Dog Community

Doggy Smell?

Posted : 7/13/2006 6:26:04 PM

I am just wondering if there are ways to keep the doggy smell down on the dog themselves and around the house. I love my dogs, but sometimes the smell can be overwhelming.

--Sara

Karen

Posted : 7/13/2006 6:28:21 PM

Can I ask how often do you bath the dog?

alieliza

Posted : 7/13/2006 6:54:48 PM

They make something along the lines of a doggy body splash. Any pet store should have it. Its like cologne to keep the smell at bay between baths.

SaraD

Posted : 7/13/2006 7:21:39 PM

They get bathed once a week on Saturdays.

--Sara

jones

Posted : 7/13/2006 7:21:53 PM

Dogs shouldn't smell all that much... actually that depends on breed somewhat. Some Labs and hounds can have a doggy smell. But for the most part there shouldn't be an overpowering smell to them... if there is, there may be a problem with their diets. I'm sure my house and clothing have a faint dog smell to non-dog people but it's not something I ever notice, even coming in from outdoors... if you are surrounded by it and still find it overpowering I'd say that's unusual and you may want to look into dietary issues.

jeano

Posted : 7/13/2006 7:28:38 PM

What kind of dogs do you have?

Hound dogs do have more doggy dog smell, but I love the way they smell, LOL!

Sofia has her porcupine hair (coyote hair) on her back ridge, and it is VERY oily and accounts for quite a bit of her doggy smell. Once again, I like the way she smells. It's not strong enough for most people to notice.

Probably the number one smelly thing that can be wrong is impacted anal glands. I'd check that first. A poor diet can make them sell more, as well, as Erin said. Many, many dogs have bad breath due to little or no dental hygiene, and a dental checkup should be done if they have stinky breath.

That about covers it as far as I know!

I don't think frequent bathing is a good idea, either. I'd go with once a month rather than once a week, unless you live near a beach or lake with lots of yummy, fragrant rotten things to roll in!

Xebby

Posted : 7/13/2006 7:52:24 PM

A lot also can depends on what the dog eats. Some dogs that eat really umm.. crapy food tend to small really bad due to poor nutrition. Of corse there are a million things that determin the smell of a dog.

I would not bath a dog more than every two weeks or longer. Bathing can remove oils that are important to your dogs coat and sking and creat even more problems.

glenmar

Posted : 7/13/2006 8:13:50 PM

I live with six german shepherds, so not remotely small dogs, and no one who comes into my home can tell I have dogs by any odor. The loud greetings or the furry furniture if someone drops by unannounced, yeah, but never from an odor. Dogs shouldn't smell doggie, and with baths that often they outght to be smelling like roses.....unless they are getting a really poor quality diet or have an underlying medical problem.

Julitza

Posted : 7/13/2006 8:25:49 PM

Dogs shouldn't smell doggie, and with baths that often they outght to be smelling like roses

Glenda, I have always heard that the mor you bathe a dog the more they smell. Maybe i'm wrong?

Lizzie doesnt really stink but when she is crated for the night, when you open the door to go into the guest room it REALLY stinks

Paula Diffenbaugh

Posted : 7/13/2006 8:48:20 PM

My nephew has a Springer Spaniel and poor Skipper always has an odor that is due to his stinky ears. I understand that this is a major concern with this breed. What kind of dog do you have? There are many reasons for odor like everyone has said. But if you are bathing that often and they are still smelling maybe you need to see your vet for a check up.

glenmar

Posted : 7/13/2006 8:50:19 PM

Thats a good question, and not one I'm sure I can answer.

My dogs get baths sooooo rarely that I'm not sure I can say when the last time was. Back in January, Theo had a bath....cuz I was doing Trinity and Solo for their meeting with their new mom to be.....and Tyler had one the day before the MS Walk...his first in months. They all probably had baths before it got cold last fall when I could still bathe them outside. And truely, they just flat don't smell. If we take them swimming someplace questionable...if I don't feel real comfy with the water quality or it has on off smell, I hose them off really well....regular baths just aren't a way of life around here....

jones

Posted : 7/13/2006 9:17:17 PM

ORIGINAL: LizzieCollie
Lizzie doesnt really stink but when she is crated for the night, when you open the door to go into the guest room it REALLY stinks

Actually this is the one time I can smell dog in the house, when Russell's been sleeping the bedroom and I open the door... I LOVE that smell! It's not stinky to me, it smells warm and musky in a nice way.

shamrockmommy

Posted : 7/13/2006 10:01:17 PM

My dogs have never had a smell until we moved to Oklahoma. Outside smell here smells like rotten garbage and when the dogs potty- even fresh and clean from a just finished grooming, they come inside reeking of outside smell. It only takes a couple of minutes too. Gross.

My solution is to move in November

Xerxes

Posted : 7/13/2006 10:23:07 PM

I would ask two questions: What type of food is the dog eating? and What type of shampoo are you using?

Diet can impact a dog's coat, oil production and other things. A high quality diet will reduce some of that impact. But the reduction takes time it won't happen overnight.

If you are using a shampoo that is too harsh, you might be removing too much of the dog's natural oils and creating "hot spots" that the dog is continually scratching, this can cause skin infection and odor. On the other hand if the shampoo you are using is too weak, you may not be getting enough of the dirt off of their coats.

mudpuppy

Posted : 7/14/2006 11:43:30 AM

gee, I bathe only once every six months and we have no doggy odor except when the dogs are soaking wet (then we get "wet dog smell"). I'll bet it's the diet. What do you feed?