Dog grooming is a huge business, and many dogparents are excited that their puppy pals should look and smell their best when they go out in public. Of course, not every dog is going to strike a pose on the show stage, and it can be fun to craft your own homemade dog shampoo for DIY dog grooming. You can make these homemade dog shampoo recipes in the comfort of your home with your family and friends. There’s one to fit any need, any budget, and whatever time you have available.
The ingredients for homemade dog shampoo are easy to acquire, most being ready-at-hand in the home, and most recipes are for single use, meaning there’s no need for storage containers. You can try a new one each time you wash your dog. Exactly how to give a dog a bathis a different matter. As anyone who has tried can tell you, convincing your dog to submit to a bath can be a challenging proposition. Thankfully, making DIY dog shampoo is only as complicated as you want it to be.
How to Make Homemade Dog Shampoo: Common Ingredients
Things as simple as vinegar and baking soda show up as components in many homemade dog shampoo recipes. Other ingredients that can be picked up in grocery stores or drug stores include castile soap, which is olive-oil based, and glycerine, a sugar-based alcohol compound. In many cases, your standard baby shampoo or nontoxic dish soap is often incorporated into a homemade dog shampoo recipe to bind ingredients together. The recipes for homemade dog shampoo that we’ll focus on here are very simple and require minimal preparation.
Can Homemade Shampoo Replace Dog Shampoo?
Before we dive into the various recipes you can try, you might be wondering if homemade pet shampoo can replace regular shampoo. Is it effective enough? Will your pet smell great afterward? While a homemade shampoo might do in a pinch, it’s likely better to have a dog shampoo on hand. Investing in a specialized pet shampoo will ensure your dog maintains a healthy coat and hydrated skin. The right product will gently lift dirt, dander, and excess fur without stripping the natural oils needed to keep their locks smooth and skin irritation-free!
Top 3 Recipes for Homemade Dog Shampoo
1. Homemade dog shampoo to combat fleas
There are several recipes out there for DIY dog shampoo for fighting fleas, one of which is not only very simple to concoct but is also ideal if you dog has sensitive skin!
This homemade dog shampoo for fleas requires:
1 quart of water
1 cup of white vinegar or apple cider vinegar
1 cup of baby shampoo or nontoxic dish soap (many sites recommend Dawn by name)*
For a lower-volume homemade dog shampoo to fight fleas or for a smaller dog or puppy, try:
1/2 cup of water
1/4 cup of white vinegar or apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup of baby shampoo or nontoxic dish soap*
Apply either solution with a spray bottle or a thoroughly cleaned-out condiment bottle to minimize waste. Work the homemade dog shampoo into your dog’s fur, particularly along hard-to-reach areas down the spine, the base of the tail, the chest and under the forearms, and let it soak in for at least five minutes before rinsing. Comb or brush your dog during that time to remove dead fleas.
*Dawn and baby shampoo should not be used too frequently on dogs as it may dry out a dog’s skin and should not be used on dogs with a dry skin condition. Instead, you may want to try a liquid castile soap, like Dr. Bonner’s.
2. Homemade dry shampoo for dogs
If you bathe a dog too frequently, more than once a month or so, you run the risk of drying out your dog’s skin. Between baths, a dog’s natural hair and skin chemistry reassert themselves, and you should give them time to do so. One potential solution between traditional baths is a homemade dry shampoo for dogs. These DIY dry dog shampoos tend to involve baking soda, another item found in most homes and easy enough to get at any grocery store.
Massaging a dry shampoo into your dog’s skin will give the dog the sensation of being petted and caressed without the resistance you might face in the traditional wet bath scenarios.
Several homemade dry shampoos for dogs also include baking soda. These tend to involve:
1 cup of baking soda
1 cup of cornstarch
A few drops of an essential oil* — lemon and lavender seem to be the most popular.
Not all essential oils are good for dogs, so only use one that is veterinary recommended as dog-safe and in a dog-safe quantity.
Sprinkle the mixture on your dog and massage it into the dog’s skin with your hands or with a comb or brush. It is best not to use too much baking soda at a time — a cup for a mid-sized dog, half a cup for a very small dog or puppy— and not to apply this method too frequently, since the residue from the powder can accumulate, no matter how much a dog shakes himself afterward. A dry homemade shampoo for dogs is a good stopgap, but nothing beats the fun of having your dog shake water all over you or your bathroom from time to time.
If you bathe your dog more frequently, or if your dog tends to have sensitive, itchy or dry skin, you might want to try a homemade dog shampoo that will bring some degree of relief. Adding ingredients such as aloe vera gel or glycerine can help relieve itchy and dry skin. Glycerine is a sugar-based, water-soluble alcohol compound, much less frequently found around the house than vinegar or baking soda, but can easily be found in drug stores, pharmacies and online.
A typical recipe for dogs with sensitive skin involves:
Hepper Oatmeal Pet Shampoo is our recommendation when it comes to gentle yet effective dog shampoos. Its pH-balanced formula features soothing ingredients like oatmeal and aloe vera and is completely free of harsh chemicals, dyes, soaps, and additives, making it an excellent choice for all dog breeds, skin conditions, or sensitivities. Infused with a light cucumber and aloe scent, this shampoo leaves your pup smelling airy and fresh. Learn more about this Hepper shampoo here.
At Dogster, we’ve admired Hepper for many years and decided to take a controlling ownership interest so that we could benefit from the outstanding designs of this cool pet company!
What are your favorite recipes?
Have you ever created your own homemade dog shampoo? Are you a do-it-yourself aficionado? Do you prefer more sophisticated recipes? Do you enjoy the process of creating the shampoo as much as the results?
If you like putting things to boil, enjoy using specialty ingredients for fragrance and shine, or find that some methods work better for particular breeds of dog, let us know! Please, share your favorite DIY dog shampoo recipe in the comments!
Read more onshampooing and bathingyour dog right here:
How to Safely Shampoo a Dog Who Has a Skin Condition
Dog Shampoo Can Be More Hazardous Than You Think
5 Common Mistakes That Make Dogs Hate Baths
Featured Image Credit: toons17 / Shutterstock.
Contents
How to Make Homemade Dog Shampoo: Common Ingredients
In a big spray bottle, put 2 cups of warm water with 1/2 cup of white vinegar. Add in 1/4 cup of Dawn dish detergent — preferably lavender scented, although the classic variety will also work. Gently shake the mixture until bubbles form, allow the bubbles to settle. Wet your dog's coat with warm water.
Vinegar. Combine 1 quart of water, 1 cup of white vinegar or apple cider vinegar, and 1 cup of baby shampoo or liquid dish soap. Use this mixture to bathe your dog once or twice a month. Vinegar kills fleas and ticks on contact and can prevent future infestations.
Dishwashing detergent like Dawn is formulated for use on dishes and not for use on pets. It's designed to cut through grease and grime, which can be harmful to your dog's skin and coat. Dishwashing detergents can strip away the natural oils that keep your dog's skin and coat healthy and shiny.
If shampoo is not available or if you are choosing not to use shampoo for your dog, you can make your own cleansing solution at home with water, apple cider vinegar or white vinegarand lemon juice or your favorite smelling essential oil such as lavender, which is also great to deter insects and parasites from your ...
You don't have to visit pet stores for expensive shampoos and flea repellants. Apple cider vinegar can help prevent body odor and relieve itchy skin. When used in water or even a spray bottle, apple cider vinegar can also help to repel fleas.
To make your own homemade dog dry shampoo, combine 1 cup baking soda with 1 cup organic cornstarch. If you want to make a diy dog dry shapoo without cornstarch, try arrowroot powder instead.
Make a mixture of 1/4 cup dish soap, 1⁄2 gallon (1.9 L) water and 1/2 gallon ACV. Put on long sleeves and gloves. Before you start treating your dog, it's important to protect your own skin from flea bites. Work outside if you're dealing with live fleas and ticks.
To make this flea spray, slice a lemon thinly and add to a pint of water and bring to the boil for 30 minutes. Let the citrus solution sit overnight In the morning strain the liquid into a spray bottle and add a splash of vinegar. Shake well and apply a fine mist to pet bedding, furniture, and carpets.
One of the first solutions to get rid of fleas is to bathe your pet. Just lukewarm water, or water and a mild soap, can help get fleas off your pet's fur and skin. The dish soap can help to drown adult fleas. If you're thinking about using a flea shampoo or something similar, talk to your veterinarian first.
Apple cider vinegar is an easy-to-use natural tick repellant. You can add a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar per quart of water to your dog's water bowl to keep ticks away from your dog. Apple cider vinegar can also be mixed with water to make a tick repellant spray.
Yes, Dawn is safe to use on an occasional basis, but I would recommend a dog-specific shampoo for regular grooming. I would also recommend not using other brands of dish soap. The vast majority of human shampoos are not safe for dogs; baby shampoo is the only one that can be used. There are many types of dog shampoos.
Baby shampoo is generally a better option than regular shampoo as it is clear, odourless and gentle. If your dog has particularly sensitive skin, baby shampoo can be a good choice to combat this, as it contains milder ingredients than regular shampoos.
A simple yet effective DIY dog shampoo can be made using baking soda. Create a paste by mixing equal parts of baking soda and warm water. This mixture can be gently massaged into your dog's fur and then thoroughly rinsed out. Be very careful not to use baking soda on your dog's face.
You'll want to get a specially-formulated dog shampoo to clean Fido's coat. "Dogs should only be bathed with a shampoo that is formulated for use on dogs—their skin has a different thickness and pH (acidity) than human skin. Human shampoo, including baby shampoo, is far too harsh for their skin,"3 writes Drs.
Baking soda can also add sheen to your pup's coat. A dry shampoo bath is easy with baking soda and a drop of essential oils while a wet bath can become an odor eliminating bath with baking soda added to water. Mix the two and make a baking soda paste to freshen your dog's scent before brushing out.
If you want to make a diy dog dry shapoo without cornstarch, try arrowroot powder instead. You can add a couple of high quality drops lavender essential oil for a light scent and a little anti-microbial action if your dog is not sensitive fragrance. Mix well and voila! That's it!
Introduction: My name is Nicola Considine CPA, I am a determined, witty, powerful, brainy, open, smiling, proud person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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