Doggy Wash

(Written on 31 May 2001)

There is a car wash in my hometown wherein the owners transformed one bay into a self- service pet wash. We went there today. It cost about ten bucks to bathe our one-year old German shepherd dog, Dylan.

In the center of the bay, a large, stainless steel tub is mounted to the concrete floor. A long hose attached to the over-head mechanism, has a gentle spray end that dispenses shampoo, either regular or flea & tick formula, mixed with the warm water; just turn the dial to your preference.

Dylan refused to walk up the ramp, so his daddy had to lift him up into the tub. I hooked him to the short chain attached to the tub and he promptly pulled it loose on his first attempt to bail out. My husband reattached the chain and we once we got started, Mr. Excitement relaxed and actually enjoyed is rubdown . My husband used our rubber glove that has teeth like a brush on the palm side and I worked the hose. After about ten minutes, we had a clean puppy, soft and shiny less lots of hair. He smelled of the soft, lovely fragrance from the cream rinse.

His first good shake came while he was bubbled up; the second, during the cream rinse application. After the final rinse, I took him outside to let him shake some more then I cleaned his ears; then he shook some more. By then, he’d had enough and really wanted to get back into the van and go home. After some towel drying, I coaxed my soaking wet little prince into a quick walk around the block to practice a little obedience and distract him from the van; instead, he pulled and tugged until we got back. While my husband finished cleaning up behind us, I brushed Dylan to remove as much of the loose fur as I could. Forty-five minutes after we arrived, we loaded our damp pooch into the van and drove away.

All in all, I thought it was a good experience and a splendid idea. The facility was clean, secure and well equipped. The tub was a comfortable height for me to work at. I enjoyed the convenience of the soap and conditioner dispensed with the water. The best part: I didn’t have to wipe fur off of the bathroom walls and ceiling! Guess what my husband will do tomorrow? Clean the van.