swear its true. Let the mud dry, either by air or by towel, and their white paws will be white again! I don't mind them tracking a little of it into the house. Easier to sweep or vacuum than wash and dry a dog! Truly!

I even found that when they run through fresh cut grass and their feet turn green, even that disappears after a few hours.

The only time I really feel the need to bath my dogs is when their coat texture starts to feel sticky or they lose their sheen. To me this means a build up of conditioners/detanglers/leave-in shampoos. Or 3-4 months has gone by and its just time.

And yes, I have hosed the dogs down at the cottage when they have been really rolling in the mud, but its a hose down only. The only time I had to do full bathes was the time that Indy decided that goose poo was really neat to roll in!

 

[Jess041]

Barb- don't worry, I'm sure when Missy's adult coat is in, the dirt will come off easily!

Yesterday we went to the dog park, and there was a boxer mix puppy that Missy played with for about an hour. They were very dirty afterwards! Surprisingly, about 80% of the dirt came off on its own, and I was able to brush/comb most of the remaining dirt out of her coat. Her collar is still a little dingy, but it's not terrible. I didn't have time to do the whole bathtime routine last night so I figured I'd wait to see what happened and if she really needed it, I'd do it tonight. And I'm glad I waited, because it rained this afternoon and she would've gotten dirty all over again! Also, I'm glad I got a seat cover for my car because it was covered in dirt!