[OrangeDog]

as long as you are using dog shampoo your fine. When we are in peak show season my dogs are bathed weekly and their skin and coats are at their best durring those times. I find they get dry and dull looking when they are not bathed at least every 6 or 7 weeks even with regular brushing. But it does depend on the breed. Many of my terrier clients are every 4-6 weeks but only get bathed every other appointment.

[flydogs]

I think once a week is enough, maybe three times every tow weeks is ok too, but no more.

[Lunareclipse]

Just give them a bath whenever you have time to pick all the hair off your tongue.

[OrangeDog]

it also depends on the dog... I have a family member with a wire fox terrier who must be bathed weekly due to skin problems.

[Todd]

Originally Posted by OrangeDog

as long as you are using dog shampoo your fine. When we are in peak show season my dogs are bathed weekly and their skin and coats are at their best durring those times. I find they get dry and dull looking when they are not bathed at least every 6 or 7 weeks even with regular brushing. But it does depend on the breed. Many of my terrier clients are every 4-6 weeks but only get bathed every other appointment.

I don't agree with your statement that bathing often is fins if you're using dog shampoo. I'm assuming you're talking about any dog shampoo in general. In my opinion, most dog shampoos on the market are very poor and resemble people shampoos which with dry out the dog natural oils. If you're going to bathe your dog often, you should use a dog shampoo, but not just any dog shampoo. You should use a high quality herbal shampoo. What brand do you generally use?

[OrangeDog]

good dog shampoos are not drying at all... I have been a professional groomer since 1996 and have never had a dog suffer from dry skin due to bathing. I think a BIG thing that causes skin issues is not being groomed enough but even more is that people do not rinse properly. Any shampoo left in the coat will cause itching and will dry out the coat over time but as long as your bathing correctly there is no problem. If you buy a quality hypo-allergenic, oatmeal or conditioning shampoo they are fine. The cheapo hartz, grocery store brands, etc. are BAD but shampoos by #1 All Systems, Bio-Groom, Groomers Edge, Espree, Eqyss, Pet Silk and Tropiclean are all fine for regular use. Most show dogs are bathed weekly, do they have dry skin and coats? quite the contrary, they have the healthiest coats I have seen, and most of them are feed HORRIBLE dog foods (Purina, Eukanuba, etc.) so all I can attribute the great skin & coats to is frequent bathing and grooming