Shampoo

[martina mckeag]

For all of you that wash and groom your own dogs can I ask what is the best shampoo to use on our beautiful reds

[eva ciechonska]

Oh priceless...........lol!!

[Sue Paterson]

Tomato ketchup does work on fox poo etc...very messy but effective!

[eva ciechonska]

Tracy, I have never found Fairy Liquid dries the coat but then I have never bathed my dogs multiple times a week but I have certainly bathed them before each show.  I use it in a diluted form and I do condition the coat.  I am sure most exhibitors put oils into the feathering of male Setters to keep it from breaking.  Well Fairy Liquid cleans this off perfectly and leaves it squeaky clean with a lovely sheen.  It also cuts through grease (as in marrow bones etc).  I have used many dog shampoos over the years and whether expensive or cheap I have found them to be much of a muchness. 

Modern day shampoos have many additives which coat the hair shaft.  You need, periodically, to use a product which strips off the coating or it will in itself cause the hair to break.  Fairy Liquid does a very good job of cutting through the build-up..  I am not advocating constant use but you cannot beat it for leaving the skin and coat completely clean.  As I said before, bugs don't like it either!!!

I was told years ago by a hairdresser that it is not the shampoo but the conditioner which makes the difference.  Many pet groomers use washing up liquid on dogs that come in really disgusting and grimey.  I have a friend who dilutes it into a shampoo bottle and no one is ever the wiser.  She swears by it.

Do exhibitors in the US bath their dogs multiple times a week or just before each show?  Do you think that might cause the coat to dry out rather than the product?

[eva ciechonska]

I think if you bathe your dogs up to twice a week then you might find washing-up liquid too much, even as a dilution.  Maybe every 2nd or third time, just to clean off residue and to refresh the coat would be better. 

I don't know if you can get Plush Puppy in the US, I believe they are an Australian company.  Many IS exhibitors in the UK use them and they are very good.  They do everything from shampoos and conditioners to preparation and maintenance products.  Very much worth a try.

[Elizabeth Ball]

I don't show Bella as I don't think either of us have the temperament for it (!) but I do use Plush Puppy Henna Shampoo and and the Silk Protein Conditioner as they were recommended to me by someone with gorgeous shiny ISs.  They smell lovely and they rinse out really easily.  They have a whole range of other styling and finishing products, some of which I also use, but I have nothing to compare them to as they are the only ones I have tried so far.

 

 

[Sue and Cash]

I agree that it is all about the conditioning.  For me that is the most important part of the bath, and you can just rinse a dog off and condition them if they are swimming daily rather than wash them everytime.  I know the lake we use is dirty and I would do a quick rinse with some conditioning to sheet that off the coat.  It just slides the dirt right off.

[Melinda Auld]

I use one called Biovite OB.  It comes in a concentrated form, and you dilute it.  It smells great, and lathers up nicely.

[Angela Roberts]

I know someone who always used Fairy liquid on his own hair daily and his hair was lovely.  He was an agricultural engineer and spent every day underneath farm vehicles and so his hair was always covered in oil and the Fairy got that out easily.  Only Fairy original in those days, no fancy smelling ones. It hasn't harmed his hair either as I still see him occasionally now and he has a full head of hair. I have never compared the ingredients of washing up liquid to shampoo, wonder if they are similar?

 

[silvia]

i guess there are so many chemicals in washing up liquid.. I woudnt be keen to put it on my skin so often..my hands are so bad, because I dont bother using gloves when I do the dish... makes sense to use shampoo instead? but i see the point made by some of you, that antiflea shampoos are so aggressive anyway.. argh :)

[eva ciechonska]

Silvia, I take your point but please give me a shampoo or conditioner without chemicals..........we live in a chemical world and not all of them are harsh or harmful.  We assume that everything natural is good but all the best and most effective poisons come from plants and have a natural base. 

You wash the dishes maybe 4 or 5 times a day whereas you bath a dog about once a week (if you show).  The frequency of use can make all the difference.