Ultimate Homemade Dog Shampoo Recipes

DIY dog shampoo can be a great alternative to purchased shampoo from the market. Sometimes, Using the readymade dog shampoo may cause of skin or fur problem for your sensitive dog. Moreover, you may don’t want to spend extra money for purchasing dog shampoo.

In DIY or homemade dog shampoo process, you can make your dog shampoo yourself using elements that exist in your home regularly.

In this article, I am going to discuss homemade dog shampoo recipes. Besides, you can buy dog shampoos from superstores. There are lots of brands. They have fancy names and outlook. You will be confused to choose the suitable shampoo. Also, the expensive shampoos aren’t always well for your dog.

Instead, DIY(Do It Yourself) dog shampoo is healthier and easier option. Those can be much better. There are various types of diy dog shampoos. Some are helpful for flea solution. Others can help over the dry or itchy skin.

Another important thing is that you have to maintain the right pH of your shampoo. You may surprise what is pH? The pH scale finds how acidic or basic your shampoo is. A pH scale ranges from 0 to 14.

Water is a neutral substance. It has the pH of 7. A pH less than 7 is acidic. Be careful about your healthy shampoo’s pH that needs a pH between 6 and 8.5. If the pH level of your shampoo becomes too low, your dog will suffer from skin irritations.

Don’t get afraid. Preparing your balanced shampoo is simply easy. Just mix acid substances with alkaline ones in the water.

Benefits of using homemade dog shampoo?

You know better about your dog’s skin. The brands don’t. So, many branded shampoos may harm your dog’s skin.
Here, you will get the advantage of a homemade shampoo for your dog. You can avoid harmful chemicals.
You can save a good amount of money. All the companies mix preservatives in their shampoos. You don’t need those extra chemicals. So, your shampoo will become better!!
You know the problems of your dog’s skin. So, you can add or change chemicals to get better performance. You can make a flea solution shampoo or shampoo for itching and so on. What you wish!
You can make a small quantity of shampoo only for two or three baths.
You can add genuine organic items in your shampoo. If the dog licks its skin, just be sure that your shampoo is fine.
There are many other benefits. Your perfect shampoo will make your dog’s skin soft in dry condition. The doggy smell will not stay anymore. Dogs will not scratch its skin. You will be able to comb its coat easily.

Can I wash my dog with human shampoo?

No, Never. According to Most of the animal expert in the world, it is highly recommended to Avoid Human shampoo for dogs. There is a huge difference between dogs and humans shampoo. But in general sense, both seem work same. But their making process and PH Levels are totally different.

PH comes from french term “pouvoir hydrogen” or Hydrogen Power in English. Ph Indicates the amount of Hydrogen Ion in Substance which determines the acidity of your shampoo. You can learn more here.

A dog’s skin has many layers. One of them is oily and named as ‘acid mantle’. This is a protective layer that fights against bacteria and viruses. According to Pet MD, soap and shampoo will remove this mantle temporarily. But the skin will form a new mantle in about half a day.

The pH level of oil is different between dogs and human’s skin. For the human, the pH is usually under 6.2. But the dog’s shampoo needs to be less acidic.

If you apply human shampoo on your dog, it will face many problems. Better, you make a neutral shampoo. But remember, an ineffective soap can cause a dry, itchy or flaky skin. Bacteria and virus can also affect the skin.

Common Ingredients

Just be careful about their pH while preparing. A little higher amount of alkaline may not harm your pet. But, a little more acidic ingredient may be uncomfortable for your pet. Most of the common elements of homemade shampoos are given below.

Baking soda (alkaline). pH 8.3
Water (neutral). pH 7
Vinegar (acid). pH 2.2
Lemon juice (acid) pH 2.0

Dog Shampoo Alternative for Regular use:

Regular DIY shampoo

Most dog owners allow their dogs to spend outside during summer. The coat gets dirtier. More sweat is produced. As a result, bad smells produce too. In this situation, pet owners wash their dogs more often. Try to select the ingredients that have no scent. The better shampoo recipe is as follows:

Castile soap (4 tablespoons). pH 8
Hot water (4 cups). pH 7
White vinegar (1 cup). pH 2.2

Just use a cheese grater to make castile soap into pieces. Mix it with the hot water. Wait until it gets dissolved. Add the vinegar after. This solution is very helpful for the summer season.

If your dog’s coat becomes too dirty, use this recipe for deep cleaning.

Vinegar (2 cups). pH 2.2
Natural dish soap (2 cups). pH between 7 and 8
Vegetable glycerine (4 oz)

Dog Conditioner

If your dog’s coat has short fur, the skin gets dry easily. Prepare a conditioner to give your pet a comfortable look. You will find the ingredients are easily available in your garden.

Shredded rosemary (2 teaspoons)
Water (4 cups)

Mix the rosemary with water and boil it. When the water starts boiling, just remove it from the stove. Wait for about 10 minutes. Separate the rosemary from the water. Cool the water and store it.

Shampoo for special needs:

Dog Shampoo For Fleas Solution

Fleas are small insects. They attack your dog as a parasite. When your dog is affected by fleas, it will scratch its coat. The scratch may cause bleeding. I am giving a helpful recipe. It will not only fix the flea solution but also the sensitive skin. Apply the shampoo with a spray bottle to get a better result.

Apple cider or white vinegar (1 cup)
Organic dish soap or baby shampoo (1 cup)
Water (1 quart)

This mixture is not toxic at all. After applying the shampoo, wait for several minutes. Then comb the fur. Dead fleas will fall.

For a smaller dog or puppy try this recipe.

Water (1/4 cup)
White vinegar or apple cider vinegar (1/4 cup)
Baby shampoo or nontoxic dish soap (1/4 cup)

For Dry Skin

Apply dry shampoo on your dog to remove nasty smells. Baking soda is the main element. Rub this hardly over the coat. Avoid your dog’s face and head. Otherwise, soda may get through the nose and eyes. After applying baking soda, wait a little while and brush it off.

You can make several dry soap recipes. The first one is:

Baking soda (1 cup)
Corn starch (1 cup)
An essential oil (lemon or lavender) (a few drops)

For the sensitive skin, try this recipe:

Water (1 quart)
Baby shampoo or nontoxic dish soap (1 cup)
White vinegar or apple cider vinegar ( 1 cup)
Glycerine (1/3 cup)
Aloe vera gel (2 tablespoons)

For Itchy Skin

For various reasons, itchy sensation occurs on your dog’s skin. They are dryness or allergy. To cure this problem, just use the recipe given below.

Organic dish wash or regular baby shampoo ( 1 cup)
Glycerine (1/3 cup)
Water (1 quart)
Chopped Aloe Vera (2 tablespoons)
Apple cider or white vinegar (1 cup)

Here, Aloe Vera and glycerine helps to solve itchy sensation. You can apply another recipe. This will heal your dog and give moisture on its skin too.

Water (1 cup)
Liquid Castile Soap (3 tablespoons)
Apple cider vinegar (2 tablespoons)
Tea tree oil (1/8 tablespoon)

Dog Shampoo for Odor

Dogs produce odd smell due to several reasons. Hot weather, metabolism rate, more outside travel, much movements etc. are the reasons of increasing odd smell. So, you need to clean this smell too. You already know that bathing too frequent is not good for your pet. The best way is a dry shampoo than wet bathing. I am mentioning again the recipe for dry shampoo.

Baking soda (1 cup)
Corn starch (1 cup)
An essential oil (lemon or lavender) (a few drops)

If you wish to add an antibacterial component and deodorant properties, the recipe will be as follows:

Warm water (2 cups)
Distilled white vinegar (1/2 cup)
Castile soap (1/4 cup)

Shampoo for Shiny Coat

Just add moisturizing qualities on the shampoo. That will help your dog’s coat looking shiny. With other ingredients, just add rosemary. This will also act as a flea treatment. As a result, your dog’s coat will be shiny, fleas free and good smelling.

Shampoo For Sensitive skin

Take care of your dog more if it has sensitive skin. Ensure ingredients of moisturizing quality. Also, balance the ingredients that will be helpful for the skin. Now, follow this recipe:

Corn starch (1 box)
Cornmeal (5 cups)
Tea tree oil (10 teaspoons)

The mixture above is prepared for a single bath. Maintaining this ratio, you can make more mixture.

While applying this shampoo, just rub it gently on the fur. Wait 5 minutes or more for the best result. Then clean the coat. Now you will feel the difference when the coat dries.

Dog shampoo with Different Flavour:

Dog Shampoo with coconut oil

Coconut oil is a highly helpful organic ingredient. It can cure skin inflammations and yeast infections. It can also cure odd smell problem. There is another helpful ingredient named ‘Neem’. This is helpful for its anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory qualities. This can also repel fleas and other parasites.

Now follow this helpful recipe of coconut oil.

Coconut oil (1 tablespoon)
Neem (1 tablespoon)
Baby shampoo (5 tablespoons)
Water (1 gallon)

While applying this shampoo, rub it on your dog’s skin firmly. Then wait for the amazing benefits.

Shampoo with apple cider vinegar

I have discussed above the use of apple cider vinegar in shampoos. This is mainly helpful for flea solution. This is also helpful for dry skin. So, check the points above for detailed information.

Homemade dog Oatmeal shampoo

Oatmeal is a great ingredient for making a dry shampoo. This can increase the quality of your dog’s coat. Just mix with baking soda and apply on your dog’s coat. The mixture quantity depends on your dog’s size. This combination kills the germs on your dog’s coat. This is also helpful for a good smell.

Besides, you can use Oatmeal for wet shampoo too. Oatmeal will act as a paste that time. I have discussed it just a few points below.

More dog shampoo:

Dry shampoo

I have already discussed dry shampoo above. So, you can make several dry soap recipes. I am mentioning the most common one again:

Baking soda (1 cup)
Corn starch (1 cup)
An essential oil (lemon or lavender) (a few drops)

After applying the mixture on your dog’s coat firmly, then just brush it. You can also apply oatmeal instead of baking soda.

Wet Shampoo

Follow these steps:

Take the oatmeal flour. Mix it with an equal amount of water of room temperature.
Rub the mixture on the fur gently. Make sure your mixture reaches the skin. Wait for 5 minutes. Then gently wash the coat.
Use a lot of water while washing. Make sure that, no mixture remains on the coat.
You may add the equal amount of baking soda to the oatmeal flour to remove doggy smells.

Tips for using shampoo on dog

Before bathing your dog, you need to follow these criteria:

Clean your dog regularly. But, do not bathe it too often. Instead, just brush it regularly.
Do not let your dog stay outside for too much. It will become dirtier.
Just remember a few methods for brushing. If you want to brush it outside, this is okay. In the house, just place a newspaper below your dog. Dust, dirt, bugs etc. will fall on that newspaper. Your house will not become dirty.
I recommend you to brush your dog daily. After brushing your dog, just wash your both hands.
There is healthy oil on your dog’s skin. The oil helps the skin and fur smooth and shiny. So, don’t bath it too regularly. The oil will wash away. Skin will become dry. Your dog will suffer from sores and many in the skin! So, try to bathe your dog every six weeks. Many groomers will suggest you bathe it every four months. This actually depends on your dog’s coat type.

Now I am explaining about preparation before using a shampoo on your dog.

Mental Preparation of Your Dog

Give your dog an idea of bathing. Let it listen the sound of flowing water. If your dog is a puppy, just wait more than five weeks. After that, prepare to bathe it. Let your dog touch water with its paws.
Give it positive vocal expressions. Praise its behavior. Encourage it. Give it a little reward like food.
Let your dog sniff its grooming tools like its hair dryer, clippers, brush, comb etc.
All above, help your dog to trust you better. Give your dog a good bath experience of its first bath. Otherwise, take help of someone.

Final Preparation of Bathing

Brush your dog thoroughly. Ensure removing knots on your dog’s fur. Keep scissors beside. If you are unable to remove a knot, apply the scissors. Do not try to hurt your dog. Remove the extra items like ticks, foxtails carefully.
Check your dog’s skin carefully. Remove any sticky objects. This is not so easy. To remove it, it needs to become soften. So, apply petroleum jelly or vegetable oil. Then wait for 24 hours. If you can’t remove that object, just cut the affected fur.
Trim your dog’s nail before bathing it. Nails may scratch the tub or the floor. Also, you may get injured.
Wear a comfortable cloth. Your dog will definitely wet you.
Select a suitable place for bathing. Your dog may try to escape. A room with the closed environment is helpful. There is another benefit of a closed room. Your dog may not wet your house by spraying water of its body. Be more careful about other objects which can be damaged by water.
Check the comfortable water temperature for your dog.
If you bathe your dog in a tub, ensure it doesn’t so deep.
Gather all the necessary items. They are shampoo, shampooing brush, towels, comb, moisturizer, cotton balls, mineral oil, petroleum jelly, sponge etc. Carry those in a bag for your benefit.
If your dog wears a collar, then remove it.
Keep a muzzle with you. If your dog tends to bite, then apply this on your dog’s face.

Applying Shampoo

Human shampoos are not suitable for dogs. Shampoos for dogs are gentler. Dog’s shampoos have different pH. Here, pH indicates the level of acidity. The more the pH, the less acidic will be.
Before applying the shampoo, always read the instructions. The same dog shampoo does not suit every type of dog.
If your dog’s skin is itchy, ‘Oatmeal’ shampoos are helpful. There are antibacterial shampoos too. They contain ‘Chlorhexidine’. Gentle shampoos help to remove fleas. Citrus oil too.
At last, I am giving a recipe for a homemade gentle shampoo. This is helpful for dogs and pups having extra dry skin. Just mix 1/3 cup glycerine, 1 cup white vinegar, 1 cup lemon liquid joy and a quart water. Keep them in a bottle and shake the solution before every use.

Now you know detailed about homemade dog shampoo or DIY dog shampoo. You will be able to make any type of shampoo for your loving pet. You know better about your dog, so the choice of ingredients is yours. I think you don’t need to search more for making homemade shampoos. Wish you good luck!!

Ultimate Homemade Dog Shampoo Recipes – DIY Dog Shampoo