it rained like crazy today and odie got soooooooo muddy... i have been cleaning him with dog wipes for the past 3 weeks but i really think he needs a bath. he is mostly white and the red mud has stained him, especially his feet.

does anyone have any tips or anything they think i should know before attempting to give him a bath? i have plenty of books for reference but nothing is as good as hearing from people who deal with it everyday. thanks!

One tip I can give you is make sure there is a no-slip mat if you putting him in a bathtub. Poor Sahara fell down in the tub when we first tried to give her a bath. She's never really liked going in our bathrooms, and that probably didn't help. If you have to lift him into the tub, try to lift him with your knees and not your back. Good luck!

When we give the dogs a bath at the kennel, we put them in the tub and wet them down with a shower hose-not their heads. I prefer to put the shampoo on a wet sponge beause it is easier to spread the shampoo around on the dog rather than pouring it on the dog and then trying to spread it. It is also easier to wash them all over with a sponge. To wash their face we just put a drop or two shampoo on the sponge and wring out most of the water, then wash around the mouth, etc. They usually aren't that dirty on most of their head. If you pour water on their heads, then they want to shake it off-and all over you. Then rinse sponge and wipe face again. Rinse them off-you can rub your hands over the hair and pretty much tell if there is any soap left on. We don't recommend flea shampoos to wash greys. It's up to you if you want to put conditioner on them, but it's like starting the bath all over.
Clean their ears with a piece of gauze-if you have ear cleaner put it on the gauze-if not, use some plain water. You may have to use some q-tips to clean out in the cracks.

Another couple of things:

-Don't let the water get too warm...some ghs will get weak legged and almost fall asleep in the tub. The water should be just not cold.

-If you think the GH is about to shake, and you don't want to get soaked, you can grab its muzzle to keep him from shaking. I personally have never done this, but I heard about it from a groomer.

greyt tips/suggestions... THANK YOU!!!!! we will see how it goes...

i have a walk in shower and i put a no slip mat and the boys will walk in and get there bath and then we're good to go. my digger used to love water so he was always the easiest. just keep them comfortable so they dont get to nervous.

i got odie in the bathtub today... i lifted his front half and put it in the tub and then picked up the back half and put it in the tub. once he was in the tub, he didn't seem to really care. i washed him and he got out of the tub. that was easy!!!!

Due to my bad back I had to figue out the best way to deal with weekly baths for my afghan hound, plus new greyhound fosters coming and going, that adds up to a lot of baths.

I get in the tub with the dog and close the shower curtain. Once my back gives out I sit on the side of the tub, works very well.
Make sure you hold the dog's head while he shakes so he doesn't accidenatlly hit it on the faucet and knock out a tooth. I read on a message board that it happened to a champion show afghan hound, that must've been upsetting. Champion or not, we don't want any accidents.
Most dogs get wobbly on their legs from the warm water and want to lay down, that makes it hard to get them back up, they act like they weigh hundreds of pounds. I lean their body against my legs when I sit on the side of the tub to keep them up on their feet.

Blanche, the sponge method is great, I learned it from you and used it ever since.

I usually end up in my underwear in the tub with my Angel. Then i have to basically get stand over her with one leg on either side, that way when she wobbles she won't fall down. My last grey, Panama fell once and i discovered this technique from him! Also, it really helps if you have a shower attachment with a sprayer, you can get them relatively cheap!

Yes, a hand held shower attachment with a hose was the first thing I installed when I moved in my new house. Makes life much easier.
Petsmart sells hand held shower hoses that slide over the faucet, I have never used those but they may work well, too.