Bathing a Piggie?

Gently, carefully, and rarely.

My two sows have only received full baths twice: when they came home from the shelter and after I switched them to fleece from aspen bedding. Aside from that one usually gets a butt bath every couple months since she's kinda messy :/

Maggie is a big baby and whines whenever something doesn't go her way (like getting her foot rinsed after she smooshed it in poo). I generally calm her down by petting her on my lap for a few minutes and feed her a treat. She gets a firmer grip during her bath since she's jumpy too. Speaking/singing in a soft voice helps too; just think of them as furry infants Afterwards she gets a treat.

I take them one at a time to the sink, which I make sure is pre-filled with an inch of tepid water (running water scares them). I gently place her into the sink and wet down her fur by scooping up the water with my hand. Then I use about a pea size of Bunny Bath (which is recommended by lots of other people on the forum since it's very gentle), rub it in my hands to foam it up and then gently rub her coat with it. Avoid the face! After that I rinse her off a couple times with the same water, then empty and refill the sink with clean water for a second and third rinse. If the chin is dirty, I'll usually wipe it clean with a washcloth.

From there, they usually hang out with me on the couch in some fluffy towels until they're dry.

My pigs are short hair so I can't really help you with the trimming part. Sorry!

Hi Nisey,
I too have a long haired piggy..a Peruvian. He has a tendency to get his belly fur entangled in his "thingy" And his grease glands can get....rathy thick. So he requires more frequent grooming. I pre-fill the kitchen sink with warm water using my elbow to check the temp. I lay a washrag at the bottom so he feels more secure. My sink has a sprayer nozzle which is great to use. Have EVERYThING ready before bathing. Scissors, Towels, comb Brush and shampoo. I like filling the sink with water enough that it at least goes just beyond his belly. I too like using bunny bath because it's gentle. I also use a natural soap I use on my dog called dog shampoo..from "The Honey House" available on line. It's absolutely pure made of honey camomille and other plants. Has a beautiful scent and very, very gentle. I usually wash with the bunny shampoo rinse then use the honey soap. Forgot to mention that dawn dish detergent works well to break up the grease. I lather him up Avoiding his face, eyes and importantly too his ears. He is a jumper so I have to keep both hands in the sink. After I rinse him thoroughly, I'll place him in a rolled towel and cuddle him and reward him with treats. I use a blow dryer and dry him then gently comb him with a wide tooth comb the with a baby brush. For fur trims, I'll place him on the kitchen counter ontop of a paper towel. I comb his fur down and trim him so his fur just touches the counter top. I leave his head alone, I like his lion mang look. For his belly, I'll lay him up against my belly and brush his fur. I have a tiny little battery operated shaver and I gently shave his belly fur back away from his "thingy" to prevent hair from getting tangled on it. Overall it takes me a good 45 minutes to groom Jer..he looks so good when he's done.

I have one long haired piggie that gets a bath rarely....I wait several months between baths so that her skin doesn't get irritated. Anyway, I personally use the bathtub. I tried a sink but she would freak out and try to jump into my arms. I end up all wet and I was always worried that she would fall.

So, I started using the bathtub. I fill it only about an inch. I use a mild shampoo. I am posting from work so I don't remember the name off hand.


I place about an inch of tepid water in the tub, I add a little bit of the shampoo so it's sudsy. Then, I place her in the tub and gently get her wet. She actually stays pretty still in the tub compared to trying to jump out of the sink.

When I feel that she is done, I wrap her in a towel and hold her while I drain the tub. I then fill it with more warm water and put her back in to rinse. I then wrap her in another clean towel and take her downstairs. I use a brush and hairdryer to dry her off. At this time, I usually trim her.

Believe it or not, she actually seems to LOVE the hairdryer and the brush. She stays still, doesn't complain or try to get away. I think I have a piggie who loves getting the "spa treatment"...LOL.. she is such a GIRL!

Yikes - I have to give my white pig her first bath this weekend and I've been avoiding it. She has a messy bottom - no idea how or why but - she definitely needs it washed. I'm going to try to do it in the bathroom sink and hope for the best. Luckily she is the calmest of the two so I'm hoping with treats it will go well.

I give mine in the tub. My pigs try to jump out of the sink. I too have to trim my long haired pigs fur around his genital area so it doesn't get inside. He is still very young so his hair is just starting to get pretty long, so I haven't had to trim all the hair yet.

Thank you all for these tips. I will definitly remember them. This is his first bath, so I know it wont be easy. Again, thank you all.

Hi All,

Here's some helpful stuff that I've learned about grease glands, toe trims, butt cuts, and baths.

Grease Glands:
Guinea Lynx has a perfect primer on cleaning grease and anal glands. I like to use mineral oil on a cotton swab. I just got a new rescue boar pig who stunk from 8 feet away.. seriously. With the mineral oil it dissolved and I got it off in just a couple minutes. You'll want to follow with a butt bath which..is pretty self explanatory there...

Toe Trims:
To get your piggers to let you trim his toes easy all you have to do, is handle his feet every time you pick him up. Just give him a little itty-bitty-tender foot massage on each foot while you pet and hold him. When he's standing on his own, try to touch his toes if they are visible once in awhile. Within a week maybe two you'll see a difference and in a month..he'll be a pro. My babies will literally stand on the counter while I pick up each foot. ..like a horseshoer does. ..by the way..that's also how you train horses to let you trim too!

Butt Cuts:
For a good old butt cut I just set on counter and comb hair until I have it in one hand at the butt. Then, put the scissor on the counter and one quick scissor swipe, and I have a nice clean cut. They will cry at the scissors sound to, just use same method as the toes to get them used to it before you try to do it. MAKE SURE TO PUT YOUR HAND IN FRONT OF ANY TESTICLES! ouch...

Baths:
Kitchen sink or bathtub?. Each pig seems to respond to each differently. Everyone has their own method. Do a search here on GPC and you'll find a ton of threads with great ideas.

With 2+ pigs, we just use the tub method. However, this is a two man job.

Remember that their body temp is a bit higher than ours, so you'll want to make it warm enough for you to get in. If they are cold, they be harder to control and you'll see them start shivering.

I always bring a space heater into the bathroom as well and warm it up so that I feel uncomfortable. In the tub we fill it up so that if they go to the faucet, they have to swim a little, but at the back they can stand on a towel that we bunch up for them to stand on.

We put the bunny/kitty soap in the tub water put them all in together. Sometimes..they take a trp to the "deep end" for a swim while we wash the other pigs. It's so cool to see them glide across and glide back to the towel.

The less soap used the better. I pretty much just use it for the butt.

It's vital not to get water in their ears, so for the head just use a wet washcloth as you would for a baby.

Go very slow while your washing the face. Try to make it feel like a spa treatment for them...and talk softly, bathrooms can echo so loudly.

The first baths are so hard for you and for them.

They WILL be upset.
They WILL want out NOW. >(

Just as with a child's first experience be patient and talk through it ..if nothing else to help you through it.

Each time you bath, say once a month at the most (if you keep your habitat properly cleaned you normally don't need to do more than once every 6 months) Try to make it as comfortable as possible. If you find their bottoms need cleaning often, then you'll want to figure out what's wrong. Healthy pigs always have clean dry butts, as long as their hair isn't too long that is.

Make sure that you blow dry them, and do it on the COOL setting. Piggers can get burned if you aren't careful. Use your spare hand to test if it's getting too hot, while you brush or ruffle the fur. This is when you see the pigs totally change their attitude. After the initial scare of the blowdryer, the warm blowing air totally relaxes them. They will sit their and just let you blow them dry. It's fun to see them hunker down and enjoy it. :cheerful:

If you want more advice, be sure to use the forum search for all these subjects, and hit up Guinea Lynx for all their awesome pages on basic care like this. It's where I learned so much.