ninaandted Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 I did a bit of a search here on hydrobaths and found some great details already in some threads but I just wanted some general advice to begin with. our golden retriever was diagnosed during the summer with a nasty hot spot and our vet has us on a program of washing him once a week now with a medicated wash to prevent it happening again. we used to wash him about monthly but went to the weekly as directed which does seem to leave him more comfortable and our house less hairy!! :D that was all fine and dandy during the summer and when I wasn't fat and pregnant! :D but now that I'm bigger and can't bend or deal with Ted's strength it's up to my OH to do. During the hot summer we were just using the hose on the back lawn which was all fine. As it got cooler I used warm buckets of water but now that winter is really here we have moved into the bathtub, which is a less than ideal arrangement. in the opinion of users - would we be better off investing in a hydrobath (I don't even know the prices yet!)? We don't show or anything but our goldie is only four so we have a few years ahead of us of the weekly washing. our other dog (lab x) doesn't need washing as often and is a breeze to wash so she doesn't really factor into the considerations that much, although we still wash her regularly in any case and would use the same arrangements. what do people think? does it make the job easier or is it just as easy to do it in the bathtub? it just means alot of bathroom cleaning for me but I'm trying to think longer term! I also want something easy to encourage my OH to do it without lots of nagging from me because I think he'll be doing it even after I have the bub for a while. any advice would be appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~*Shell*~ Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 I'll be very interested to see what people have to say. I'm training to be a groomer (so I can do some volunteer work with rescue organisations and to do my friend's dogs, as well as my own) and can't bath in our own tub so a hydrobath would be a fantastic idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dali-love Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 hydrobath is absolutely great and well worth the investment. Or why not get a professional groomer in..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ninaandted Posted June 10, 2008 Author Share Posted June 10, 2008 Dali-love - every week??? I'd love to have a professional groomer do it! we used to get a mobile hydrobath lady come every month too for a while but when it went to weekly it just got to expensive for us, although they hydrobath may well also be a bit OTT! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rysup Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 (edited) I would not be without my hydrobath. You could always hire it out to friends and relo's on a DIY basis too. They can come use your bath for $20 or something like that. I will never wash another dog in the bath again. The hydrobath distributes the shampoo beautifully and even hard to wet down coats are a breeze. Mine is old and falling to bits, so the two tanks dont work properly, so I use it like a single tank, which means rinsing via hose or buckets. We are saving up for a new one! They are not cheap :D Edited June 10, 2008 by Rysup Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
storm Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 The going price for a hydrobath is around the $1500+ Second hand ones seem to sell super quick. If you can afford one they are worth it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss B Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 Our local pet store has a DIY hydrobath salon in-store, so you can bring your dog down and wash them yourself. The warm water and shampoo are provided, and on Mondays and Tuesdays it only costs $2 :D (or $10 on any other day). I'm pretty sure that also includes use of their dryers as well, which is especially handy in winter. I'd love to have my own hydrobath but at this stage I'm not sure I could really justify the cost. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogcop Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 Not knowing what area you live in a hydrobath is a must plus a dryer. don't worry about the cost as it will save you so much time and effort. As some one else suggested hire it out let others come wash & dry their own dog for say $10 to $20. I let some people use mine when it is not in use to prepare their dogs before a show or trial. you can always use the bartering system too some are maybe cash strapped and would love to do your dog in return for being able to do theirs in return. I have had people trade us loads of wood for getting work on the dog done etc. Not to mention some of the GR8 people you will come across. Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JulesP Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 I have a booster bath, which is like a baby bath! Then I got an attachment for the kitchen sink from Bunnings ($7) that lets you attach the garden hose, so you get hot water outside. Just a cheaper way of doing it. Hydrobaths are great, I just couldn't afford one right now. You are also bending over quite a bit. The booster bath is a bit higher. There is a booster bath in the sale section in off topic in NSW! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dali-love Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 Dali-love - every week??? I'd love to have a professional groomer do it! we used to get a mobile hydrobath lady come every month too for a while but when it went to weekly it just got to expensive for us, although they hydrobath may well also be a bit OTT! :D I have quite a few customers who like to have their dog bathed weekly. They pay around $25 per week (brisbane prices) and are very happy to do so. Some of them have been doing it for over 5 years now. But each for their own. I can't look in your budget so it is up to you to decide what you want to do. You can buy a new one (at around $1500) or have somebody in for 60 washes.... :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ninaandted Posted June 10, 2008 Author Share Posted June 10, 2008 Dali-love - every week??? I'd love to have a professional groomer do it! we used to get a mobile hydrobath lady come every month too for a while but when it went to weekly it just got to expensive for us, although they hydrobath may well also be a bit OTT! I have quite a few customers who like to have their dog bathed weekly. They pay around $25 per week (brisbane prices) and are very happy to do so. Some of them have been doing it for over 5 years now. But each for their own. I can't look in your budget so it is up to you to decide what you want to do. You can buy a new one (at around $1500) or have somebody in for 60 washes.... yeah - it would be great to have a professional do it but we'd have to double the prices as we have two dogs and would end up getting both of them done. good price though - you'd be working hard for your money!!! I think we did used to pay about the same-ish when we had the mobile hydrobath come to us once a month. well to seriously do the comparison... how long would a hydrobath itself last? we are seriously planning (because we are optomists!) that Ted (and Nina) will be with us for at least another ten to fourteen years - if we got something that lasted it might work out okay, especially if we could get it second hand even!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dogsfevr Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 Hydrobaths last as long as you allow them. With hot spots though alot has to do with the dogs diet.Did the vet change your dogs diet aswell?? We have one & woldnt be without it BUT we use it every day so we get our moneys worth from it. Check the classifieds below for second hand hydros. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MTD Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 I love my hydrobath. I have had the same bath for over 10 years and was used as a mobile hydrobath so has had a good work out. Still going fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colliewood Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 Hi, A bath provides a terrific clean. If you do it in your human tub you have to lean over further and have so much hair to clean up. At least with the hydrobath the hair is at the end of the waste hose and all you have to do is pick the one pile. If the vet has suggested Malaseb or Pyohex you can't go wrong. It will get it under control pretty quickly and then you will be able gauge if you really need weekly once it is under control. I probably would see how the hot spots react before spending the money on the tub and if you find you have to go weekly then it may be worth the investment. Where are you? Do some comparisons on local mobile groomers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ninaandted Posted June 10, 2008 Author Share Posted June 10, 2008 Ted's hot spot is all better now and he hasn't had a recurrance, although he has done the licking of his paw probably once or twice since. he was on the phyohex (spelling?) but the vet said we could alternate or have a rest from it in winter so that we don't completely strip his coat. he said we must use it throughout from oct to march once a week. both dogs are on a BARF diet. i'm quite happy to keep up with the washing if that will help prevent a recurrance but it came about also because Ted had broken through our fence into our pond and it had wet his collar, which stayed wet against his skin. we didn't notice/think to check it and it only took a day or so for that to start the whole hot spot in that warm area under his neck. it was all very quick - poor love. (he was just shoving his head under to catch the fish - we caught him and thought we had dried him all off okay but obviously hadn't and didn't think about the collar being cloth) we are in helensburgh NSW. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colliewood Posted June 10, 2008 Share Posted June 10, 2008 he said we must use it throughout from oct to march once a week. If you see no hot spots, no licking or no redness you are just wasting good money washing him weekly. Whilst I don't suggest to let it get bad first, certainly keep an eye out for the signs. Then weekly whilst there is a problem. I have washed dogs fortnightly or monthly and that can maintain things if symptoms aren't flared up in the meantime. While every dog if different, weekly really is overkill if the skin is healthy. cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chicko Posted June 11, 2008 Share Posted June 11, 2008 Great topic, does anyone know of an attachment u can put onto your laundry taps like hose thingy to run it outisde so u can use that warm water? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rysup Posted June 11, 2008 Share Posted June 11, 2008 (edited) I use a shower hose - you know the ones you use in the shower for a hand held thingy.....unscrew the laundry tap and screw the hose on, and pop it out the window. ETA - sorry its not more technical lol Edited June 11, 2008 by Rysup Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tahna Posted June 12, 2008 Share Posted June 12, 2008 We purchased our 2nd hand hydrobath for $500 from the trading post in excellent condition. Unfortunately it was in Melbourne and we are in Adelaide but the extra couple hundred in cost in fuel to go and get it was money worth spent! Ours is a twin tub, autofill with a built in heater and I couldn't live without it now. If you can't afford a new one I'd suggest to keep an eye out in the trading post/newpaper in your local area, also I believe there is a greyhound magazine you can access online where quite a few hydrobaths come up too. Goodluck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kim21 Posted June 12, 2008 Share Posted June 12, 2008 hey, unlikely that your in the same area but in Croydon, (eastern suburbs) Melbourne there is a vet clinic with a hydro bath out the back that you can use free... if on the off chance you live in the area!!! :wink: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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