Tuesday's Tip # 27 Greasy Coats and Ears

I will begin this post, by saying ahead of time, that the tip I am about to give is very controversial in the grooming world.

I will also say that I have been de-greasing dogs coats and ears this way for about 25 years with no adverse affects.

I was told that it is safe to use this soap on dogs and cats by a couple different Veterinarians.

I use it regularly for de-greasing and for flea bathes.

What soap am I talking about.

Yes, it is a dish washing soap.

No, it is not an official dog and cat shampoo.

Yes, it works great on greasy coats, and is amazing at killing fleas quickly on infested dogs and cats.

The first time that I ever used Joy on a dog was when I was directed by the Vet that I worked for to used it on a WHFT  (Wire Haired Fox Terrier) that the Vet was treating for a skin condition.

The Vet had me use the Joy and than follow up with a special moisturizing shampoo that he had made up.

To this day, I follow all of my 'joy bathes' up with Medicated bathes and/or Hot Oil Treatments.

I have been waiting for some dogs to come in with oily ears from ear medication, so that I could get some good pictures.

Would you believe that I haven't had any come in recently.

I know, they are all waiting till after I write this post.

Next week I will most likely have at least one in a day.  :/

Saturday I had a greasy Yorkie in, and decided to use him to show you how well the Joy works.

This Yorkie is not quite as greasy as some other Yorkies that I have groomed.

Some come in looking as though they are dripping grease, especially some of those greasy ears that you get in.

Some of those ears look like the owners dipped the ear in the ear medicine instead of putting it down into the ear canal.

I have found that washing these dogs in regular dog shampoo, even a couple of times, does not remove all of the grease from the coat.

I don't know about other groomers out there, but I can not stand to clip a tacky coat.

I want that coat as clean and fluffy as I can get it.

First, I wet the dog down all over.

Then I pour the Joy on the dog straight from the bottle.

Yes, I pour it straight from the bottle, full strength.

I only use the Joy where it is needed.

If only the ears are greasy, then I only use it on the ears.

This Yorkie is greasy all over, so I will use it on the whole dog.

 As I am soaping the dog up, I am adding a little water here and there to spread the Joy.

The Joy spreads really well, so you do not need to use a lot.

I scrub well and quickly.

I do not keep the Joy on the dog any longer than I have to.

I can not express enough how important it is not to get the soap in the dogs eyes.

I feel this way about every shampoo that I  use, even the dog shampoo's that say they are tearless.

I have gotten that so called 'tearless' in my eyes before, it hurts.

If shampoo does get into the eye(s), rinse the eye(s) out immediately with lukewarm water, on a very gentle pressure.

After I have shampooed the greasy areas, (all over on this dog), I rinse the Joy off of the dog.

Even though I will be shampooing this dog again, I make sure that every bit of Joy is rinsed off of this dog.

You should be able to feel the difference in the coat even now while it is still wet.

It should feel squeaky clean.

Once I have rinsed all of the Joy off, and am sure that the dog is no longer greasy, I give the dog a Baking Soda Rinse.

I want to make sure that all of the soap residue is gone.

Because I also used the Joy on the greasy head and face, I also use the Baking Soda Rinse on the head.

Once again, be very careful not to get the rinse in the eyes.

After pouring the Baking Soda Rinse all over the dog, I do another quick rinse with plain water. 

The finial bath is done with a Medicated Shampoo.

Always a Medicated Shampoo.

I also use my Medicated Shampoo full strength.

Even if I only use the Joy on greasy ears, I follow up with a Medicated Shampoo wherever I used the Joy.

I leave the Medicated Shampoo on for at least 5 minutes or longer.

Because this dog was greasy all over, I do not want to use Creme Rinse on this dogs coat.

Instead, I give him another Baking Soda Rinse, and this time I do not rinse it off.

I think that you will be pleasantly surprised at how soft the Baking Soda leaves the coat.

It also helps the drying go faster.

The coat should look and feel very clean, even while wet.

Now I have a nice, clean, fluffy coat to clip and scissor.

See how nice and fluffy the coat is now?

 The clip comes out nice and smooth.

As I said above, I have been using the Joy on dogs and cats for 25 years, and have not had any problems.

These dogs are being bathed in the Joy one time in a 4 to 8 week, or longer period, followed by a Medicated bath.

I do very few full body bathes with the Joy.

As I said before, it is great for greasy ears.

I also use the Joy on all my Cocker ears.

There is nothing like washing Cocker ears 2 or 3 times, really scrubbing, only to have them still come out tacky after you dry them.

The Joy really gets all of that dirt out of those long, thick Cocker ears.

I have also heard of groomers using Dawn on greasy ears.

I myself have never used the Dawn.

I have heard of some dogs having problems with the Dawn, but at the same time, Dawn is used on the Wildlife in the oil spills.

I have stuck with the Joy, because I have had two Veterinarians recommend it.

The Joy was also recommend as a flea shampoo by a Veterinarian.

Remember, most of the time I am only spot washing with the Joy.

I do not recommend bathing a dog often, like once a week, with Joy.

Also, always following up with a Medicated bath, it helps to replenish any natural oils that the Joy  may have stripped out.

See the results for yourself.

We have been bathing this guy for years with the Joy.

His skin and coat have not suffered in the least.

This tip may not be for every groomer.

I know that some groomers are very strict about using only pet related products.

That is okay, you must work with what you are comfortable with.

If you do not like the idea of using Joy on a dog, I do have a de-greasing shampoo that I really like.

It is called D'Grease Shampoo by Pure Pet.

This shampoo also works really good on greasy dogs.

I hope that this helps.  :)

Happy Grooming, MFF