There are so many shampoo products available and so much information out there, I thought this page might help sort out the mess.
Routine and occasional cleaning of the coat
Introduction:
First; some misinformation: except for dogs with skins sensitive and reactive to certain shampoos, most dog skins and coats are greatly improved by frequent bathing. Yes, you might end up removing too much oil and drying out the skin, but not if you use a gentle shampoo.
Shampoos that are NOT appropriate for frequent use on normal skin are selsun blue, coal tar and sulfur based shampoos since these are designed to remove skin oils. I also find baby shampoos and green Prell like shampoos are quite drying and not good for frequent use.
Joy, Ivory, and Dawn dishwashing detergents are very gentle and safe if you want to use something inexpensive.
If you follow up any frequent shampooing with almost any brand of cream rinse or conditioner made for humans, this seems to be helpful in improving general skin health.
My very favorite shampoo for this purpose: Hylyt by DVM pharmaceuticals. It's soap free,, hypoallergenic, it's designed to moisturize the skin and contains fatty acids. You can get it from your veterinarian. Or you can order it online from our store.
I'm sure there are many other appropriate shampoos for this purpose.
Doggy Odor
Introduction:
Some individual dogs and certain breeds have a lot more body odor than others. Hound dog breeds are notorious for having a distinctively strong odor.
Often the odor is due to underlying skin diseases and allergies. Skin damaged or irritated by allergies frequently becomes infected with bacteria and/or yeast, both of which are quite odorous. See below for my recommendations for this problem. Better yet, take your pet to the vet; without experience and a microscope, it's hard to tell the difference between different skin problems: Mange, Ringworm, Atopic, Allergic, Bacterial, and Yeast Dermatitis can all look similar.
Every once in a while, body odor is associated with indigestion, cheap pet foods, or certain pet food types such as fish meal. Just something to consider.
That said, here's what I recommend for those dogs that simply have a strong odor:
Frequent shampooing is one option and usually works well. The problem, of course, is that some dogs and cats aren't easy to bathe; it's a major ordeal for one reason or another. My favorite shampoo for frequent use is Hylyt, but Joy, Dawn, and Ivory dishwashing detergents are safe, and there are many fragrant shampoos available that smell nice for a few days. I'm impressed with Hylyt because it helps moisturize and condition the skin which often ends up reducing the need for frequent shampooing; in other words it can cure the problem.
If frequent shampooing is too much trouble, Pfizer makes an enzyme spray that does a good job of removing doggy odor. You can use it right on the dog or on furniture etc. It's called Elimiodor. There are several other brands I've tried that work fairly well and quite a few that didn't seem to work at all. Elimiodor is another product I'll be glad to send you if your local vet doesn't have something similar available. Go to our Store Page.
There are also "waterless shampoos" and mousses that work fairly nicely and are more convenient than regular shampoos.
They are especially convenient for shorter haired cats and dogs.
And finally, you can apply diluted cologne to pets as a cover up, but be aware that some pets may be sensitive so stop using if it causes obvious irritation.
Dry skin, flaky skin, and skin damaged from allergies, dry winter air, mild abrasions, hypothyroid disease, Cushing's disease, and Addison's disease
For these problems, you want a moisturizing shampoo that helps to rehydrate the skin and help it to heal. DVM Pharmaceuticals have developed Hylyt Shampoo for just this purpose. Of all the many brands available ... and many of them work well ... my favorite is Hylyt Shampoo.
Itchy, but otherwise normal skin
Skin allergies are very common in dogs and sometimes in cats. Understand that topical treatment with shampoos may not be enough, but it certainly helps.
Before relying on shampoos to control your itchy pet, first make sure that:
You have fleas, mange, and other parasites ruled out.
Your pet doesn't have ringworm because it's not always obvious.
Your pet doesn't have have food allergies
That said, there are some shampoos that are quite good at reducing itching for 1-3 days as a time. In addition, they help soothe and nurture damaged skin.
Oatmeal based shampoos are often quite soothing and helpful. I prefer the Relief brand because it also contains a good topical antihistamine. It comes as a shampoo, a cream rinse that I often use like a leave on lotion, and a spray which works great for areas like feet and other spots that some dogs just won't leave alone.
Sometimes when one type of anti-itch shampoo doesn't work, we find that another type works well.
In addition to several different brands of oatmeal based shampoos, there are different combinations of high quality steroid, antihistamine, and emulsifying shampoos available.
Greasy, gross, scabby, odorous, clogged up skin typical of bacterial and yeast infections
This is not complicated, but it's not common knowledge:
Most shampoos that are designed to kill either yeast or bacteria fail to solve the problem for two major reasons:
The shampoo didn't have enough contact time with the bacteria or yeast...in other words it wasn't left on long enough. 8 minutes apparently is the minimum length of time to get good kill rates.
The second major reason for failure is that the shampoo doesn't penetrate deep enough into the skin. Often this is because the skin is covered with excessive oil, dead skin, crust, and scales. The skin pores are often too clogged for the shampoo to penetrate.
Knowing that, the solution is fairly straight forward:
1. Use a shampoo designed to remove crust, scales, and oils first. One of the best shampoos for this is coal tar sulfur. Other choices include Benzoyl Peroxide based shampoos. Both of these shampoos are somewhat harsh and drying but work well and also are anti-itch.
2. Once the skin is cleansed of scale and crust and the pores are clean, then apply a shampoo effective at killing yeast and/or bacteria. Remember to leave on at least 8 minutes before rinsing.
My favorite shampoo for this is chlorhexidine 4%. At this strength it will kill both staph and malassezia (yeast) well.
Benzoyl Peroxide does a good job of killing bacteria as well as being a good degreaser, but doesn't kill yeast well.
How often? It takes at least several weeks for damaged, infected skin to heal, so I recommend shampooing 2-3 times weekly for the first week or two, and then 1-2 times weekly for another 2-4 weeks until the skin is well healed. You can skip the coal tar sulfur shampoo if you want once there isn't a crust and scale problem. If you aren't getting good results after a few weeks, additional treatment will probably be needed such as antibiotics or internal anti-fungal medicine. See your vet.
3. This step may not be critical, but because these medicated shampoos are drying to the skin, it would be nice to follow up the medicated shampoos with a moisturizing shampoo. Guess what? My favorite is Hylyt shampoo.
Ringworm infested skin
Info coming soon.
