What to do About a Smelly Dog

Some dogs are smellier than others. Water dogs like retrievers produce special oil that helps makes their fur water-resistant. They also tend to grow nice thick coats to protect themselves from cold. Unfortunately it makes them tend to get smellier than other dogs.

Avoid Bathing Your Smelly Dog Too often

If you bathe your dog a lot, you may want to DECREASE the frequency. Sometimes, too many baths can dry out a dog’s skin which can cause dermatitis (and smelly fur). Over-cleaning can cause the dog’s skin to compensate for dryness by producing even more oils. Worse, dogs can be more sensitive to some of the common ingredients in shampoos, especially if exposed to them frequently.

Keep full shampoos down to approximately every three months unless your vet advises you differently. For some dogs, too many baths can lead to hotspots. Hotspot can be made worse by flea, tick and mosquito bites.

I made this powder in honor of Iggy, a beautiful golden retriever who was not only prone to hot spots but, as a water dog, smelled pretty doggy.

Watch Out for Doggy Smells that are Unusual

A dog who smells unpleasant might have a medical condition that needs to be explored, anything from food allergies, sensitivity to products, using a shampoo the dog’s skin doesn’t like or hyperthyroidism can increase oil production or smell in a dog. As usual, have these issues checked by your vet to rule out an obvious cause.

I make two products to help dogs and their owners

My Deodorizing Dog Powder and my Doggy Shampoo with Neem Powder try to address smell, sensitive skin and bug problems

When using my powder, you might be able to enjoy snuggling with your dog without needing to cart him off to the groomers. Rich with lemongrass and lemon verbena powder, dogs don’t hate it like they hate perfumy, chemical, fake scents.

My powder is meant to soak up oil and provide a pleasant smelling mild antibacterial that can address smell.

Like getting your dog to run through a Lemon Verbena bush and rolling in diatomaceous earth. Baking Soda to deodorize, colloidial oatmeal to sooth and absorb, lemon verbena to repel insects, fleas and mosquitoes, diatomaceous earth to kill fleas.

Great for dogs who hate baths or older dogs who are having trouble tolerating flea medication (and baths!) Tried and tested on my Charlie (now in doggy heaven), who hated perfumes but didn’t mind this.

Good for new dogs that don’t need the trauma of a bath right away. I used on our new dog Gidget to rid her of dog-pound smell.