What do you love most about your Golden retriever?
There’s so much to adore about this beautiful breed from their unflagging good nature to that gorgeous golden coat.
And with the Golden retriever being one of the most popular dogs in the US, there are a lot of people who agree with you.
The clue to their origins is in their name: the Golden retriever.
Top 8 Best Shampoos For Golden Retrievers
Yes, that’s right. Swim. Of course, we’re not just talking about fetching slippers here but about a deep-seated drive to walk, run, and swim.
As in jump into any body of water, no matter how stagnant and smelly, on the off chance there’s a duck to retrieve.
This leads to a greater than even chance of your gorgeous Goldie spending a considerable amount of time either soaking wet or covered in mud.
Whilst you love your retriever to bits, that smell of wet dog is less than pleasant and as for walking mud onto your cream carpets from those muddy paws…
All in all to keep your Goldie golden the pet parent needs to be pre-pawed to regularly wash their dog.
However, this comes with its problems.
There’s a great deal of debate over how often to bathe a dog, with the risk being that a poor choice of shampoo can strip the natural protective oils out of the dog’s coat.
In turn, this leads to dry, flaky skin which not only loses its luster but is more prone to injury and infection.
No-one said being a pet parent was easy, and this leaves you with a dilemma as to what to do for your dog’s coat for the best.
Can you shampoo or should you leave the dog to smell?
The answer is all in the choice of product.
By selecting the right product for the job you can benefit the dog’s skin health rather than harm it, so read on to learn how to achieve this.
Let’s start by looking at the best shampoo for Golden retrievers:
1. Healthy Breeds
What’s the most eye-catching thing about a beautiful Golden retriever?
OK, the list is a long one: Big brown eyes, black leathery nose, teddy bear good looks, long flowing golden coat…. That’s it. They wouldn’t be Golden retrievers without those golden locks.
But when they have a working dog’s heritage and love to get out there mixing it in the mud and dirt, you may need help to keep that coat light-colored, even when you wash them regularly.
Mud and dirt can be infused with iron or natural dyes that stain the fur.
Simply washing away the contamination may not return your dog to their formerly pristine state.
Healthy Breeds aids whitening; after all, it never hurts to give Mother Nature a helping paw.
This protein-enriched shampoo contains natural oatmeal colloids and vitamins to help condition and cleanse but without bleaching the fur.
It also has a great tropical scent to leave your dog smelling good enough to…well…sniff.
It comes in a 16 fl oz. size.
The formulation is also designed not to irritate eyes, so it helps to minimize the risk of discomfort should your dog fidget and get shampoo in an eye.
As with any shampoo, success is in the method of application.
Be sure to thoroughly wet the coat first, as this allows better penetration of the product.
Pour a coin-sized amount of shampoo into the palm.
Wipe this over the dog and massage it in well. Repeat until all areas of the coat have lathered up.
Then rinse well. Keep rinsing until all sign of suds has gone and the water runs clear.
Then squeegee the dog dry with your hands, and rub well with a clean dry towel.
2. Earthbath
For the pet parent who wishes to be kind to the environment as well as their pet, Earth Bath has a great reputation.
It is made with natural ingredients in a soap-free formulation.
Even the packaging is environmentally friendly as it is bio-degradable, although hopefully only once the bottle is empty and you’re done with it!
This magic happens by the inclusion of natural minerals which act as optical brighteners, to enhance the lighter tones in golden or white coats.
Also, it uses lavender oil, which is a gentle astringent, to leave your dog’s coat luxuriously soft, silky, and shiny, with a lingering scent of lavender to boot.
Although Earth Bath makes no claims as it being an anti-itch product, many pet parents find it does just that and relieves skin discomfort that other products have not touched.
The occasional dissenter notes it made their dog itchier, but as with any product, a dog may have individual sensitivities or allergies even to natural ingredients.
3. Particular Paws
The Particular Paws sounds good enough to eat (of course this isn’t recommended.)
Our third recommendation is the best shampoo for Golden retriever because of its moisturizing properties, and because it sounds so scrumptious!
It’s formulated with aloe vera, chamomile, rosemary, honey extract, and shea butter.
Now all of these ingredients are renowned for having moisturizing and soothing properties.
This means it’s a great choice for the dog with dry flakey skin or a dry coat.
At the very least, this Particular Paws product should put back the natural moisture that’s lost when a pet is bathed, leaving the skin in the same or better condition than before the wash.
This is not something that can be taken for granted, as many are astringent and strip away the natural oils and moisture leaving a dull, dry coat.
We so love it when products are natural, rather than made from harsh chemicals, which is one of the reasons we recommend Particular Paws for Golden retrievers.
The other great thing is that although it’s gentle, it’s also deceptively tough on dirt and will shift mud and other coat contaminants.
We also love it when a company has so much confidence in their product they offer a money-back guarantee.
Particular Paws take the indecision out of a purchase by promising your money back if, after you’ve bathed the dog, you aren’t 100% happy with the results. What have you got to lose?
Best Shampoo for a Golden Retriever Puppy
4. Rocco & Roxie
No two dogs are the same, and whilst a good quality dog shampoo does great for the majority of dogs, sometimes you need to use a more specialized shampoo to meet a specific need.
Let’s start by looking at the best shampoo for Golden retriever puppies with their delicate, sensitive skin.
From Rocco & Roxie comes a family made a shampoo that is used in their grooming and dog spa facility.
It turns its back on the use of chemical cleaning products and is devoid of masking dyes and fragrances.
Instead, it utilizes the natural cleansing properties of oatmeal, rosemary, aloe vera, and chamomile.
Each of these ingredients has recognized benefits, such as the moisturizing properties of oatmeal, the ability of aloe vera to smooth down the cuticles of ruffled hair, rosemary for its mild stimulating properties to encourage hair growth, and chamomile for its soothing and healing.
Everything about the Rocco & Roxie is designed to soothe and refresh, and with a tear-free formulation, it goes a long way to making bath time a breeze.
In a generous 16 or 32 fl oz. size, you can afford for your pup to get plenty dirty and not be afraid to wash them regularly.
Best Dog Conditioner for a Golden Retriever
5. Dog Fashion Spa
Let’s say you have a special occasion coming up, such as your goldie is taking part in your wedding or heck, perhaps you just appreciate stroking a super soft dog, then you may want to consider using the Dog Fashion Spa on your Goldie. This luxurious product is a surprise in a pot.
Looking very much like a human high-end hair conditioner, in its sleek grey pot, this Dog Fashion Spa lotion is designed to apply to dry coats between washes or use as a leave-in conditioner after a bath.
If that leaves you thinking “sticky” or “greasy” then think again, because its lightweight formulation is effective but without the downsides.
Its secret is in using plant and natural extracts, such as lavender and chamomile to moisturize and replace lost supply in the fur and skin.
Simply apply a small amount to your fingers and massage it through the dog’s coat as needed.
However, we are talking about the best conditioner for Golden retriever here, rather than the cheapest.
At 1.6 fl oz. pot, this is concentrated goodness and an investment in the good health of your pet’s coat.
Cheaper products are available, such as spritzing sprays, but few combine the benefits of a concentrated leave-in conditioner that doesn’t have to be rinsed out and yet doesn’t have a sticky feel.
6. PET CARE Sciences
Everything multi-tasks these days from smartphones to shampoos, such as this professional-grade PET CARE Sciences.
If you’re a busy pet parent who needs to know what is the best shampoo for a Golden retriever that washes, detangles, moisturizes, conditions and gets rid of unpleasant odors then this could be the product you’re looking for.
Made by Pet Care Sciences and manufactured in the US, this plant-based cleaning wash uses coconut and palm oils to gently but effectively clean the coat and condition it.
It is described as professional-grade and is free from harsh chemicals including parabens, sulfates, phosphates, DEAs and MEA, reassuring you that you are not coating your dog in synthetic chemicals.
A great bonus for the Golden retriever owner is that the detangling properties work well.
With that long coat prone to knotting, it’s nice to know there’s a dependable product that helps sort the problem out.
Indeed, bathing a big dog liken a Goldie isn’t always easy, so having a multi-functional product that you apply, rinse well, and you’re done does make life easier.
No longer do you have to worry about repeatedly wetting and then rinsing, waiting for the tub to refill in-between times with an already sodden dog that’s desperate to shake…and all the hi-jinx that entails, the PET CARE Sciences works hard for its keep and means less work for you.
Best Dry Shampoo for Golden Retriever
7. Wahl Pet Friendly
Sometimes your Goldie needs a freshen up but you don’t have time for a full-scale bath. Or it might be the weather is too cold to wet the dog completely, or your dog is elderly and slips in the shower…
Wahl has an excellent reputation as a manufacturer of clippers and grooming tools – for people as well as dogs!
With a name like Wahl on the label, you should be assured of quality.
It’s dispensed with a pump and looks a lot like a foaming hand wash in the palm.
Simply rub it over your Golden retriever until the coat is slightly damp.
Then use a clean dry towel to buff the product away.
Voila! A clean, shiny, pleasant smelling coat.
With an oatmeal base and fragranced with lemon verbena and lavender, this is an all-natural product.
This is in part down to personal preference, but if you are a fan of scented candles and nice smells in general, then there’s a big tick in the box for this product.
Whilst the Wahl is not designed as a total replacement for water and wet shampoo bathing, it is a great alternative for when it’s just not possible to get water on your pet from head to tail.
Best Dog Shampoo for Itchy Golden Retriever
8. Strawfield Anti Itch
Itchiness is a common problem for Golden retrievers. As a breed, they are prone to allergies to substances in the air including pollen, spores, and the chemicals in air fresheners.
Bathing is an important part of managing allergies, by reducing itchiness by physically washing the pollen from the surface of the skin. However, you walk a fine line between cleansing the skin and drying it out.
Properties to look for are that it’s hypoallergenic (less likely to trigger allergies), chemical-free, soothing, and moisturizing.
Strawfield Anti Itch ticks all those boxes.
Making the most of oatmeal’s natural soothing and moisturizing properties, this shampoo for sensitive skin also contains aloe vera (to soothe and moisturize) and shea butter.
It is soap-free and has a tear-free formulation, so it’s not the end of the world if your dog squirms and gets shampoo in their eyes.
Bottom Line
And finally, shampooing your Golden retriever isn’t just a matter of keeping their coat looking its best, but about keeping skin healthy and soothing irritation.
There are many excellent shampoos available across a range of price brackets, and with different uses in mind.
Indeed, if you aren’t sure which shampoo to choose, some manufacturers are so confident their product will exceed expectations that they offer a money-back guarantee.
As a good rule of thumb look for natural products with natural ingredients.
The use of chemicals in topical products is controversial, but the no-risk approach is to avoid them altogether.
Let’s face it, with so many excellent natural products available, it’s perfectly possible to skip the chemicals completely.
Just be sure to bathe your dog with care and always rinse well afterward until all those suds are gone.
In addition, towel your dog dry and only ever use a hairdryer on the “Cool” setting, as dog skin is prone to burns from over-hot devices.
Follow these simple rules and your fur-friend will simply glow with a good healthy coat.
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Sarah Robinson
Dr Sarah Robinson attended veterinary school at Oklahoma State University receiving a D.V.M. in 2008. Sarah’s longtime interest is to help people to better communicate with their pet companions, and in doing so, to help them to strengthen their relationships with their dogs and cats. Sarah has published numerous articles on canine feeding in pet related magazines, veterinary journals and leading natural health web sites.
