Poodle & Coco Chanel

Toy Parti Poodle, Huxtable Samoht

You fancy, huh? lol. Huxtable on the dresser next to Jacques Helleu & Chanel book and vintage syrocco figures. 

How to Wipe Clean a Dog's Paws and Face

A younger, furry Huxtable lounging on the couch

Like many pet parents I like to keep my dog fresh and clean. My toy poodle Huxtable often sleeps with me (be it on the couch or sometimes bed) and he travels with me into the homes of friends and families. I have a shoes off policy in my home for myself and visitors, to help keep my hardwood floors clean and my home environment as dirt free as possible... so of course I have to extend this policy to my pet as well. 

To combat the potential dirt that my dog can bring in I wipe his paws every time we come in from outside. I also wipe his paws every time he uses the bathrooms (goes potty). I went over this in my last post a little, Product Review: Dog Wipes vs Baby Wipes, but I will go over it in more detail in this post. 

Using a natural (hypoallergenic and fragrance free) baby wipe I wipe/clean my dog's privates, paws, and face. 

Wiping a Dogs Private and Anal Area:

Using one side of the baby wipe, I gently wipe his private, then his anal area.  Very simple and too the point. To maximize the cleanliness of these areas be sure to keep the hair around your dogs privates low and his anal area "expressed". This will keep feces and pee from sticking to the fur. Sometimes the hair on a male dog's area can grow long and pee and even semen can cause the hair in the area to stick together and get crusty, not only does this look bad it can harbor germs so be sure to very carefully trim the hairs down there. 

Wiping a Dog's Paws (Hands/Feet):

Using the same side of the wipe as above (as long as it's clean), I wipe under the nails and between the fingers/toes. Under the nails harbor the most amount of dirt, this is especially true if your dog is a digger or paws at a lot of items when outside. Keeping your dogs nails trimmed will aid in there being less dirt. Sometimes dirt can harbor between your dogs "fingers" "toes" especially if they have webbed feet like poodles. Very gently clean between your dogs paws. You can get my favorite dog nail clipper, here.

Wiping a Dog's Face (Eyes):

Using a the clean side of the wipe, I gently wipe under his eyes, being sure to get any crust-- which will be especially apparent if your dog gets tear stains. Then gently wipe pass his nose and mouth. I do that because dogs often sniff poo and pee when using the bathroom outside, but my dogs often kisses and licks me so I want to eliminate any possibility of him passing unwanted germs my way. 

Here's the general Quickie Dog Cleaning I do when coming inside from a walk: 

I pull out a baby wipe or pet wipe. Using one side of the baby wipe, I gently wipe his private, then his anal area. (The wipe is still usually very clean). I wipe under the nails and between the fingers/toes. I then flip the wipe over to the clean side, fold it over and wipe under his eyes if he has tear stains and I'll gently wipe pass his nose and mouth. This takes between 1-2 minutes for my toy poodle. I can imagine it taking maybe 5 minutes for the average big dog. 

Huxtable, as a toddler, in his harness ready to go for a walk

Benefits of Wiping/Cleaning Your Dog After Walks:

The biggest benefits of wiping you dog down after walks and when coming in from outside is the indirect act of checking his body for fleas/ticks/bugs. By always cleaning handling your dog, especially when coming in from outside who decrease the chances of a bug, like a tick, being on your dog for too long. The other obvious benefits is a cleaner more dirt free home and a better smelling dog and best friend. Another bonus benefit will be a dog with a healthier coat of hair, especially for long-haired dogs like poodles. 

Drawbacks of Wiping/Cleaning Your Dog After Walks:

I can't think of any. The only way this could be an issue is if your dog has some type of skin issue. Dogs with skin issues/skin conditions usually have to be handled in a special kind of way, they eat certain kinds of food/have strict diet requirements, so there could be some restrictions on cleaning/wiping a dog so often.

Get more information on the proper wipes to use for a dog / pet, here. 

Product Review: Pet Wipes vs Baby Wipes for Dogs

Petwipes -and- Huggies Natural Care Wipes

Petkin Petwipes-- Huxtable starting using these as a wee little pup. And I continued to buy a few more boxes during his first couple months with me. They worked well and his poodle skin and hair didn't have any sort of ill reactions to the wipes. The only downside to these are the cost at certain stores like Petsmart and Pet Supermarket. In those type stores the price would be as high as $12.99, averaging around $9.99. I always found the best deal on these in discount stores like TJ Maxx they'd be a dollar or more cheaper, more in the $4.99 - $6.99 range. View Pet Wipes for Dogs, HERE.

Huggies Natural Care Wipes-- After awhile I decided I didn't want to fish out 10 bucks for special dog wipes, or even $5 for a single box. Huxtable goes nearly everywhere with me--friends and family homes, stores, etc. He sleeps with me when I'm on the couch and sometimes when I'm in the bed (above the covers). And because of these things Huxtable is kept very clean, which includes being wiped every time after using the bathroom (unless he goes and uses it himself in the middle of the night), and when coming from outside. Therefore, I use more wipes than the average pet owner, and after some research I decided to purchase baby wipes for my little dog. After some testing of different types I settled on Huggies Natural Care. They are my favorite wipes and luckily I can buy them in bulk (600+ wipes) from Amazon or Sam's Club (which is like Costco depending on where you live) for only $20. View Natural Care Baby Wipes, HERE. 

Where do I use baby wipes on my dog? How do I wipe my dog down?

His entire body. Mainly his privates, paws, and face.  Get more information on how to properly clean / wipe your dog here. 

Wiping your dog between grooming visits

So in comparison, you can pay $10 for $100 wipes or $20 for 600 wipes. There's really no competition. I looked at the ingredients in both products and didn't find much difference except for there seemed to be less added chemicals in the baby wipes. I figure if an item is safe to use on a newborn human, from their private areas to the hair on their head, it has to be okay to use on a dog. After months of using baby wipes there has been no bad effects on Huxtable's coat or skin. If anything because he is kept clean his coat is probably better than the average dog or poodle who isn't kept as clean, not to mention he probably smells better, lol.  Poodle hair in particular thrives when kept clean and free of debris, just like human hair.  

At times I've tried buying the 99 cents/$1.00 baby wipes that are in Krogers and Walmart. I can't recall if they were store brands on just cheap brands, but either way they didn't work as well, particularly the $1.00 Kroger wipes. The scent was off and I felt like his fur just didn't look as good afterwards. 

Every pet is different. Some animals may have allergies or certain health issues and their skin may not be able to tolerate certain shampoos, foods, wipes, etc. But if your doggie has no known issues and you already use wipes, save yourself a couple of bucks and try using baby wipes. 

UPDATE 5/2/2014: I now usually use Publix brand "hand and face wipes" in the round container for Huxtable. It's inexpensive and works well. I have at times still used the $1.00 Kroger brands, but there's actually a specific Kroger brand what's about $2.00+ that I really like... they have one that emulates Huggies and another that emulates either Pampers or Luvs. I think I get the one that is like Huggies, but half the cost... its the one with the little baby boy on the front. I'll try to remember to post a pic the next time I get them. But generally speaking I stick with the Publix "Hand and Face" baby wipes, the work well, priced well, and they come in a very convenient round container. (Don't forget to recycle the plastic container after you use it).  So try different ones and see what you like best. You can also get the specific pet wipes at places like Ross, TJ Maxx, and Marshalls for half the price. They also sell specific pet wipes at dollar tree for, $1 of course, lol. 

A Poodle Wake-Up Call

I know Cesar (Millan) says to not let your dog wake you up and dictate when they want to go in and out, but sometimes it's nice to have a cute, furry alarm of the canine variety. Especially when you've already hit the snooze buttons too many times. 

The Sailor: Sable Poodle Out To Sea

 Neptune the Poodle. Appropriately named for his love of the sea.

This standard poodle (spoo), Neptune, is gorgeous! His sable coloring really is a thing of beauty. Cream all over with the brown and black ears. And he of course looks even more gorgeous aboard his boat.

Neptune the Sailor

Sable colored dogs are generally a mix of brown, black, and cream/white/apricot/blondeish type color. There are darker sables and lighter sables. Two of the most recognizably sable colored dogs are Collies (like Lassie) and German Shepherds. 

A sable poodle isn't common, but can occur depending on the colors in the dogs lineage. Their color usually looks to be brindle/sable as a puppy then clears a lot once they get older, as seen below. 

Neptune as a puppy, a sable puppy poodle

http://www.flickr.com/photos/voilier_poodles/3439769726/in/photostream/

Ultimate Driving Machine, the Poodle

       Toy Poodle in the front seat of his BMW

Huxtable decided it was time for him to get in the driver seat and maybe have a go at it. Parti poodles are pretty darn smart, luckily he's only a toy poodle and not a standard poodle, otherwise he may have taken off, lol. 

Check out Huxtable riding shot gun in the BMW above (in his car seat), here. 

Poodles: Pink Isn't an Option

Poodle colors: Black Parti, Black, White, Brown Parti, Brown, Silver/Gray, Red, Apricot, Cream

Cute little cartoon of the poodle colors, letting us know that "pink isn't an option". Poodles are often depicted as pink especially when it comes to toys, but of course it's because of their beauty, elegant physique, and grooming clips/cuts (like the continental).

See the Parti Poodle color options, HERE. 

http://www.spreadshirt.com/poodle-tote-C3376A9678090/vp/9678090T347A2PC28544494PA540X0Y81S44#%2Fdetail%2F9678090T347A2PC28544494PA540X0Y81S44

Safety First: Pampered Pooch in Car Seat

Toy Poodle in car seat

Huxtable on the way to his vet... wondering why he has to be in a carseat and can't just sit on mom's lap. This carseat really has faired well though, from puppyhood to a year it comfortably seats my little 5.5lb toy poodle. In the future when I have two dogs I'll probably get one large car seat instead of two small ones... idk though. This dog car seat could easily fit two less-furry toy dogs, like Chihuahuas. 

More on this dog car seat above, here. 

Parti Poodle Newborn Puppy Babies

A perfect litter of parti poodle newborns, with two solid-littermates that will no doubt carry the coveted parti gene. Hmmm, actually the one of the far left looks like it could be a cream parti poodle... which would likely darken to become a (light) apricot parti.

Tux: Competition Black Parti Toy Poodle

Tux, black parti toy poodle

I found this photo of a cuuuuute little toy poodle named Tux. And of course he reminded me of Hux b/c of his name, size, and parti pattern. Tux is an award winning competition poodle. 

http://sky.securenet-server.net/~cascade/competitions.html