Chihuahua Bathing

The second important chapter in Chihuahua grooming is bathing. When done correctly, bathing your Chihuahua can be a very fun experience for yourself and of course your Chihuahua. Indeed, the overall experience should be an enjoyable ritual. Bathing will reduce hair shedding, reduce itchy skin, rash and improves the overall health of your Chihuahua’s coat. Furthermore, it serves as a strong bonding experience between you and your Chihuahua. What’s not to love?

A good tip is to bath your Chihuahua in a sink. Indeed, a clean sink is often a better pick for bathing your Chihuahua than a bath. Due to the size of a bath and the amount of water that can fit in a bath, Chihuahua’s can be intimidated. Therefore we at Planet Chihuahua recommend you using sink instead! Next, to be less intimidating for your Chi, it’s actually a lot more practical for bathing. It allows you to better handle your Chihuahua and have more control over the amount of water used.

Next up is water temperature: make sure to use lukewarm water. Not too hot, not too cold! Chihuahua’s are freckly little dogs and don’t like being scared by too hot or too cold water. Make sure you feel the temperature with the palm of your hand before exposing your Chihuahua to it. We recommend filling the sink with a couple of inches of water before putting the Chihuahua in. It will make for a more relaxed bathing experience. Pro tip: use a non-slip mat to keep your Chihuahua from slipping all over the sink. A small towel that covers the bottom of the sink also works perfectly.

Chihuahua bathing

Never use human bathing products! No Head ‘n Shoulders shampoo, please! Dogs are not made to be treated with these kinds of products. Their skin/fur requires an entirely different Ph balance. Instead, buy some quality canine shampoo or conditioner. You can buy some at your local pet shop.

If you want to buy online – Check our shop to find a store

After soaping up your Chihuahua and you feel the fur is nice and clean: rinse, rinse and rinse some more. A general rule of thumb is to rinse until you feel the fur is clean and free of soap. Then rinse some more! It’s very important to not leave any shampoo in the fur as this can damage your Chihuahua’s fur on the long run.

When taking your Chihuahua out of the ‘bath’ / sink, make sure to wrap her in a warm fuzzy towel. Scrub thoroughly but softly and make sure your Chihuahua gets nice and dry. Warming up your Chihuahua is important so that it doesn’t get cold after.

Last but not least: your attitude is very important during this grooming ritual. Have a positive attitude and talk to your little Chi during bathing. Establishing this connection during bathing is very important as it forges a strong emotional bond. It will also determine how your Chihuahua behaves during this grooming ritual. Keep it fun and loving.

For more information you can refer to the other health/Care pages: