How often should you be bathing your Dachshund? I seem to get this question a lot from Doxie owners, so let’s cover everything you need to know below.
Keep on reading to find out exactly why this is the best frequency as well as other important bathing tips.
Table of Contents
How Often Should You Bathe Your Dachshund?
Dachshunds are naturally hygienic and rarely ever produce that strong doggy odor you may have smelt from other dogs.
Dachshunds only need to be bathed about once every 3-4 months, and in fact, the fewer baths the better.
Does it depend on the type of coat your Dachshund has? Not really, and although
Dachshunds can have three different coat types:
- Long
- Smooth
- Wired
it’s still recommended to stick to the frequency outlined above.
Dachshunds will lick and maintain their coats themselves to a certain extent, combined with a regular brushing routine (which they certainly need!) their coats remain clean and healthy for a long time without bathing.
Why You Shouldn’t Bathe Your Dachshund Too Much
Let’s explain why it’s crucial not to over-bathe your Dachshund. I still see many owners advocating to bathe their Dachshund weekly, and this is just way too much! Let’s cover this below.
Too much bathing removes natural oils
The main reason not to over bath your Dachshund is to protect the natural oils that are found on the skin and coat.
- These natural oils play a major role in keeping his skin moisturized, strong and healthy. The oils also cover the coat keeping his fur shiny, healthy, and dirt-free.
- Overbathing removes too many of these natural oils from the coat and will result in dry skin that becomes itchy, sensitive, and even raw since your Dachshund will be scratching so much.
- Something else will happen too… When your Dachshund’s body realizes there’s a lack of oil, it will suddenly produce a lot more oil (too much) in a short space of time to compensate. This excess of newly-produced oil will leave his coat very greasy and soon to be very smelly!
Fact: Dry skin is one of the top reasons why dogs go to the vet. And over-bathing is one of the top causes of dry skin…
Recommended Read: Why Is My Dachshund Whining So Much? Here’s What To Do
What If Your Dachshund Gets Dirty All The Time?
If you take your Dachshund for his daily exercise in parks, farms, forests, or the local doggy swimming pool, he may get far dirtier than what’s normal. So here’s what to do.
When your Dachshund gets mucky regularly, it’s completely fine to wash him down as much as you need with water only. Ensure it’s room temperature water and thoroughly dry your Dachshund afterward. Once dry give him a good brushing with a slicker brush.
This should remove as much dirt as necessary while preserving the natural oils.
It’s not water or getting wet that’s a problem, it’s the dog shampoo. This leads me to the next important point! What shampoo should you be using?
Recommended Read: Why You Should Prevent Your Dachshund From Jumping Too Much!
Best Shampoos For Dachshunds, Seriously
Not all dog shampoos are made equal, and there are bad and good ones to use.
The only shampoo you should be using on your Dachshund is an all-natural dog shampoo. Nothing else.
- All-natural dog shampoos avoid the use of harsh chemicals, parabens, soaps, alcohol, detergents, and other nasty stuff that are ALL found in regular shampoo.
- Any shampoo that isn’t made naturally will contain these harsh ingredients. These ingredients strip the natural oils from the coat causing all of the issues outlined in the previous sections.
- Stay away from regular pet shampoo, human shampoo, dawn washing up liquid (can’t believe that’s even a thing!).
- The only exception to all-natural dog shampoo would be baby shampoo. But that’s only if you don’t have all-natural dog shampoo available to you.
➡️ Our favorite natural ingredient pet shampoo: 4Legger, Buddy’s Best, and Honeydew
7 Helpful Bathing Tips For Dachshunds
Let’s run through some helpful bathing tips that will make each bath time more productive and less stressful.
1. Brush before you start
Give your Dachshund a 10-minute brush to remove any existing dead fur before you start getting him wet.
This will avoid unnecessary dead hair clumping up and getting in the way of your valuable suds and massaging fingers! What’s the point in cleaning dead fur, right?
2. Use room temperature water
Many people make the mistake of making the water too warm, or just as bad, using water that’s too cold.
Using water that’s too warm will increase the chances of drying out his skin after the bath. Secondly, it will increase the chances of him getting too cold when the bathing stops… two things you really want to avoid.
Using water that’s too cold, well, is just uncomfortable and will likely create a bad experience for him to remember the next time you need to bathe him.
Stick to room temperature water and you’ll be good!
3. Talk to your Dachshund while bathing
Talking to your Dachshund while you bathe him will make the overall experience much better for him.
Your voice can have a big impact on how your dog feels and it’s been proven that dogs understand human speech and the tones we use much more than we ever realized.
Give your Dachshund your best “good boy” or “good girl” talk, in an encouraging tone of voice throughout the entire process.
This will help to keep your Dachshund calm and it will prove to be quite a good bonding experience. Not to mention he will look forward to the next time.
4. Peanut butter will keep your Dachshund occupied
When dogs aren’t fond of bathtimes they often wriggle and try to run away. This makes your job A LOT more difficult and you may even end up giving up if it’s too much to handle.
Behold the power of peanut butter…
Either smear peanut butter on a dinner plate or if you have shiny tile walls (washable) smear the peanut butter right into the wall at head height. This will keep your Dachshund glued to the same spot for 10 minutes while you get to work!
Peanut butter has been deemed safe for dogs as long as it’s free from Xylitol and high amounts of salt. Source PetMD.
5. Use a bathing brush
Bathing brushes are awesome and can really enhance bath times.
Bathing brushes are typically soft rubbery brushes. Not only do they act as a massager to really help the shampoo penetrate the coat, but they also do an excellent job of removing dead fur while bathing.
This is our recommendation on Amazon: Bodhi Dog Bathing Brush
6. Rinse, rinse, and rinse some more!
This sounds like obvious advice but you would be surprised how difficult some shampoos are to rinse out.
If you leave even a small amount of shampoo in the coat, it could irritate his skin, lead to scratching, dry skin and so on.
Always keep rinsing until you’re triple sure that there are no suds left in the coat!
7. Towel-dry him, then keep him inside
Unless it’s a hot summer day, your Dachshund can easily get too cold when he’s wet and there is a breeze. So unless it 20 C plus degrees outside, keep him inside until thoroughly dry.
Recommended Read: Why Are Dachshunds So Stubborn? 5 Reasons & What To Do
What To Do If Your Dachshund Is Afraid Of Water
If your Dachshund doesn’t like getting wet you will need to reestablish a better relationship between him and the water. Be prepared to take it slow… Fortunately, bath times are infrequent, so you have plenty of time in between to build up his confidence.
Start introducing him to water as frequently as possible, whether it’s with a paddling pool, rivers or lakes, or even the shower, just always make sure your Dachshund has a positive experience.
To do this, offer him plenty of treats around water, speak encouragingly, play with him, and never pressure him to get wet.
The more your Dachshund is exposed to water, the more normal it will become. And when you think his confidence is high enough, you can even try teaching him to swim in a paddling pool to really tackle his water fears.
The key is all about creating and manufacturing positive experiences for your Dachshund. After all, this is how dogs learn, through positive reinforcement and association.
FAQ Summary
How often should you bathe a dachshund?
Bathing once every 3-4 months is sufficient for Dachshunds. This is enough to keep them clean and healthy without running the risk of removing natural oils or drying out their skin.
Can I bathe my dachshund every month?
While many owners do, it’s not advised. Dachshunds stay clean for months, especially when the owner brushes them regularly. Bathing too often can potentially dry out their coat and skin, causing further issues.
What shampoo is best for dachshunds?
Any natural-ingredient dog shampoo is the best kind of shampoo for a Dachshund. If this isn’t available, the next best thing is baby shampoo. I advised to avoid regular pet shampoo and human shampoo as the chemicals are excessively strong.
Is it okay to use warm or hot water?
When bathing your Dachshund, stick to lukewarm water. The water shouldn’t be too cold nor overly hot, so room temperature is always the best setting. Cold can make the experience unpleasant, and water too hot can dry out their skin.
Final Thoughts
Dachshunds should only be bathed once every three to four months. This frequency prevents their coat and skin from drying out from a lack of natural oils. Always use an all-natural dog shampoo and avoid anything with nasty chemicals.