Advice on Bathing an 85 lb. dirty doodle

[Debbie and Thomas]

This is probably a dumb question but I have never bathed Thomas yet. He goes to the groomer for his baths when he needs to be trimmed. They are booked for 3 weeks and I do not want to try a new groomer at this point after hearing all of the horror stories. We really don't want his hair cut as it is all shaggy and cute right now. But he needs a bath for his Christmas card photo. His beard is kind of gross and smelly at the moment. What is the procedure?? Do I shampoo and rinse him, let him dry and then brush him OR should I brush him before he gets wet, then just towel him dry? Or shud I brush him when he is wet and let him dry? I don't think he would like it if I use the blow dryer on him so is it OK to towel dry him and then let him air dry? Oh yeah, is it bad to use people shampoo and cream rinse? Any advice will be appreciated as we will attempt this "operation" tomorrow.

[Sandy]

Is there an Animazing near you? I hear they are great - they advertise a 15 minute bath, and you stay and watch the whole thing.

[Debbie and Thomas]

I just checked for "Animazing" and they have one in Burlington, Hamilton and Kitchener but none in the GTA. That would have been perfect! Thks Sandy.

[Suzanne & Jack]

Jack is a big boy and I dread bathing him at home also. We've used the self wash at Petco and also Pet Supplies Plus. Both are super convenient. If you can't find a self wash, here are a few tips. I use a large plastic pitcher in the bathtub. Don't have the water too warm. They don't like the water as warm as we do. It also helps if you dilute the shampoo with water in a spray bottle. By using the spray bottle (except on the face) you can lather a lot easier.

[Debbie and Thomas]

We do not have PETCO here in Canada, but we do have Petsmart. I have decided to take the boy into the shower tomorrow and get this deed done!! I will go to Petsmart and buy some lovely shampoo and creme rinse and I will take some pictures of this procedure to share with you. This should be interesting. Thks for the advice everyone.

[Zoey's Inspirations]

Zoey is over 100 pounds and does not like baths. I have to get in the tub with her, just to keep her there. I have found the oatmeal shampoo (vanilla scented) keeps her from getting itchy. Zoey doesn't like it when I use the hair dryer on myself so I let her air/towel dry. Although she prefers rolling on the dirty ground to dry off. I wish we had a pet store to go bathe at and then Zoey could pick out a new toy when she's done, how fun!
Good luck on your first Doodle bath. You can do it!
:)

[Debbie and Thomas]

Well I said I was going to do it today-BUT it is absolutely pouring rain here in Toronto- I think I even hear thunder! Last year at this time(we brought Thomas home @ 8 weeks old on Nov. 25th) we had almost 2 ft. of snow and below minus temp. Today was 50 degrees here (or 10 degrees celcius). NOT that I am complaining though. I will definitely do the bath on Saturday though when I have some help and will use all of the tips I received here.