Toby

I gave Toby a bath today so he is not best pleased with me. He´s wearing socks in the picture because every so often he starts licking his paws nonstop and it is the only way to stop them getting sore. After a few days I take the socks off and he is fine for a couple of months. Go figure!

I don´t believe in bathing a dog too often, I don´t think it is either good for them or natural. I have a friend who baths her Yorkie once a week. He spends all his time scratching frantically and she spends a fortune on special shampoos. Toby gets a bath about every three or four weeks and only goes to the groomers when he needs a trim every couple of months. After his daily walk I wipe his paws and that is it.

Unfortunately the older he gets the more he hates his bath. He had the same groomer from when he was a puppy and was always delighted to see him if we met on the street, but hung back and dug his heels in if he was going for a bath, so I would have to carry him. Sadly his groomer died last year and since then Toby shakes all the way to the pet shop. Imagine being blind and being handled, washed and trimmed by a stranger. Poor old soul. 

If I could I would trim him at home as I feel sorry for him and guilty at making him go through this ordeal but I know he requires a professional groomer. I can´t just leave his fur to grow, unlike short-haired dogs, Yorkies´ fur grows in the same way as our hair and needs trimming to prevent knots and tangles forming. At least he gets most of his baths at home but even so he really does not enjoy the experience.

I don´t have a bathtub, only a shower, so we sit in there each perched on a stool as he is too small for me to bend down to and I use the spray attachment on him. Needless to say it is a bit of a performance as he keeps shaking himself and I get pretty wet too. After it is all over he gets a special treat, and there is nothing wrong with his memory as he begs for it right away by spinning in circles.