• If you're a past member of the board, but can't recall your password any more, you don't need to set up a new account (unless you wish to). As long as you recall your old login name, you can log in with that user name then select 'forgot password' and the board will email you at your registration email, to let you reset your password.

Grooming Murphy...

Ashley

Well-known member
Ok... Well Im looking for some advice and opinions from as many people as possible...

As you all know, we have Murphy with us now. Due to his past (terrible) experience, he does not like his back legs or bum being touched. This makes it quite tricky when he poos as it is often all stuck to him:(. I cannot get near his back end without him trying to bite! :confused:
He does need badly groomed... his nails are terribly long, matts on his ears and legs, and his coat isnt in the best condition. It is clear he has not had a bath in a LONG time... if you couldnt see him... you could smell him!
He really needs a bath, and I would like the hair at his bottom to be cut quite short as well, so that I do not have to attempt to clean it.

Has anyone had to have a dog groomed under sedation? I really dont want to have to resort to this.
Do you think I should try him in the bath? (He loves water)

Its just a very tricky area to be honest... a lot trickier than I imagined. There is not a need for us to touch his back end... but when he is messy and smelly I think it is a neccessity.

What would be everyones advice or ideas or experience? Any comments are gratefully welcomed! :confused:
 
If his health and general comfort will benefit from a pill that will take the edge off-- I'd do it in a heart beat. Just think of all the stress the dog must have if his past experiences has made his behavior come to this. I had a cocker that had to have a tranquilizer in order to be fully groomed. Usually I did the grooming and she was fine, but strangers pulling on her hair would make her snap. In 14+ years of her life- I had to have her groomed only a half dozen times.
 
My aunt used to have her cocker cut under sedation as he was very frightened. Sorry not much help Im afraind but I hope you can find a way to groom him.:)
 
I've never had a dog groomed under sedation but my groomer has spoken about the vet sedating a couple different dogs for her. To this day I cannot groom Freckles further than his ribcage unless he is on the grooming table with neck and body loops in place. I also attempt to keep one hand always on him and this does soothe him. I don't know what in the h#&ll is done to these dogs but they don't forget the awfulness. :mad:
 
What he has been through doesnt upset me anymore... It just makes me so angry!!!!

Anyhoo... before I begin ranting... guess what?!...

:rah: MURPHY JUST HAD A BATH!!!!! :rah:

I ran a nice bath with dog shampoo already in it, JayDee picked him up and lifted him in. We've never picked him up yet... but it has to be done without touching his rear end... which cant be comfortable.
So we put him in the bath and JayDee had on gardening gloves... just incase!
He was fine. Eyes went a bit bulgy showing a bit of fear and anxiety. I didnt touch him too much but sprinkled some shampoo over him, gently rubbed it in and rinsed it off with the showerhead. JayDee stayed at the head area and soothed him and talked to him.
He only growled a bit when I went to try and clean below his tail.... so I just ran the shower there instead.

He then let JayDee dry him with the towel, and then actually enjoyed being blowdried!!! So that was rather successful. We didnt touch him near his back end during the bath but he was happy for us to touch everywhere else.

I think this is great. I know it wont always be... but for Day 3/4 with him I think thats pretty good.

For nail clipping... I hope they will quickly wear down. Apparently he only got pavement/concrete walks once a week! :rolleyes: If I see they arent wearing down then I will work on clipping them. Just taking things slowly just now...

... but at least he doesnt smell anymore! :jump:
 
That's great news and must be a big relief. I know he had been washed at some point but don't know if this was by Thelly -- she might have some hints too if they washed him while he was there. :)

There is an oral sedative that can be given. Some dogs do need sedation for grooming all right but your vet can probably advise.
 
You hit the nail on the head there Karlin... it was a "big relief".

I stopped him from jumping around in mud today at the glen because I thought... uh oh... how will I clean him... but its nice to know that he can be rinsed off with a minimum of fuss!

With Murphy its all about sussing what mood he is in... and we'd just been playing around outside... so I thought I'd take advantage of his good mood!:)
 
It's early days and, as you are so careful of his feelings, I think his trust in you will grow. It's a big step to give him a bath, his trust must be growing already. Can't believe he likes the hair dryer, that's great. I think if you want to introduce a brush at some point, just do the chest for a few days, it makes them sleepy. Dylan didn't used to liked to be groomed so I used to alternate one stroke of the brush and one stroke of my hand.
 
I've been rereading the notes form the trainer that fostered him for a while in Cork; and she was able to brush him with a soft brush but I don't think did much more than that. I'll be sending those along to you.
 
Dylan didn't used to liked to be groomed so I used to alternate one stroke of the brush and one stroke of my hand.

Oh thats a great idea! I shall try that. I was given a brush that had been getting used on him whilst he was on Mull, and each day I do a couple of strokes of his chest and ears, several times a day. I praise him and give him treats throughout, and I make sure I stop on my terms.

I will try that though Pauline! Thank you.

I really wouldnt have given him a bath this early on... but he was VERY smelly due to him having had diarrhea the other day! :rolleyes:

JayDee was delighted that 'his boy' trusts him enough to let us bath him and not growl! There is no separating them two! :rolleyes::)
 
I really admire you and everyone else who works in rescue with these poor dogs that have not been treated kindly. Your patience and perserverance are amazing.

I had 2 foster dogs that I bathed before they ever set foot in my house outside their crate. I think I was just very lucky as these dogs had obviously not had a bath in years, but they took it very well. And I had to cut HUGE mats out of them, too! They were very tolerant, thank goodness! I think my ignorance of the possibility that they would object turned out OK. I wasn't about to have those poor filthy, muddy, flea-bitten, matted, smelly dogs in my house without a bath! Maybe they could tell I wasn't going to have it any other way, so they thought, "Oh well, we'll let the crazy lady wash us." They were really good and of course I was as gentle with them as I could be, talking to them, cooing, etc the whole time. I think they were so starved for kind attention that they were only too happy to put up with the bathing to get it. I don't know what I would have done if they had put up a fight! It never occurred to me! In fact, now that I think about it, if I had really been worried about them objecting, my hesitance may have triggered them to get upset, too. So maybe it was all for the best.
 
I'm just catching up on this thread. That is great news that you were able to bath him...well done.

He never had a full bath here - and in fairness to him never needed it as he was so clean all the time - not like my mucky lot!! He had the odd 'wipe down' - always very carefully and didn't seem to mind it too much.
 
Just to let you all know that Ive cut out the matts that were behind his ears! They were HUGE. He didnt even flinch... just cuddled in between my knees whilst I chopped away!!! What a great wee lad!

We can also touch his back legs now, and his tail!!! :D

He's also coming over for a lot more cuddles now, and him and Holly have started snuggling in together! :luv:

We are a happy household! :)
 
I bath mine in a baby bath, placed in our's. it was very cheap, from asda , and has a plug, so water can be left to drain away or build up (useful for cleaning bums, as the water is only deeper near the dog, so he doesn't feel as though he is threatened by lots of deep water).

Teddy can be stroppy, but luckily his back end doesn't get messy. However, this is how I groom his and Joly's back ends:

I sit on the floor, legs stretched out and sit a dog on my right inner thigh, facing away from me, with his right leg spread over my leg. Then I swap legs and thighs.Seating them like this and holding the hair near to the body, so it doesn't snag, works well.
 
Back
Top