Ten Tips on How to Bathe Your Vizsla

One of how you can show love for your lovely Vizsla dog is by having him clean at all times. This means giving him a regular clean up to keep him fresh and smelling good at all times. Keeping him clean helps him maintain good health by avoiding flees that may bring disease and also feel rejuvenated. 

Your Vizsla dog is likely to be a part of your family activities such as exercises as he is affectionate and lively to members of your family and therefore deserves great care.

Also, the cleaning up will keep away any bad odor that your dog may have a result of accumulation of sweat and dirt on their coat. Cleaning him will help in the removal of hair which is loose thus improving the coat’s shine as well as remove scales and debris from the skin.

The Vizsla lives best in a family set-up and prefers engaging in daily exercises as he is a very active dog breed. He is actively happy and provides love and affection to his people and possesses an above-average ability to take training. His short hair sometimes sheds but it generally doesn’t require much a lot of care.

How often to bathe the Vizsla

Ideally you should wash your Vizsla dog when necessary based on the general conditions the dog is in. For instance, if you have recently come from a camping session which involved a lot of outdoor activities and where he was always out enjoying himself, he is likely to need a bath more often.

On the other hand, if you have been indoors with him say during winter, you can stretch the frequency of bath a little longer because he has not attracted much dirt recently.

Also, you should bathe him every time you smell an unpleasant odor which might be as a result of accumulated mud and dirt on the skin. If it happens a week after the last bath, you should go ahead and have him cleaned up again.

Keep in mind that washing your dog too many times may cause the skin and the hair coat to dry and this may bring up complications at a future time. Hence, you should limit bathing to only when it is necessary and try not to overdo it however much of a clean freak you may be to prevent the stripping away of the natural skin oils of your Vizsla dog.

If your Vizsla dog is a regular at the swimming pool, you can stretch the bathe periods longer. This is because swimming acts as a bath and he is likely to enjoy the session just like you would especially on hot summer afternoons.

Below is a list of 10 tips on how to bathe your Vizsla dog

1. Exercise before washing your dog

Take a long walk or run with your dog to tire him up so that he relaxes well before you start bathing him. The Vizsla dog generally loves being outdoor and it enjoys accompanying its care givers on jogs and exercise sessions. Therefore, he certainly enjoys being on the outdoor. He is likely to enjoy the exercise whose climax will be to get a bath. 

The bath water will be refreshing to him and he will relax properly after you are done. The timing of the bath should be close to the times when he usually takes a nap so that he proceeds to sleep after taking the shower.

2. Let him jump into a pool of water like a lake

If you have been good care of your Vizsla dog, you must have been keeping him off large pools of water like ponds, lakes, puddles and even preventing him from playing with lawn sprinklers. This is a good way to keep your dog disciplined and preventing him from being a nuisance or getting in trouble.

Once in a while when you want to have him enjoy a bath, loosen the leash and let him jump into a pool of water. You can give him water toys to keep him playing and enjoying the experience. However, ensure that the lake or water pool that you are getting him into is safe enough for him.

Avoid areas where dogs are not allowed because they might be dangerous for him and he may drown. When he is in the water, keep a keen eye on his movements and clap at him for encouragement.

3. Designate a bath area

For young Vizsla dogs, cleaning them up in a bathtub may be unsettling because it might be too huge and they can get anxious at the amount of water flowing in. Therefore, bathtubs are good once the dog is mature and big enough both in size and age. Otherwise, you can consider bathing small dogs in a sink so that he feels more secure and contained as you will be near him than if you are using a bath tab.

Also, choosing a particular sink or bathtub will help the dog form a routine and he will associate that place with cleanliness and they will waggle their tails whenever they are close to these areas. These helps in the maturity of the dog.

4. Create the bath ambiance

Your Vizsla dog requires a good bath ambiance for him to enjoy the experience. You can create a playlist in the bath area which will be playing as the water runs through his body. He will therefore associate the sound of water with positive emotion thus improving his moods considerably.

Keep in mind that music is a great antidote to stress and it offers a chance for your dog to relax considerably faster. This kind of relaxation will offer him good memories which will keep in him a good mood for a while until the next bath time.

5. Invite your Dog’s buddy

Bathing 2 dogs at the same time is sometimes easier than bathing one of them as much as it sounds counter intuitive. The reason for the simplicity of the task is that if the other dog loves to bath, it will help your dog take cue and remain calm like its counterpart. They will see the bath as a play session and will enjoy it together.

This might also work well if the buddy is a little older and when you are training your young dog on how to behave when it is being bathed. Dogs are likely to learn more from other dogs and this can be a learning opportunity as you create the bath routine.

6. Use Lukewarm water

The internal temperature of dogs is warmer than that of human beings. Therefore, it will not appreciate a hot birth like human beings would. The best method is to start with cold water and if the dog starts shivering, you can increase the temperature slowly until it is comfortable with it. Ensure that you keep observing your dog’s expressions because it will help you understand when to increase or decrease the water temperature.

7. Treat the dog with some gifts

To reward good behavior during baths, you can consider giving your Vizsla dog some treats and rewards after the bath. They will make the dog to look forward to the experience and you will have an easier time doing the bath.

One of the ways to give your dog a treat is by preparing its favorite candy such as cream cheese or peanut butter and offering it to him during bath time. Over time he will start associating bath with good memories of when he will have a chance to eat his favorite sweet candy.

Such a move will also enable you to train your puppy about bath time while keeping it calm.

8. Be Slow and Steady

The process of bathing your Vizsla dog should be slow and steady. You should not rush the process as you are likely to be rough in the process and you will create anxiety and bring stress to the dog.

Being calm will help the dog relax as you slowly massage his fur with water and cleaning detergent. As a best friend, he will certainly enjoy the intimate moments with you.

9. The ears should be kept dry

Ensure that soap and water do not enter your dog’s ears. The Vizsla’s ears and those of all other dogs clean themselves up naturally and accumulated dirt is removed without the need for using soap of water.

Also, putting soap and water in the dog’s ears is uncomfortable for him and it can make him detest the bath process altogether. There have been instances where water in the ears have caused an influx of bacteria and diseases and that is why you should completely avoid it.

10. Protect his eyes from Shampoo or soap

Getting shampoo or soap in your Vizsla dog’s eyes is an unpleasant experience to him. Therefore, clean him with shampoo from the neck area to the back and give him a thorough rinse through the body. To clean the head area, you should use a wet cloth to run through the face, head, and chin.