What do I need to groom my dog at home.

What you need to groom your dog at home will depend on what type of dog you have. As well as how much you want to do at home. Do you want to just do touch ups and baths while taking fluffy in to the groomer to have the full haircut done? Do you want to do it all your self? I will lay out a general guide line of products that are useful. If you want to you can leave a comment and tell me your dogs breed and what you want to accomplish with his groom and I can give you a more detailed list.

For basic bathing you will need a good shampoo an oatmeal is a good choice, conditioner maybe used if the dog needs it.  (if you have a dog that has "Hair" ie. shihtzu you will want to be cautious of conditioners they can weigh down the coat and leave your puppy oily) Most dogs will do fine with just a oatmeal shampoo, but if your dog has yeast issues go for a hypo allergenic type shampoo. Oatmeal will have sugars that will feed the yeast and may lead to a yeast bloom. When to use a conditioner, if you need to loosen a dogs coat (double coated breeds) or if your dogs coat is very dry. If your dog has dry skin you need to get to the source of the dry skin, using shampoos and conditioners won't do much to fix the problem.  It will be helpful to get some tub restraints like the ones pictured below. 

The suction cup can be used on any tub. You can use any grooming loop or a kennel lead ( you see these at vet clinics for your use if you have no leash) the advantage to the ones above is that they don't get wet, they are durable and they are easy you just slip over Fluffy's neck and clip on the suction cup.
Have your towels ready and with in reach there is no need to have special mirco fiber towels a few old ones will do the job. If you dont have a double coated dog you can get away with drying them with your hair dryer or a small pet dryer Like the one on the left below. If you have a double coated dog or one that sheds like crazy you will need to invest in a good forced air/high velocity dryer like the blue one in the center. They are pricy at $300-$400 but so worth it. If you have a Samoyed, Husky or other equally hairy breed you will spend anywhere from $50-$120 on a single groom. This dryer will pay for it self in no time.  That is it for bathing. After bath will come in the next post.