6 Best Dog Shampoos And Conditioners For Cane Corsos in 2023

The Cane Corso is one of the bravest, and most loyal breeds in the world and their hardy nature makes them an extremely low maintenance dog to care for in terms of grooming and bathing. Their bossy and stubborn nature can make bath time a little tricky for their owners, but using the best shampoos for Cane Corsos on the market can help with that.


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With that in mind today we are going to be providing you with one of the most comprehensive and in-depth grooming guides for Cane Corsos on the entire internet. We’re going to be sharing hints and tips about bathing and grooming recommendations, and we’re going to be providing answers to the questions our readers send us about the breed.

We’re also going to be looking at the kinds of properties that any good Cane Corso shampoo and conditioner should have to take care of the specific needs of the breed. We’ll be taking this information into consideration when we make several product recommendations in our impartial review section towards the end of this article.

Let’s get started.

Popular Types Of Cane Corso Shampoos

So to start off this article we’re going to take a look at the different kinds of issues that Cane Corsos have when it comes to bathing and grooming (and how certain kinds of shampoo can help mitigate them).

Soothing Shampoos

Soothing shampoos are usually made for breeds that are anxious or nervous around bathing, so you may wonder why we are suggesting them for the Cane Corso.

Cane Corsos are well known for being a brave and courageous breed that don’t get anxious or scared easily. However, they are also known for being stubborn and bossy, which can make things a little bit awkward when it comes to getting them to accept bath time as a part of their life.

The soothing properties that calm nerves can also calm down bossy breeds – and any good Cane Corso shampoo should have some soothing properties.

Soothing shampoos for dogs work in exactly the same way that soothing shampoos and bubble baths work for humans – aromatherapy. Certain compounds and scents create a relaxing sensation that makes stress melt away instantly.

There’s no real consensus in the scientific community regarding the efficacy of scented soothing shampoos in dogs. It’s very hard to quantify and study, and as such, all the claims you read about the efficacy of soothing shampoos should be taken with a pinch of salt (including ours).

However, there’s strong anecdotal evidence to suggest that they make a noticeable difference to your dog’s attitude in the tub. Just remember, while they are not a “cure” for your dog’s dislike for bathing, they almost certainly help.

Deodorizing Shampoos

Cane Corsos aren’t a smelly breed, but they do benefit from deodorizing shampoos. They lead an adventurous active lifestyle, and they’re going to be running, rolling, and lying down in mucky stuff much more often than many smaller, less mobile breeds.

Getting a good shampoo with an excellent deodorizing agent in it will make your pooch smell better for longer, and it’ll reduce the number of bathing sessions that are required to avoid your home smelling like “dog”.

There’s no getting around the fact that soap is one of the best deodorizers on the planet, but it’s also super harsh and will damage and irritate your dog’s skin (so avoid soap based products at all costs). Instead, you should look out for natural compounds like lemongrass, coconut extract, and oatmeal (or oat flour), they’re some of the best deodorizers that mother nature has provided us with.

3 Tips On Maintaining The Perfect Cane Corso Coat

So now we know about the kinds of things you should be looking out for in a good Cane Corso shampoo. In this section, we are going to talk a little bit about some best practices when it comes to grooming the breed.

Brush Regularly When They Are Blowing

Cane Corsos have a thick coat that is not prone to shedding for most of the year. Like all dogs, they’re going to shed a little bit, but in all honesty, it’s negligible.

However, there are two times per year that they are going to shed like crazy. These molting periods (or blowing periods) happen during the spring and the winter, and they are an unconscious reaction from your dog’s body to changing ambient temperatures.

When temperatures start to drop, your dog’s body starts to shed its thinner summer coat and a thicker winter coat starts to come through. Similarly, in the spring when temperatures start rising, the summer coat starts to come through as the winter coat is shed.

During these periods there’s not much you can do to stop the shedding. Anti-shedding shampoos will help a little, but there’s no stopping the bulk of the onslaught, and you’re still going to have a whole heap of hair everywhere.

The best thing you can do when these blowing sessions start is to groom your pooch on a daily basis. Get a good deshedding brush and give them a really good going over to get as much of the loose hair off of their body as possible.

You’ll never get it all, but it’s still going to make a huge difference to the amount of work you (and your vacuum cleaner) need to do around the home.

Make Grooming A Positive Experience

Luckily Cane Corsos don’t need to be groomed all that often when they are not blowing. Once a week is more than enough to keep their coat in good shape and prevent matting and tangling. However, they’re a breed that has a hard time standing still while being groomed.

You should try and make grooming a fun and positive experience for them from the very beginning – preferably when they are still a puppy. Provide them with lots of treats before, during, and after grooming when you are getting them used to it, then reduce the number of rewards given over time when they are more relaxed about grooming.

It’s a good idea to train them with a “Groom” command so they know what’s about to happen and what’s expected of them. Remember to give them a treat after every grooming session, because like most dogs – they’re much more willing to obey when there’s something in it for them at the end of it all.

Overall Best Shampoo for Cane Corsos

Buddy Wash Relaxing Green Tea & Bergamot Dog Shampoo & Conditioner

Ok, so now we know about the kinds of properties we should be looking out for in a good Cane Corso shampoo, and we know a little bit about the grooming requirements of the breed.

Let’s take a look at some product reviews.

Note: Everything you are about to read in this section is our honest, impartial advice. We are not affiliated to any particular brand of shampoo, and these are what we genuinely think are the best Cane Corso shampoos on the market right now.

We looked at countless shampoos for this review section (online and offline) and it took us a huge amount of time. What made the problem worse for us was the fact that because the Cane Corso has very few specific needs compared to some other breeds – we had too much choice.

However, we think we have succeeded in narrowing down the selection to 6 excellent products. We’re going to talk about some runners up later in this article, but in our opinion, the best Cane Corso shampoo on the market right now is the Relaxing Green Tea & Bergamot Dog Shampoo & Conditioner by Buddy Wash.

If you’ve owned a dog before, you probably already know about Buddy Wash, they are rock stars of the canine shampoo industry. Their products are all natural, and they provide almost unbeatable performance considering the price point that they are sold at.

This is a great shampoo that’s free from harsh chemicals, soap, and alcohol. Instead, it uses some pretty powerful natural compounds for sanitization and deodorization (mainly coconut extracts). It’s a really gentle shampoo, but it cleans as good as some of the other harsher chemical based products on the market.

The conditioner is also excellent in this product, and the combination of sage, chamomile, and green tea extract (among other compounds) work in perfect harmony with one another. They will leave your pooch with a stunning coat that has an impeccable glossy sheen to it for weeks to come. There’s also a good amount of aloe vera in the conditioner that works to soothe and repair your dog’s skin. Even though the Cane Corso isn’t known to suffer from skin issues, they can still rear their head from time to time – which makes this a very welcome addition.

One of the best things about this product is the relaxation it provides from the scented infusions that give it an aromatherapy style calming effect. It’s a soothing shampoo that uses the natural combination of mint, lavender, and bergamot to help your pooch relax a little in the tub and feel like they are in a doggy day spa.

Note: We don’t want to oversell the effects of the scented soothing infusions in this product. They’re good, and you’re almost certainly going to notice the difference that they make – but they’re not magic ingredients that’ll make your dog excited about getting in the tub.

All of this awesome cleaning, conditioning, and soothing power is packed into a large 16oz bottle, and it only costs around $7. This is exceptional value for money considering the quality of the product we’re talking about – and it’s more than worthy of your consideration.

4-Legger Hypo-Allergenic, Lemongrass & Aloe Dog Shampoo

Runner Up – We mentioned earlier how hard it was to pick from the wide range of excellent shampoos that are suitable for Cane Corsos, and we weren’t lying. The awesome Hypo-Allergenic, Lemongrass & Aloe Dog Shampoo from 4-Legger was very nearly our overall recommendation.

4-Legger is a lesser known brand in the industry compared to Buddy Wash. They have a much smaller product range and prefer to focus on making a small number of high-quality products instead of branching out. Their ethos revolves around being as natural as possible and creating products that won’t harm the environment (or your pooch) in any way, shape, or form.

This product is a great example of that, it’s cruelty-free (not tested on animals), it’s vegan, it’s made in the USA, it’s 100% natural (no chemicals whatsoever in the formula), and it’s organic too.

Fun Fact: 4-Legger put their money where their mouth is with this product and asked the USDA to rate it. They came back and rated it “Organic to exceptional standards”.

This product uses one of the most expensive (but most effective) natural ingredients in the world when it comes to cleaning – lemongrass. As you may already know, lemongrass has some pretty amazing antimicrobial and antibacterial properties that will demolish every single bacteria that currently call your pooch home (which are what cause your dog to stink in the first place).

Lemongrass also has some less impressive (but still very welcome) pest repellent properties. Putting this stuff on your pooch will make them seem like a less attractive host to fleas, ticks, and mites – which is always a good thing. However, as you’d expect with a product of this quality, it’s completely compatible with almost all topical flea and tick treatments too.

There’s an awesome conditioner in this product that’s going to work just as well as the conditioner in the product we talked about above. It contains a wide range of essential oils and minerals that have been hand-picked to complement each other to nourish and enhance the natural shine of your dog’s coat. Again, there’s aloe vera and a couple of other infusions in the formula that’ll protect your dog’s skin and heal any irritation that has already taken place.

There’s not much in the way of aromatherapy or scents in this product, so you’re not going to get the soothing benefits that are present in the Buddy Wash shampoo that we chose as our overall recommendation. However, the natural scent of lemongrass is zesty and fresh, and we personally prefer it on a purely subjective level.

The only downside to this awesome product is the price point that it’s sold at. It’s $15 for a 16oz bottle (the same size as the product above), which is more or less double the price.

It’s worth pointing out that this is a super concentrated formula, and you will need to use less of the 4-Legger per bathing session than you will with the buddy wash product. However, in our opinion, it’s not concentrated enough to make up for the price increase – which is why it’s our runner up instead of our overall pick.

However, if $15 isn’t out of budget for you, we strongly recommend you give this stuff some serious consideration. It’s a great product, from a great brand, and because it’s such a high-quality product – it’s great value too, despite being more expensive.

Nature’s Miracle Supreme Odor Control Natural Puppy Shampoo & Conditioner

Best Cane Corso Puppy Shampoo – Cane Corso puppies have stronger skin than most other puppies, but they still need something that’s a little gentler than what’s used on their mothers and fathers. Nature’s Miracle Supreme Odor Control Natural Puppy Shampoo & Conditioner is our recommendation for pups – and it’s one of the best in the business.

It cleans and conditions well enough, and it’ll deodorize and nourish your young pup’s coat with ease. However, it’s one of the best products on the market in terms of being tearless – which is important for a breed that hates bathing as much as the Cane Corso.

The early bathing memories of your pooch will be remembered throughout their entire lives, so ensuring that there’s no pain or discomfort from shampoo getting in their eyes should be a top priority.

3 More Top Rated Dog Shampoos For Cane Corso

Here are 3 other great shampoos that we’re going to quickly mention that we suggest you add to your shortlist if the ones above didn’t appeal to you. They’re all winners to have made it into this article today.

Burt’s Bees Oatmeal Shampoo with Colloidal Oat Flour & Honey for Dogs

This is a 97% natural shampoo and conditioner that has more than acceptable levels of performance. Quite honestly, all the other products on this page are better than this stuff – because this is our budget pick. It’s around $5 for a 16oz bottle and considering the price, the performance it provides is brilliant value for money.

Earthbath Oatmeal & Aloe Dog & Cat Shampoo

This is another good all-rounder that uses oatmeal as its main sanitizing agent. Oatmeal is one of the most popular natural deodorizers, and it’s one of the most effective too (it’s almost as good as lemongrass). The conditioner is of a high quality, and it contains some skin care compounds too for complete protection. It’s well worth checking out.

Paws & Pals Oatmeal, Shea Butter & Aloe Vera Shampoo

Again, this product uses oatmeal as its active ingredient. It’s quite honestly very similar to the Earthbath product we just mentioned above. It has a similar level of performance, and a similar ingredient list – and the brand is equally as reputable. This is a great value product at $11 for the 20oz bottle.

Tip: If you try the 20oz bottle and decide that you like it, getting the 1-gallon bottle for $33 is going to save you a huge amount of cash over the long run.

7 Tips On Bathing Your Cane Corso

Ok, so now we know about the grooming requirements of the Cane Corso, and we’ve told you about a few excellent shampoos and conditioners that we recommend for the breed. In this part of the article, we’re going to share a few hints and tips that will make bathing your Cane Corso that little bit easier.

Teach The Bath Command

It’s a good idea to teach your dog a “Bath” command (similar to the “Groom” command we mentioned earlier in this article).

The bossy stubborn nature of the breed makes them a little less likely to come to the bathroom/stay still in the tub when they are not specifically being commanded to do so with an unambiguous command. You need to ensure your pooch understands that when this command has been given it’s time to get in the bath, stand still, and let you do what you’ve got to do.

Be firm with them on this, you’re the boss, they’re having a bath, and there is nothing that they can do about it – make sure that they understand this from day one.

Run The Bath Ahead Of Time

Your Cane Corso is much less likely to come into the bathroom when you call them if they hear the bath water running at the same time. It’s much easier for you to run the bath ahead of time, wait a few minutes to get everything ready, and then finally call them in when they are least suspecting it.

They’re an intelligent breed, so this might not always work, and you need to be a little bit sneaky and clever about this. When they see you in the bathroom calling them in, the game is up and they know what’s coming.

That’s when you use the bath command from the tip above to get them in the tub and get the bathing process started.

Bathe In The Sink When Puppy

If you can make bathing a little less unpleasant for your pooch when they are a puppy, you might have an easier time bathing them when they are an adult. One of the most terrifying and uncomfortable things for any puppy is being bathed in a huge bathtub that’s several times their size.

Imagine if you were placed in a bathtub that’s 6 times your height with water rushing into it filling it up, how would you feel? We’re guessing you’d feel pretty uncomfortable. Now imagine what a young pup feels when this happens and they have absolutely no idea what’s going on or why it is happening.

By bathing your pup in the sink this issue goes away entirely.

Now, Cane Corsos grow very big very quickly, so this tip can only be done for the first month or two of their lives. However, the difference this can make in their life long attitudes to bathing is dramatic. They’re not going to suddenly enjoy being bathed because of this, but they might end up being a little less stubborn and a little more cooperative.

Put A Towel Down

Standing on a slippery ceramic bathtub is hard for a pooch, especially when it’s covered in a healthy layer of warm soapy water. The paws of your dog aren’t designed to be standing on unnatural materials like this, and while they’re probably not falling over in the bath – it almost certainly requires some concentration for them to maintain their balance (which causes stress).

It’s super easy to mitigate this issue by putting a towel down in the bottom of the tub. The grip it instantly provides is more than enough for your pooch to not have to think about standing up in the slightest – which reduces stress levels.

Put Steel Wool In The Sink

Even the reasonably short hair of the Cane Corso can cause issues with your plumbing system over time. It’s a fact of life that when you bathe your pooch a sizeable amount of hair is going to fall out into the tub. Without some kind of protection, these hairs are going to go down your drains and potentially cause a blockage.

To stop this from happening you should get a piece of steel wool and place it in the plug hole before bathing begins. This traps all the hair before it enters your pipes, and it can easily be cleaned after usage (or it can be reused a few times without cleaning and then be thrown away).

Use Two Towels For Drying

With a breed like the Cane Corso, you’re almost certainly going to get a face full of water within a few seconds of the tap being turned off at the end of the bathing session. They have a notoriously strong shaking instinct, and there’s absolutely nothing you can do to stop this from happening.

You can temporarily suspend it sometimes (if you’re lucky) by grabbing the snout of your dog and stopping them from twisting it – because the shaking motion starts from the head. However, this is a temporary fix, and the second you let go, they’re going to shake all over you instantly.

The best thing for you to do to avoid your pooch bathing you after you’ve bathed them is to have a towel in your hand the moment the water turns off. Then instantly throw the towel over their back and take cover. This isn’t going to catch all of the shaking water, but it’s certainly going to help.

Once the shaking is over, get a fresh dry towel and give them a hand dry as per normal.

Have Everything Ready Before Bathing

The final tip is essential for a breed that’s reluctant to bathe as much as the Cane Corso is.

If you leave your pooch unattended in the tub for a few seconds, there’s a very good chance that they’re going to jump out. They don’t care that you’ve left the shampoo or the towels in the other room, they want out – and they want out now.

The shaking we’ve just described in the tip above is bad enough when it’s confined to your bathroom. However, when it’s happening all over your home due to an excitable soaking wet Cane Corso who’s escaped the tub enjoying their new-found freedom, it’s much, much worse.

This is a mistake you’re only going to make once, but trust us, it’s one that’s best avoided altogether if possible.

Check you’ve got everything ready before calling your pooch in, then check again.

FAQ Regarding Bathing a Cane Corso

To conclude this article, we’re going to quickly answer 2 Cane Corso related questions that we repeatedly get asked by our readers.

How Often Do I Need To Bathe A Cane Corso?

Cane Corsos don’t need to bathe all that often. Most owners bathe them around once every 4 to 8 weeks depending upon how dirty and smelly their specific pooch likes to get.

The only exception to this is when your pooch is blowing. Cane Corsos will shed a huge amount of hair during these times, and it’s best to bathe them roughly once a week when molting to keep things fresh, clean, and healthy.

Why Do I Need To Use Warmer Water When Bathing A Molting Cane Corso?

Without getting into the science behind it, the simple answer is because it helps remove loose hair that hasn’t quite become detached yet. You’ll get more hair off of your pooch this way, and it reduces the amount of grooming that’s required (and the amount of household cleaning that’s required too).

Just remember, you shouldn’t use “hot” water when doing this. In fact, anything that’s slightly warmer than lukewarm is too hot. Cane Corsos have reasonably strong skin for a dog – but they are still dogs (and dogs burn at much lower temperatures than us humans).

Conclusion

So there you have it, that’s all there is to know about bathing and grooming a Cane Corso.

We hope that you’ve learned a thing or two about the breed today, if any of the hints and tips we mentioned above are news to you then we’re sure that you and your pooch will have better bathing sessions from this moment onwards.

Any of the product recommendations above are excellent choices, and we strongly recommend you pick one of them unless you’ve got a good reason to try something else.

They are all based on our honest impartial opinions, and we think that they represent the very best the market has to offer right now.

They are all more than worthy of your consideration.

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