Cocker Specific Discussion > Grooming

Is a weekly bath ok?

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fluffykins:
Hi everyone,

I have a very active 8 month old male Cocker who enjoys the beach, mud, puddles and rolling in all sorts.

Is a weekly bath with a reputable dog shampoo okay?

Any advice greatly appreciated!

Pearly:
I wouldn’t - your dog needs the essential oils in their coat to help repel water and dirt.  The more you wash them the more you strip the coat of its oils.

The only time ours are bathed is if they are cold with mud and that’s just a warm water rinse.  Fox poo and goose poo - I do use shampoo but it’s unscented and gentle.  I have bathed one dog, once, this year post goose poo  ph34r otherwise the four of them are left alone, we are headed to mud season which means they may be swilled off after a days work.

bizzylizzy:
I very often have to rinse Humphrey’s feet and paws and sometimes his tummy as he gets very muddy, we’ve got a hose pipe set up by the back door. I do, very very occasionally bath him but don’t like using too much shampoo or anything perfumed, as Pearly says, it strips the coat of oils and as Humphrey‘s coat is fine, it flies everywhere and becomes static. Also, dogs rely heavily on scent for communication and I imagine they‘re probably not overjoyed about smelling like roses  :lol2:, I have heard others say that it encourages the dogs to roll even more in an attempt to disguise the smell  :shades:
A good brush once the coat is dry will get rid of a lot of dirt.  :D

cazza:
I have never bathed any of my dogs  :shades:

The closest I got was when Braan decided to turn from brown to green  :020: by rolling in cow pats  >:(  we were a good way from home and had a good hour car journey to get back) thankfully he was ball obsessed and I threw it into the loch for him to retrieve which cleaned him up for the car journey home

Joules:
I'd say a weekly bath is too often! It will remove the natural oils from his coat and dry out his skin to bath him that much.

If he rolls in stinky things, then maybe wash the area with a very diluted shampoo, but generally, just a rinse under the hose is best if he's just muddy.   ;)

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