# Bath = zOMG...You're trying to KILL me!!! LOL



## packetsmom (Mar 21, 2013)

Sam is not a fan of baths. His first bath, he tried to climb up my shoulder and hide in my hair, whining and crying as if I meant to KILL the poor guy. I chalked it up to puppiness and hoped that it would improve with subsequent baths. Alas, it has not and as he gets bigger, it's on my list of behaviors that we have to get a handle on before he's bigger than us. 

*The current setup:*
I bathe him in our bathtub, starting the water and making everything is arranged BEFORE going to get him. I make sure it's warm, not hot and leave it running when I put him in the tub. The drain is open, so it never fills up, but he feet do get wet. I use a pitcher to pour the water over him and make it as quick and business-like as possible, using as little soap as possible. He gets a bath about once per week, whenever he gets stinky.

*What we've tried so far:*
First bath, I had dd help and try to distract him and tried to do a very limited cleaning. Second bath, we tried dh distracting him with cheese. That sort of worked but it took forever for me to get the shredded cheese scraps out of the tub AND he still was a handful, just a little less bad. The third bath, I had both kids attempt to distract him, but no treats and he was really tough to keep in the tub.

I'm thinking about having several "buckets" or pitchers filled and the water off next time and trying a different treat to distract him. Any other ideas?


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## SydTheSpaniel (Feb 12, 2011)

When I had Lunetta, she hated baths so much. She screamed bloody murder and scratched my arms up really bad. I soon learned that having the faucet turned off made her calmer, I also went very slow the next time, letting her stand in the water for a few minutes without doing anything but holding her gently until she got used to it.


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## WonderBreadDots (Jun 26, 2012)

I use this sprayer for giving my dogs baths: http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=15468666

The advantage is it is only connected to the shower head when you need to use it, the water is always on but not running in the tub and making "scary" noise. I actually have the attachment on every shower head in my house because it makes cleaning the tubs and showers on cleaning day really easy. You can get a less fancy version of the sprayer at hardware store.


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## packetsmom (Mar 21, 2013)

SydTheSpaniel said:


> When I had Lunetta, she hated baths so much. She screamed bloody murder and scratched my arms up really bad. I soon learned that having the faucet turned off made her calmer, I also went very slow the next time, letting her stand in the water for a few minutes without doing anything but holding her gently until she got used to it.


That's a good idea, too. Maybe instead of rushing to try to get the "unpleasant" experience over for him sooner, we should slow down and let him kind of take it each one step at a time. I wonder if maybe getting him more used to water without the rest of the bathing part might help as well, like putting him in the tub with a little warm water and just playing a bit in there now and then and not doing a full-blown bath, between baths? Hmmmm...thank you for the thoughts!


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## jax's_mommy (Oct 13, 2012)

SydTheSpaniel said:


> When I had Lunetta, she hated baths so much. She screamed bloody murder and scratched my arms up really bad. I soon learned that having the faucet turned off made her calmer, I also went very slow the next time, letting her stand in the water for a few minutes without doing anything but holding her gently until she got used to it.


I do this for Jax. His first bath was in a sink with the water running (he was less than 2 lbs) that didnt work so well. He freaked and yelped like I was killing him, our female cat even came to check on him lol After that, changed to doing this ^^ and its been better since


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## packetsmom (Mar 21, 2013)

WonderBreadDots said:


> I use this sprayer for giving my dogs baths: http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=15468666
> 
> The advantage is it is only connected to the shower head when you need to use it, the water is always on but not running in the tub and making "scary" noise. I actually have the attachment on every shower head in my house because it makes cleaning the tubs and showers on cleaning day really easy. You can get a less fancy version of the sprayer at hardware store.


I've been thinking about getting one of those. We'd need to switch to one of the other tubs, since our big tub doesn't have a shower as part of it, but that could be doable.


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## packetsmom (Mar 21, 2013)

jax's_mommy said:


> I do this for Jax. His first bath was in a sink with the water running (he was less than 2 lbs) that didnt work so well. He freaked and yelped like I was killing him, our female cat even came to check on him lol After that, changed to doing this ^^ and its been better since


Yeah...Sam doesn't cry when I put him in his crate. He could have cared less about the vet giving him shots. But the bath? OMG...you would think we were inviting some new torture device from the way the poor little guy cries. It was so pitiful the way he tried to crawl up into my hair to hide from the warm bathwater!

Lab mix my butt!


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## CptJack (Jun 3, 2012)

If he'll eat in there, smear peanut butter on the wall. Also, maybe introduce that concept without the water - then just with water running, etc. Basic desensitization.


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## Flaming (Feb 2, 2013)

Before Manna learned to enjoy water (I know weird water dog hated water)
we would lure her in the dry tub with treats and basically stuff her then let her out.
then started with a little water in the tub (with rubber mat to prevent slippage) stuff with treats, let out
a little water and have one person pour a little water over her with a jug while stuffing her with treats.

then she grew out of it and now jumps in to ask for a bath.

edit: don't expect the grow out of it because that's Manna's individual experience. 
for any other dog I would slowly work up to the full bath and slowly reduce treats once the dog seems more comfortable


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## Milo's mom (Oct 25, 2009)

Maybe try using a sponge to make it feel more like his mom is licking him to clean him? And maybe try cotton balls in his ears, they hate to get water into them.
I use this system: http://www.amazon.com/Rapid-Bath-Advanced-Bathing-System/dp/B003QJ1WXG


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## ireth0 (Feb 11, 2013)

Putting a towel down in the tub can also help give them a more secure footing, which could help him to be more calm. (not feeling like he's always about to fall over)


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## Curbside Prophet (Apr 28, 2006)

How about showering with your dog? Perhaps the shower is less anxiety producing. Regardless, I agree with baby steps with lots of rewards. Starting from just standing in the tub one day, running a little water the next or when he's okay with the previous step, so and so forth. There's really no rushing it.


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## Greater Swiss (Jun 7, 2011)

CptJack said:


> If he'll eat in there, smear peanut butter on the wall. Also, maybe introduce that concept without the water - then just with water running, etc. Basic desensitization.


We did the slow desensitization version with Caeda. First we got her sitting in the tub (Actually, we taught her to get in herself), got her to sit, and then got water running, got her to turn around facing it, facing away etc. Finally I started with the removable shower head and gave her treats constantly while I washed her down (my DH helped a lot....spare unsoapy hands!). For a while I used to spray her down after every walk (no soap, just water) because she would get muddy. Eventually she got to the point that she would hop in the tub as soon as we got back  Only one or two treats during the entire process by then. I did the same thing with the hairdrier, so I could blow her dry afterwards too. She isn't getting as many baths now since our walks aren't as muddy, so she needs a few more treats to coax her....but she's still pretty good!


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## SydTheSpaniel (Feb 12, 2011)

Curbside Prophet said:


> How about showering with your dog? Perhaps the shower is less anxiety producing. Regardless, I agree with baby steps with lots of rewards. Starting from just standing in the tub one day, running a little water the next or when he's okay with the previous step, so and so forth. There's really no rushing it.


I do this! I sometimes just take Sydney in the shower with me, kills two birds with one stone.


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## w8ing4rain (Sep 4, 2008)

I find that using a sprayer works better. You don't necessarily need a shower head. I have a sprayer that fits on the tub faucet.


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## Graco22 (Jul 16, 2007)

Get a sprayer for the faucet, and teach the stay command. Sounds like he has had plenty of baths, and is now just being naughty cause he can. Tell him to stop it, and be matter of fact about the process. Its water, not acid. When you get firm, he will realize its not a time to act up, and behave himself.


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