Watching dog shows on television, while entertaining, can mislead dog owners. You see these beautiful animals being paraded around with long, glossy, flowing coats and think my dog can have this too. Although these coats are very attractive, many people lose sight of the fact that maintaining this standard requires a very specific breed of dog and also a daily washing and brushing regime that most people are not willing to commit to.
You generally shouldn’t use human conditioners on your dogs as it can easily lead to skin irritation and other more serious problems. There are far better products available for dogs.
Also, when you’re looking at the animals in dog shows many of them have had the benefit of professional groomers in the background just to prepare them for this one event. Owners and professional groomers may well use conditioners to keep dogs free of tangles, well-hydrated, and glossy.
Dogs Have Different Skin Than Humans
Many dog breeds have very sensitive skin that’s only half as thick as human skin, and it also has a very different pH level. One sure way to irritate this is to use products that have been designed for human use and expect them to interact with your dog’s coat and skin as they would with yours. So if you’re wondering can you use a human conditioner on dogs, the answer should be a categorical no.
Human hair conditioners along with any other hair, body, or skincare products have been specifically formulated as pH balanced. Humans have a layer of skin that’s called the acid mantle which has a pH level of 5.5, where is the vast majority of dogs have more alkaline skins which have a pH level of 6 to 7.5. Because the human skin’s acid mantle can be washed away every time we bathe our skincare products help restore this balance. This kind of has a negative impact on your dog’s skin as the pH levels are completely different.
What Are The Consequences of Using a Human Conditioner on a Dog?
So you use a human conditioner on your dog and it knocks their pH balance out of whack what’s the damage in that? This layer provides the primary barrier to prevent harmful bacteria and other associated irritants from entering your dog’s body. It also helps keep the body hydrated and its skin in excellent condition. If you’re not restoring this mantle regularly your dog’s skin becomes prone to more harmful pollutants and can cause them some serious illness.
Veterinarians also state because your dog’s skin thickness differs from that of a human you can also cause significant irritation by using products that are not designed for the purpose resulting in flaky, itchy, and dry skin.
RELATED ARTICLE: BEST DOG FOOD FOR SKIN PROBLEMS
Products To Try Using On Your Dog
There are a wide variety of homemade treatments for parasites and other skin maladies, which these are perfectly safe to use on human skin it’s not advisable to use them on your pets. Especially considering we don’t have a natural tendency to lick ourselves after grooming. Because your dog is highly likely to lick any surface, you put an unknown substance on you need to be careful of the ingesting anything that may be toxic.
Many human based natural remedies contain tea tree oils as it’s a highly effective antiseptic and antibacterial, which is rarely harmful to humans, but this can be highly toxic to your dog.
Treating my dog’s Itchy skin
If your dog suffers from itchy skin finding a specifically planned medical shampoo designed for dogs such as Earthbath is the approach you need to take, especially since this combination of oatmeal and aloe vera is very soothing.
Frequent Skin Infections In Dogs
Some dogs suffer from fungal flare-ups, bacterial issues and dermatitis, and you can tackle this using medicated shampoos. Any qualified veterinarian will recommend one you can use. These contain chlorhexidine or miconazole, which are very helpful as a medical solution to you dogs’ dry skin.
Greasy Skin
If you’re dealing with a dog that has quite odorous or greasy skin your vet can recommend an antifungal and antibacterial shampoo to treat the major causes of smelly skin on dogs. These medicated shampoos will require a long contact time, sometimes up to 15 minutes, so be prepared in advance and read the labels carefully.
Flaky Skin
Talk to your Vet to get an effective remedy to treat flaky dry skin, one that is gentle and easy to redistribute your dog’s natural oils throughout its coat. Dogs can also benefit from using fish oils and another such products.
Normal Skin
Using a standard pet friendly shampoo will be perfectly effective on any dog. An animal that has normal skin and doesn’t exhibit any issues such as excessive greasiness, flakiness or dry skin.
When Should I Use a Conditioner on My Dog?
In the vast majority of cases, if you use dog-friendly shampoo, you don’t need conditioners. These conditioners can help to deal with a dry coat and some owners will apply them between baths to help prevent their dog from developing this natural doggy smell. The overall benefits are negligible.
How Often do Dogs Need to be Bathed?
In all honesty, unless your dog regularly goes swimming regularly, has a tendency to get smelly, or likes to roll when you take them for a walk in the park bathing is not something you need to do regularly.
Regularly grooming and brushing them will help keep their coats healthy by just redistributing their natural oils. By researching a natural dog grooming guide, you will get easy to follow a step-by-step process that can help you maintain your dog’s healthy coat without having to worry about using conditioners or shampoos.
But if your dog is suffering from skin allergies or conditions, consult your veterinarian and they can easily provide you with a list of shampoos and conditioners that can help ease these issues.
Can I Use Human Conditioner On My Dog
Remember that they have not designed human conditioners and shampoos to be used on animals and can regularly lead to causing more irritation than good.
Hopefully I’ve answered your question Can I Use Human Conditioner On My Dog, let me know if your experience with using human conditioner on your dog differs from mine.
Some of My Favorite Products For Dog Owners
I hope this article has helped you just a bit in everyday life as a dog owner. Being a dog owner for more than 25 years, I’ve tried many different products with varying success, but these products below are some that I can highly recommend to every dog and their owner without hesitation!
These links are affiliate links, so if you do end up using the links, I will earn a commission. But it’s products that I use daily myself, and I have the utmost praise for.
Dog Food: Every dog needs to eat correctly, and finding the best food for your dog can be challenging, as the market is absolutely flooded with products. But since 2015 when the company was founded, I’ve been using Ollie Petfood. With their product being tailor-made to suit every dog’s specific needs, and as my dogs love the product, I’m pretty sure I’ve found a product I will continue to use for many years more. If you use my link you can get 50% off your first order.
Dog Training: If you’ve ever owned a puppy, you know that it requires a lot of training to grow into a well-behaved adult. Brain Training for Dogs has helped me immensely with the mental training part of raising a dog, and it’s something I strongly recommend you consider.
Grooming: If you have a dog in your home, you’re going to need a brush, and for this, I recommend a Hertzko Self-Cleaning Slicker Brush. For that price, you simply can’t beat this brush for everyday grooming.
If you’re looking for the most up-to-date recommendations, check out my recommended products section that I’ve created to help every dog owner!
