How To Give Your Puppy Their First Bath

If you’re keen for some top tips for how to give your puppy their first bath, then you've come to the right place for a simple step-by-step guide. We recommend to start by reading our blog about when to give your puppy their first bath, so if you’ve already done that and you’re ready to take the plunge (literally!), then keep reading…

Things you need for your first puppy bath:

• Hairbrush or comb
• High quality nasty-free organic Shampoo and Conditioner (of course we recommend our own which you can find here)
• Mixing Bottle so you can have the product ready diluted and easy to apply
• Nice soft towel
• Hair-dryer
• Lots of treats!
• Bath / Shower

Step 1

Make sure you have everything you need ready. If you are using a Mixing Bottle to dilute your products make sure you have that ready-prepared.

Step 2

While still dry, brush your puppy to get out any matts and knots and loosen up any dirt. 

Step 3

We recommend using a shower head to bathe your pup - either placing them in the bath, or the shower tray. It makes it easier to get them nice and wet and make sure that they’re fully rinsed after.  So get your water running and to a nice warm temperature.

Step 4

Pop your puppy in the bath or shower, and supply lots of treats! If you have someone to help you, they can supply treats and keep puppy in place while you start to get them wet all over.

Step 5

With your pup fully wet, give your Mixing Bottle a shake and squeeze out over your dog, starting at the head and going down to paws. If you don’t have a Mixing Bottle, just pop a few pumps of shampoo into your hand and lather up with some water before applying. 

Step 6

Give your puppy a good scrub all over, making sure they get nice and foamy - don’t miss their filthy paws! And remember to keep ploughing them with treats to keep them happy!

Step 7

Rinse thoroughly. TREATS! 

Step 8

Now it’s time to apply your Conditioner. Again applying head to toe. If your puppy seems comfortable, leave to work for a couple of minutes while you give their coat a quick comb, or give them a little calming massage. 

Step 9 

Rinse thoroughly. TREATS! 

Step 10

Time to get out. Lift your pup out the bath, pat them dry with their towel (if they’re prone to matting you don’t want to rub them and cause knots.

Step 11

Go to the hairdryer and lay down some comfy toweling for your pup to roll around on - their instinct will probably to roll around on the floor in an attempt to immediately ruin the fresh smell! Apply the hair dryer in a warm low flow in the direction of hair growth, and aid drying with your spare hand.

Step 12

All done! At this stage we normally head to the kitchen for an extra big tasty treat. Well done pup!!

What if my puppy is nervous in the bath?

If your puppy isn’t happy in the bath, we’d recommend to gradually introduce them to it, first by just placing them in there with no water running and giving them lots of praise and treats. Day by day you can gradually move to the next step, at the pace that your dog feels comfortable.

Click below to browse our puppy-safe Shampoo and Conditioner, and feel free to get in touch with any questions: hello@wildfordogs.co.uk