Dog shampoo?

Why does everyone want ';alternatives'; to do shampoo (such as wanting to use dish soap or human shampoo.) instead of just buying dog shampoo?





Dog shampoo isn't that expensive and a bottle will last a long time. In my opinion, it's one of the basic things you should have in your house if you have a dog.





And it's not hard to get. Pretty much any place that sells dog food also sells dog shampoo. You can buy it from the grocery store, Walmart, any petstore, and your vet's office.Dog shampoo?
One way people economize money is by purchasing





mane and tail shampoo, you can use that on humans and pets.





I don't know why people want to use dish soap on dogs. Do





they use dish soap on themselves.???? sheeez.Dog shampoo?
Human shampoos are a different pH than canine shampoos so they are not terribly good to use as an alternative. There are alternatives for specific reasons but normally dog shampoo is relatively cheap even compared to a good quality human one. I normally us a good quality dog shampoo or the Purina Horse shampoos -- most things that can be put on a horse can be used on dogs and I liked the way that some of the Purina horse shampoos left the coats as well as their used to be one with a mild but good insecticide in it -- pyrethrines I think - that I had good luck with as well. Also there are instances when special shampoos are needed -- with dilute coats sometimes that are sensitive, there are several human shampoos that are better to use on them but those are specifics -- also you can use Palmolive dish liquid on small pups and if you leave it once suds up for a few minutes, it will kill the existing fleas on them without being a problem for the pups. That is something I know I and many people (dog handlers/breeders/rescuers) have done for years when a pup is infested with fleas and is too young or stressed to have insecticides of any kind put on them. It isn't necessarily any good as a regular shampoo but most of these are specific to specific needs and regular dog shampoos are best in the long run, and, as you pointed out, they are readily available and not expensive at all.





add: Oh right about the Dawn and oil on a coat but again, that is an episodic specific instance and not long term. I usually prefer the biogroom products myself but most any decent brank is fine as long as it is for a dog -- and someone mentioned not bathing often and that is true as well. Usually a health dog will not smell bad unless they have been out playing in stinky stuff and even then, a quick wipe down with a listerine mix usually fixes that.
One simple rule: if you cannot provide basic pet supplies such as shampoo, you shouldn't own a pet.
I don't get it either. Dish soap is ok for an emergency or if the dog is covered in grease even for sever flea infestations, but not for every time you wash the dog. I've had the same bottle of shampoo here for 6 months and it's only 1/2 empty.





It's one of the most inexpensive things you can buy for your dog, or in my case dogs!
I don't know, I wouldn't feel safe using an 'alternative' on my dog, I'd be afraid that it would hurt their skin. Maybe some people are just too lazy to get out an buy it when they really need it.





We always keep a bottle in store at our house of doggy shampoo. They hate the baths, but they sure do stinky! :)
I've used dawn for emergency flea infestations, if a dog was covered in oil that would be another reason to use it I suppose, but if you paid attention in chemistry, you will know that all soaps can break down oil (kind of the point of soap actually) so unless it's REALLY bad any regular dog shampoo will get oil off a short coated dog.





I couldn't imagine using human shampoos or dish soap or even regular soap on my dogs. One has bad dandruff after baths and the other has very dry skin, she's a fawn doberman and their skin is extremely sensitive and often very dry. I only bathe my dogs if they have rolled in something or have a VERY bad doggy smell. I haven't bathed any of them since my wreck, we had food in the car from my favorite fast food restaurant and before they got thrown out food ended up covering all of us, I took a shower, but didn't think about the food being on the dogs until a few days later when I noticed a REALLY funky smell lol. I only bathed my golden about twice a year and he never had a doggy smell, he usually smelled worse after a bath anyway, I hate wet dog smell... I bathed him rarely because it was such a pain, he was hard to get wet and then his hair stuck to you and was almost impossible to get off.





My girl now breaks out after baths, no matter the shampoo so I usually just leave her alone, and my boy gets even more dandruff so I dont' bathe either of them unless they really stink. Even mud has been easier to get off of them when it was dry, on short haired dogs it just brushes off and long haired dogs you can comb it out easily, but when it's wet it just gets stickier and spreads to make the coat even dirtier....





I like Nova Pearls dog shampoo. I have been told since I was little that human shampoo is way to harsh on dogs and have seen the itchiness and redness and swelling from using it so I never have. Even a $2 dog shampoo from walmart is better for most dogs than even the most expensive human shampoo....





It's hard to believe so many people are too lazy to buy a dog shampoo.
Good question unless it's just laziness. Not wanting to spend the money on yet another product for your dog. Doesn't make sense to me, you'll still be spending extra money on the item used to shampoo your dog.


I have to agree with you 100%
Some places (target,walmart, grocery store) have cheap dog shampoo, usually cheaper then dish soap, or shampoo we would use. Personally i prefer ';Bobbi panter'; dog shampoo for my baby :). I don't understand why someone would put dish soap on their dog, is the dog a dish? Do you eat off your dog? No. Thus he should be washed with proper ';soap';. I compleatly agree :D
Very true, all those people who use everything from Dawn to baby shampoo have no idea how they are drying out their dog's skin, stripping the fur of oils and downright causing caustic internal injuries if the stuff goes down the dog's throat.





The best shampoo I have found, and which a lot of trainers and show people use on their dogs is HyLite - a bit pricy, but lasts a long time and is non-soap based. Leaves the dog's coat soft and just gorgeous - worth the price.
I had no idea people did that! I have to use a certain shampoo for my dog because she is prone to dermatitis. She's a German Shepherd.





I love her so much, and even though she is always getting dirty, whether it be from mud [it rains here a lot] or from rolling in her own crap in the backyard, I love giving her a bath because I love to see her clean white fur. It sparkles! Plus, I get to hear all the comments about how beautiful she is and how soft her fur is.





I love her so much.
The only reason I would use Dawn (and probably only Dawn) is if the animal was covered in oil or an oil-based substance as they use that to clean off animals in oil spills. Though I have heard it works for heavy flea infestations. I only bathe my dogs probably 1-2 times a year max as most dogs get bathed way too often. Usually just a quick hose down is more than sufficient. I like Lambert Kay's Old Reliable Oatmeal shampoo. Pleasant smelling and very mild. I've had the same bottle for nearly 3 years!
Dish soap? On dogs? Hmm....more than a little odd, if you ask me. Maybe the owners don't want another bottle to keep track of, though that's no excuse to not getting proper dog shampoo.
I agree- it is so stupid- we have a dog with sensitive skin and we need special shampoo for him. Even tho it is more expensive sometimes it is still less than 10 dollars and will last about 4 months. sometimes more. I guess people just want to be cheap and dont care about the health of the dog
Don't think that the quality of dogs shampoo would be as good as human shampoo.


I have often thought of using horse mane and tail conditioner on my own hair. When I put on my horses tail it separates the strands and makes it straight and shiny.


I would use any shampoo to wash my dog when she rolled in fox poo. Very occasionally I would use a dog shampoo if I found fleas and wanted to get rid of them quickly but other wise I use human shampoo I'm sure it's fine.


Didn't know about the difference in Ph though.


My friend has a Japanese Sphritser ( Something like that) and she NEVER washes her she is glistening white all the time no matter what the weather and smell beautiful!
well, when i had my dog, i usually used just normal shampoo. I didn't wash her that often, so her coat wasn't affected.I will never do it again, though.





People are just too lazy to go out and buy it. when i get mynew pup, it will be top on my list of supplies.





I haven't heard of people using dish soap! that must be horrible on the dog's coat!








Thanks for the info! I will certainly use it.