How to Clean a Puppy's Privates

A clean body is a healthy body. This goes for any of your dog’s body parts, including their privates. Their sanitary area should be kept rather clean to avoid infections or discomfort when going potty. Whether you’re waiting for bath time or cleaning outside of bath time, your dog’s private areas will need to be cleaned on a regular basis or when they are especially dirty.

Many pet parents notice their dogs self-clean their genitals, but there will be times you may need to clean them yourself. Female dogs in heat might require a gentle wipe, and male dogs might require a cleaning every so often as well, but mostly due to playtime dirt and not for health or sanitary reasons.

Your puppy probably doesn’t care a whole lot about how clean the sanitary area is. They just want to play and eat and sleep and take care of their necessities such as going potty. Just like for bathing or other grooming tasks, you might need to wrangle them down to get them clean but they'll be happy once it’s all done.

Need help cleaning your pup's private parts? Book a Grooming service with a Pet Caregiver near you!

• Your puppy will do much of their cleaning on their own.
  
• Excessive licking could signify an issue or irritation.
  
• Dried urine or poop on the skin or fur could cause matting and skin irritation.
  
• Keeping your puppy’s privates clean can help keep this area free of irritation and dry, itchy skin.
  
• Be sure you are familiar with what your dog’s privates should look like.
  
• A male dog may have normal discharge. You might want to clean the area during these times, but try not to worry too much about the discharge if it is a small amount and not a regular occurrence. Typically your little guy will clean his privates when this happens before you even realize it’s happening.  
  
• Your female puppy might go into heat at an early age. She’ll lick her genitals often to keep them clean.
  
• Consider wiping her and keeping her crated or covered to avoid getting any mess all over your house.
  
• While bathing or trimming, be sure to check your puppy’s backside for dried poop. You’ll want to keep this area trimmed to avoid poop getting stuck in your pup’s fur.
  

You’ll want to keep your puppy’s privates your business so they can stay clean and healthy. Your puppy may clean and maintain them all alone, but a healthy dog is one who trusts their owner to care for this as well. Pay attention to any odd signs of trouble and clean as usual.

If you'd rather leave it to the experts, book a Grooming service with a Pet Caregiver near you!