Caitlin enjoys helping with chores. Her enthusiasm transforms an unpleasant task into a delightful duty. Washing the dog definitely falls into this category! Our dog Dakota is a 5-year old female, 70+ pound German Shorthaired Pointer who is not very fond of taking baths. But she definitely needed one after our visit to the park. So we took her to the Pet People store to try the Self-Serve Dog Wash.
During previous visits to the store, my husband Scott noticed the two washing stations were usually occupied. I was hoping that was not the case on this day! Thankfully both stations were available when we arrived. Yay! The semi-private washing stations were a tight squeeze for three humans and a dog. I imagine if we had Caitlin’s walker or transport chair it would be even more crowded. Along one wall was the bathing tub. On the other side were a garbage can, hamper and shelf with bottles of shampoo, towels, a dryer and cotton balls. I guess we could have moved some of that stuff outside for some extra room.
Making the most of the small space, we thought it would best for Caitlin to be next to the tub so she could be close to the action and also have the tub to lean against. She could barely contain her excitement and insisted on doing everything (in her words) “on her own”. We let her handle the water nozzle to wet Dakota down and rinse her off. We needed to remind her a few times to keep the water in the tub but for the most part she handled it like a pro! She chose Lavender & Geranium from the three fragrant shampoos. She poured the shampoo on Dakota’s back and vigorously scrubbed and lathered her up. Then she helped pat her down with a towel to soak up the excess water. She proudly exclaimed “I did it!” for a washing job well done.
Caitlin gets startled at loud, sudden noises. We were talking about using the electric fur dryer and I could tell she was a little nervous in anticipation of the loud blast. The dryer had a low setting and that helped to not be so loud when I turned it on. Caitlin relaxed after a minute or so. In fact, she was so comfortable with the noise; she decided she would take the first turn with the dryer! After she dried off then it was Dakota’s turn, then my turn, then my husband’s turn to get windblown!
Washing the dog at a self-serve dog wash was a fun way to get the chore done. The Pet People store had stations with all the supplies needed for a thorough doggie bath. We have many pet stores in our area and I would like to try different places to compare size and accessibility of the washing stations.
Where do you recommend washing your dog? Any tips you can share that can make this task more enjoyable?
JoAnn’s journey as a parent and caregiver to an individual with disabilities started when her daughter was born pre-maturely with multiple health issues resulting in cognitive, physical and speech disabilities. Over the years, JoAnn discovered that recreation, travel and social experiences can bring happiness and relief to a life that is often stressful and frustrating. She loves to seek out adaptive, accessible and fun activities for her daughter and the whole family to enjoy. She started the blog www.OurSpecialFunOasis.com to share her uplifting stories and positive ideas to help and to inspire others.