Best Dog Shampoo

[wolfsoul]

I use Nature's Specialties -- I like Lavenderm on the body and Plum Silky on the head -- for my dogs. Lavenderm dilutes 1 in 50. If there is any strong "doggy" smell (I find this on goldens very often) I like to use the Nature's Specialties Oatmeal Conditioner; I scrub it in real good. It is amazing on smells, way better than any of their formulas for actually getting rid of smell. I use this on dogs that have rolled in fish, even dogs that were skunked -- gets the smell out completely. Nature's Specialties makes some awesome shampoos, and most of them are all natural.

Kelco also makes some great shampoos, I love their Aloe shampoo and their Apple and Oats Conditioner. Their Ultra Silk conditioner works GREAT.

My vet and the breeder warned me about bathing too often though, it dries their coat and could lead to skin problems. They recommend 3-4 baths /yr.

This is a pretty old-fashioned outlook on bathing -- most high quality shampoos these days put back just as much as they take out. I agree with them if you're using coal tar however -- coal tar is very harsh on the skin, not recommended unless the dog has skin issues (and particular skin issues at that -- it is only useful for the moistury type of problems -- think greasy cocker spaniel -- and works wonders on elephant skin -- as opposed to dry skin and dry dandruff/flaking problems, in which case sulphur is the best choice).

[Tollers-n-Dobes]

For those that use Earthbath, have you noticed anything different about it lately? That's what I'd been using up until about a month ago. The last bottle I bought wasn't cleaning any of them as well as it used to though which is why I decided to go for something else this time. Maybe it was just a fluke thing and I just happened to get a bad bottle?

[mike001]

Hmmm......funny, the Coal Tar shampoo leaves mine soft and silky, never had skin issues with any dogs . Maybe depends on the breed of dog. With Coal Tar, I don't need a conditiner. Could be the raw feeding, their fur is always sleek and shiny and no smell unless they roll in something.
My friend is a groomer and she also agrees with too much bathig being harmful. She finds people bringing their dogs in once a month is too much, she only does hers 3-4 times a year. I guess if mine got dirty or smelled I would bathe every week , but they never really need it.

[NicoleLJ]

For those that use Earthbath, have you noticed anything different about it lately? That's what I'd been using up until about a month ago. The last bottle I bought wasn't cleaning any of them as well as it used to though which is why I decided to go for something else this time. Maybe it was just a fluke thing and I just happened to get a bad bottle?

Nope no change for any of the ones I am using. And I just bought several bottles of the puppy one a month ago. All were fine. They were for my adopters. Maybe it was just that one bottle. I have never had a problem with any of the ones I used and I have been using it for over 3 1/2 years.
Nicole & Sheena & Ajax

[wolfsoul]

All of the grooming seminars I have been to have warned against coal tar shampoo unless there is a skin condition, so I don't think it is just breed-related. Tomlyn has an excellent coal tar formula though, not so damaging to the skin. I liked using it at work on the dogs with elephant skin -- worked wonders.
We have dogs that come in three times a week for a bath and have never found that they have skin issues from it, but it could be because we use very high quality shampoos and conditioners. There is one other place in town that uses a mixture of dish soap, vinegar, and glycerin, and the girl who used to work there says that their weekly dogs had many skin issues.

[mike001]

Dish soap on a dog? Well I don't doubt it would cause skin issues. That isn't the name of our Coal Tar shampoo, don't really remember the name or brand he uses.Could be the different climates? I've never had a problem and that's one of the reasons I like it so much, plus the fact that we have so many deer flies and it really helps with the bites in summer. Also seems to be a repellent. If I noticed any damage to the coats I would stop using it immediately. Like the saying goes, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Most people we meet love the smell. I don't like a sweet perfumy scent on a Shepherd, and most people don't either. Our neighbor uses it on his Chihuahua because we do and he likes the look of the coats. He doesn't feed raw, so his dog isn't as shiny, maybe it's in the feeding, have no idea.


I'VE BEEN BOO'D

[CathyBogart]

The only reason we use dish soap at work is if a pet gets something oily in their fur that isn't coming out. Especially the trash the Hartz advertises as flea prevention. We use a bit of Dawn, and follow it with a conditioner to avoid drying them out.

Jasper's skin and coat are both resilient and basically odorless, so I just find a nice oatmeal/tea tree oil shampoo...there are several brands I have been pleased with. If he gets REALLY stinky for some reason (Last time he rolled in a dead bird...where do they get these ideas? ) I mix in some baking soda.

[Giselle]

I've been using Earthbath for 8 years. It's good, but, imo, there's nothing too special about it other than the fact that they claim not to use harmful chemicals. I tend to use the Oatmeal formula since it's less artificial smelling. I've also read fab reviews on anything Chris Christensen, but I believe you'll have to order those off the Internet. I haven't tried many shampoos, but I really don't think you can go wrong with most of the brands out there