Need a good dog shampoo - any groomers out there?

[pbjmaker]

I am looking for a good shampoo/conditioner for my two cavachon puppies. It seems like I brush them out and then their hair looks all stringy again just minutes later.
It is pretty fine textured but there is a lot of it. They don't shed much and it doesn't really tangle or mat up.

Any suggestions? I like it when they look all "fluffy"

 

[brownlikewoah]

If you want some high end stuff, isle of dogs makes AWESOME products. Hands down my favorite. I also like Nature's choice hypo "A" it has a light fragrance, gentle, leaves dogs soft and clean.

 

[BlacksheepCardigans]

For that breed mix... If you're willing to spend some coin, here's what I would do:

1) Whitening shampoo. I use Shiny Silver Ultra from Sally Beauty (it's a Conair product, fine for dogs) but I've used a bunch. I like the SSU because it rinses out really clean and doesn't leave anything behind in the coat. You can use the whitening shampoo over the whole dog; no need to avoid the spots. If you've got problems with grease, you may need to use something first to cut the grease. Ivory Liquid dish detergent, diluted a TON (a squirt in an empty bottle, fill with warm water, shake, and use that to wash with) is a great degreaser and the formula is very close to a dog shampoo. Do not use Dawn or Palmolive.

2) Rinse like crazy. Rinse until you feel ridiculous, then rinse for five minutes more.

3) Use Chris Christensen Thick n Thicker Foaming Protein throughout the coat according to directions. Rinse. (Get this at Cherrybrook or at a dog show in your area)

4) Use Chris Christensen After Bath throughout the coat according to directions. Rinse.

5) Always blow dry, don't air dry. The best is a forced air dryer made for dogs but you can make do with a human hair dryer that has a no-heat or low-heat setting. Never allow genuinely hot air to get to the skin; dogs are even more sensitive to heat than we are. If it's not comfortable for you to have your hands in the stream for an extended amount of time, it's not comfortable for the dog. Brush out the dog as you're drying, and keep drying until every bit of moisture is out of the coat and the hair is relatively straight.

They should now look like a ball of hair

. I find that the reallllly puffy look lasts a couple days and then they just look well-groomed and fluffy after that. My dogs get bathed once a week or once every two weeks at most, so they don't really get a chance to get disgusting, which is another key. You have breeds that were never meant to be ungroomed, so the more you bathe the better.

 

[SundownWaterfowl]

I've been using Earthbath mango tango on our GR. Super fluffy after she dries, plus she smells nice and it lathers up really great.

 

[Poulets De Cajun]

Blueberry Facial by Southbark!!!! A bit expensive, but worth every single cent! And its GREAT for white dogs.

http://www.shopsouthbark.com/ViewProduct.asp?ModelNumber=BF0012


ETA: oooh! wonder if it would be good for white Silkies.... hmmmm.......

 

[WoodlandWoman]

I've always used a lot of Ring 5 shampoo on my cockers.

I used diluted Coat Handler 15 for 1 on our shepherd, because it rinsed out so easily. It's designed to not leave softening residue on hard coated breeds, but works for all. It isn't harsh on the coat, just cleans it. If you want to use a conditioner with it, you can.

 

[chics in the sun]

Know what I used to use when I washed dogs at a groomers? Dawn dish detergent. No kidding - works great.

 

[Jamie_Dog_Trainer]

Here is my opinion. Probably not what you want to hear but here it is anyway

Bathing dogs is hard on their skin, even the gentlest shapoos, if used frequently can be very bad for your puppies. These are babies, their skin will be easily harmed. You are trying to get their coat to do something that its not going to do naturally. Even if you really like them fluffy, the coat keeps going back to what it looked like before. Its SUPPOSED to look like it does before you bathe them. Why work against nature? My advise is to stop bathing them unless they absolutely need it (meaning: they are really stinky, covered in food/dirt/whatever, or have a medical reason such as fleas).

I say live and let live

 

[geeber]

And for goodness sake, be sure ALL the tangles & snarls are out before you bathe. Water sets them in like glue.

 

[BlacksheepCardigans]

Quote:
Bathing is only hard on skin if you use the really harsh detergents. Back when dog shampoo was basically lye soap, avoiding frequent baths was a good idea. Now, with dog shampoos following the human shampoo market and using the same ingredients, it's no worse for them to have their hair shampooed than it is for you to wash your own. Clean coat is good coat; if it's clean it tangles less and breaks less. Dirty coat is no more natural than your own dirty hair. Frequent grooming also helps people keep track of their dogs' skin and body condition, and clean dogs are nicer to have in the house and on the bed.

My dogs get weekly or semi-weekly baths from the time they're born until they die, and the cats aren't far behind. This coming weekend I'm going to be in a building with 1200 dogs who all get bathed constantly; by Sunday virtually every single one of them will have been bathed three nights in a row. There's absolutely no way you can show a dog whose skin and coat are sick and damaged; we would NEVER do it if it were bad for them.