Smelly Irish Wolfhound

digzy

Hi lads,
My folks have one of these. georgeous dog, wonderful personality but....he stinks!! How do you wash these dudes. what 'shampoo' should be used? his hair is matted but dont get me wrong he's given his worm doses and is well fed, so he's not neglected!

Stheno

How does he stink?

Breath?
Fur?
Rear end?

Knine

The mats in his coat could be causing the smell. You need to tease them out or cut them out if need be. Use a large slicker brush or terrier pad and start regularly grooming him so that he does not get any more mats.

You could use a paddling pool and hose to wash him but not in the cold weather. The shampoo you would need to get is Bio Groom Harsh coat. If you use the wrong shampoo you will soften the coat too much and make it more prone to mats.

Check his feet and between his paw pads to make sure there are no mats there.

Edited to add - Do you know how to handstrip his coat? Be wary of dog groomers as many will just shave him.

Whispered

If his hair is matted it could well be what is causing the smell. If it's bad it could be causing discomfort too. They do require regular grooming, a quick daily brush after you get the mats sorted would be perfect. This will keep him from smelling too.

I'd recommend having him done professionally this time then trying to keep on top of it. It might be expensive though, but once it's done it shouldn't have to be done again for a long time.

You shouldn't bath him when he has mats because they will only get worse.

Sigma Force

If unsure it's just easier to take him to the groomers to get him done initially and then after that it'll be easier to keep up the grooming.

If the smell is from his mouth or rear end then for the mouth end he might need a dental check at the vets, if it's the rear end the groomer might be able to tell you more and empty his anal glands and advise you wether he needs the vets for anything if it's something they can't deal with.

If it's just the hair then tease the easier knots/matts out and if all else fails very carefully just cut them with a sharp nail scissors be careful not to nick the skin, if the dog is relaxed enough to let you. Don't wash the dog until the hair is de-matted otherwise you'll end up with more matts.

Shampoo wise there's loads on the market, but maybe start with a sensative shampoo if he doesn't get washed much. Most vets sell Vets Solutions aloe vera/oatmeal shampoo it actually works out cheaper than the small bottles you get in the pet shops or supermarkets and it's good for sensative skin, for getting the smell out and soaps up nicely. It's about 8 euro a bottle but it's a larger bottle I'd say you'd get 3 washes out of it for a dog that size no problem.

Get him in the bath if the bath has a shower section that you can use even better, make sure the water is warm, not hot, and wet all the coat, avoid the eyes and when washing the ears just make sure the ear flaps are down so you don't get water or shampoo in them. The just mix some shampoo with some water (makes it less cold on the skin) and lather the dog from head to paw, butt end etc. get between toes if you can and under the belly. Leave the shampoo on for a few minutes if you can and then make sure you rinse the dog really really well. Dry off with a towel, and if there's clean grass outside then the dog might want to run off for a while and dry off but bring the dog back in then to dry off properly before the dog gets cold, or you can use a hair dryer on a low heat setting if the dog doesn't mind the noise.

Really best to do it when the house is warm and fire is on so the dog can dry off easier.

You can then keep the dogs coat in good nick by brushing once a week and you can buy dry shampoos to brush through the coat or dog safe sprays to freshen up the coat.

I find with our biggest dog it's a lot easier to fork out the money to a groomer though because she's bigger and it's back breaking trying to wash her and at least she's dried off properly before I collect her..saves a lot of hassle.

Knine

If the op brings his dog to a groomer, he really needs to make sure the groomer knows how to correctly handstrip a dog. Most people who call themselves groomers would simply shave the dog and ruin the dogs coat.

Normal shampoos are not actually recommended for these dogs as it makes the coat soft and then more prone to mats which is exactly what the OP wants to avoid. Bio groom Harsh coat shampoo would leave him clean and his coat would be left with the correct wolfhound texture.

If its a fully grown wolfhound, it would be great fun trying to both get him and fit him in a normal bath.

I handstrip all my own dogs to show standard and would never wash them in a normal shampoo.

Whispered

Hopefully the OP will heed your warning and go to a groomer who knows what they are doing.

Knine

The best bet for the OP is to go to a wolfhound breeder who can show them how to handstrip and then he can do it himself at home.

He can choose to strip the coat a couple of times a year and the dog is out of coat for a while or he can do what is called rolling the coat which basically means doing a small amount each week. It does not matter that he is not showing the dog. The dog will look fantastic if his coat is stripped correctly and will not be as smelly.

You can buy various tools to help you handstrip and for a wolfhound I would use a fine and medium toothed stripping knife.

You can also use chalks and finger timbles but these are handier for the terrier breeds who get stripped tighter.

ABajaninCork

Stripping a cost is a definite art and takes time and patience. As suggested, you could do a rolling strip. For example, you could strip the front one week, the middle the next and leave the back end until the end. As you get more practiced, it'll get easier. Keep on top of the coat with a terrier palm pad.

Have a look at CCP Dogs and Christies Direct for suitable tools and products to wash and strip the dog. CCP are particularly helpful at pointing you in the right direction.

Sigma Force

Interesting about the shampoo good point.

I hand strip my collie, over time, nothing fancy just gently pull out loose hair.
Maybe make a start on hand stripping and get the bulk of it off and then let the groomer do the rest.

Do you need specific tools for this or can you just use your hands? ..mines a collie so maybe her hair is far different from wirey breeds.

ABajaninCork

You need a stripping knife, chalk block or banker's assistant, a nice calm dog, lots of treats and lots of patience!

You shouldn't need to strip a Collie anyway. A good slicker brush should take care of business. If you like to blow dry the dog, then a pin brush is useful too. Small and large knot breakers should be useful to break up any mats.

Knine

You can use your hands or there is a variety of tools available. A stripping knife makes the job much faster. I also use a curved tip scissors for feet and ears, tail, belly and the delicate areas.

You can use chalk, chalk stone and rubber timbles or small latex finger covers called finger condoms:D

The wired coated breeds don't shed much, some have undercoat. A full strip would mean taking out all the top wire coat and leaving them in just their undercoat. They will also be a different colour until the top wire coat comes though. If you were to shave these breeds, you would be cutting though the coat whereas stripping pulls out the coat and encourages new coat to grow back. Shaving will change the texture and the appearance of the dog.

If I strip a dog to its undercoat, it would take 8 weeks for the new coat to come in fully. If I roll the coat the dog alway remains in show condition because I am only taking out the longer dead coat before it becomes blown.

With a collie you would not be able to strip the coat as such as it would hurt the dog but it is still a good idea to remove all dead coat as this also encourage new coat to come in.

My dogs love having their coat stripped. I use a grooming table as I have terriers. If the dog is getting tired at any stage I give them a break as a full coat strip is time comsuming. Think couple of hours! It takes patience and a few treats for the dog!

Sigma Force

I find the slicker brush works but it gets so full so fast esp. when she sheds her winter coat. So I just pull any loose hair out day to day..takes a couple of weeks then she looks like a totally different dog. From fluffy wolf so sleek collie.
Should make a jumper out of it, seems to be the latest craze.

Knine

You could leave the hair out in the garden for the birds in Spring. I find they love it for making their nests.

My collie friends use a blaster to help with coat shedding. They work great but are expensive! They also give the coat a lot more volume.