Mud Daddy Review: Is This The Ultimate Dog Washer?

Mud Daddy Dog Washer

The Mud Daddy is billed as the ultimate portable dog washer. Does it live up to the hype and is there a better option? Here’s our full review of the Mud Daddy Portable Dog Washer.

Mud Daddy Size Guide

The Mud Daddy is available in a 5L, an 8L and a 12L version.

We purchased the 5L Mud Daddy a couple of months ago and have set about testing it on our forever filthy Springer Spaniel.

5L is plenty to wash our dog 2 – 3 times. So as an educated guess you could wash 2 – 3 medium sized dogs per fill, 1 or 2 large dogs or perhaps 3 or 4 smaller dogs.

We went for the 5L option so that it would fit nicely into the boot of our car or packed away in our campervan. It does this nicely as it’s a fairly uniform shape so can be tucked into a corner easily.

If you have several larger dogs and aren’t concerned about boot space then we’d recommend the 8L and if you’re a professional dog walker, or have horses to wash, then go for the much larger 12L version.

Using your Mud Daddy

Fill the reservoir from the tap with cold or warm water (can be hot but not boiling).

Then after your dog walk pump the pressurizing lever about 20 – 25 times. This is fairly easy and not too strenuous, should be easy enough for most people who are out walking their dogs.

Engage the trigger and begin scrubbing your pooch.

You can lock the trigger into the on position to save you holding it down constantly. A nice touch but we have found we use more water this way and quite often end up squirting each other, the car and passers-by.

Once you’ve finished washing your dog just unscrew the cap very slightly to relieve any remaining water pressure.

Mud Daddy claim that water will stay warm in the tank for about two or three hours, so you’re pooch won’t have to endure a cold shower after their walk.

We’re yet to use ours in the depths of winter so can’t comment on how long water stays warm for then but during mild spring and summer days the water definitely seems to stay warm for the duration of most walks.

Pro Tip:

Use your Mud Daddy in conjunction with an Equafleece to leave the dirty, damp dog days behind you!

Here’s our full review of an Equafleece Dog Suit!

Other Uses

Not only useful for dogs!

You can use a Mud Daddy to clean muddy boots, pushchair wheels, sandy beach feet and even bikes at a push.

Support, Spares and durability

We were very pleasantly surprised to see a healthy selection of spare parts available on the Mud Daddy website. This gives us confidence that they have done their research on which parts are most likely to wear out first.

Not only that, but they will save you having to payout for a whole new unit allowing you to just purchase the part you need.

That said, ours is going on six months old and still looks, feels and operates as it did on day one, hopefully a good sign for durability.

Mud Daddy Features

Water & Water Pressure

The nice thing about the mud daddy is that you can fill it with warm or hot (not boiling) water before you set off for your walk and then when you get back your dog won’t have to endure a cold shower.

For some reason our dog can’t wait to jump into freezing cold rivers and lakes but hates a cold shower… She genuinely doesn’t seem to mind a shower from warm water in the mud daddy.

In terms of power it isn’t going to win any awards for cleaning patios but that’s probably not what you want to wash your dog. We’ve found the pressure to be ample, especially given that you can scrub the dog at the same time with the brush end of the hose.

We do find that to fully wash our 15KG dog we do have to re-pressure the container once in the middle of the shower – slightly annoying but not a huge issue.

Overall a great way to wash your dog and save water at the same time.

Portability

This where the Mud Daddy comes into its own. No need for a mains water supply or electricity.

You can easily clean off your dog before putting him or her back into the car and prevent that mud bath of a boot.

You can also take the Mud Daddy with you on camping or beach trips to rinse everything off and keep the car, tent or campervan clean and fresh for longer.

Noise Level

If you have an anxious dog who doesn’t like loud noises or vibrations then this is the cleaning product for you.

Because there is no electricity or motors involved the operation is near on silent and will help keep your dog calm and stress free.

Pro Tip: If your dog doesn’t like being hosed down then stick a licki mat with some of their favourite treats down whilst you wash them to keep them occupied.

Overall Effectiveness

Overall we are genuinely pleased by the Mud Daddy. Unrivaled by anything else on the market. It is completely portable and gets the job done quickly and fairly effectively with minimal water usage.

New! Mud Daddy Power Brush!

That’s right – you can now upgrade your existing Mud Daddy and slot in the new power brush to save pumping!

You can get 1 hours worth of use out a charge which is surely enough to clean even the dirtiest of dogs several times over! And if it does run out, just leave the pump arm in the boot of your car for emergencies!

We’ve not had a chance to test out the new Mud Daddy power brush yet as the first batch sold out before we realised it was a thing! But it is firmly at the top of our wishlist just as soon as it becomes available again.

Mud Daddy Alternatives

Standard Garden Pressure sprayer

The Mud Daddy is far, far better than a standard garden pressure bottle, but does reflect that in the price.

The pressure is better, it’s a better shape for transportation and the brush head does provide a lot of advantages

Hose Pipe

Obviously you can’t take a hose pipe with you in the car to clean your dog so portability is a huge win for the Mud Daddy here.

We used to wash the dog down after a walk with a hosepipe connected to our campervan water supply but the Mud Daddy is far more economical in terms of water usage so we do recommend it for road trips.

At home, if you have an easily accessible hose pipe then you probably don’t need a mud daddy. The superior water pressure from a hose will clean the dog quicker and easier than the mud daddy.

That said, if you have a nervous dog or a dog who hates cold water (and your hose is only a cold water supply) then it might be a good idea to give the mud daddy a try as our dog, who is nervous and hates the hose, much prefers the lower pressure and warmer water provided by the mud daddy.