Pets, Fish, Animals - Facts and Tips

Get Rid of Dog Smells, Doggie Odors in Your House, Carpet, Furniture

Dog owners love their dogs, but don't like the dog smells and lingering odors that emanate from the carpet, furniture and whole house. Most pet odors get used to it in a way, but in time they realise that enough is too much to bear, something has to be done about it.

So how do you get rid of those smelly, lingering doggie odors in your house? Well the good news is that it's relatively easily done. The bad news is that you need to follow the tips provided in this article regularly and consistently to keep the odors at bay.

To say goodbye to dog smells and odors, start with the dog - keeping your pooch clean and healthy is a must do.

Next, there are changes ahead for your dog's behavior and access to furniture in your house. Then, it's time to thoroughly clean your house, furniture and carpets.

Finally, there are tips on stop-gap deodorizing methods that work, but do not harm or upset your or your dog.

Learn how you and your dog can share a nice clean, sweet-smelling house, the way you want it to smell.

Check the Health of Your Dog

While many people believe that dogs are naturally smelly, this is not true, especially for some breeds.

Sometimes, the foul smell may be a sign of some aliment or disease, which may be the cause.

This applies not only to the dog's breath, but also to the general body odor. The obvious things to check yourself are listed below. If you have other concerns see your vet.

Fur Problem and Fleas - Dogs that have major flea problems sometimes develop allergies and skin irritations that leave an unpleasant smell on the skin.

Use a flea repellent, treat the areas where fleas breed and use a flea-control shampoo.

Matted hair around the anus an obvious source of smells.

Clean the dog's ears - If your dog is scratching the ears a lot, there are signs of redness or inflammation or there is a foul smelling discharge or deposit in the ears, it's time to take your dog to the vet infection.

Ear infections can cause dog odors and the discharge may get on furniture and carpet.

Change of Diet and General Health - Dogs that are generally unhealthy due to poor diets or a lack of vitamins may have unhealthy skin and fur.

Skin Allergies - Various skin allergies can cause skin infections and scratching leading to odors.

Improve oral hygiene - Dogs develop bad breath when then their teeth and mouths are not looked after properly. This can lead to bad breath and smelly saliva.

Look for signs of tooth decay and gun disease.

Brush the dog's teeth at least once a week and use herbs and dental chews to control bad breath odor.

The mouth smells may be due to intestinal problems that need to be checked if there are no problems with the mouth and teeth.

Left over Food - Some dogs leave food remnants in odd places and these can cause smells.

Start by Cleaning Your Dog Thoroughly

If you want a clean house, start with a clean dog, and get rid of the dog's bad breath and anything that might be causing it. Here are some tips:

• Frequent grooming is required to minimize odors. Brush your dog every day for about five minutes to remove loose hair. This will reduce the amount of fur that accumulates all around the house. Pet hair does have a scent and it adds to the general grime. There are various Furminator devices for thoroughly brushing your dog’s coat.
• Wash your dog frequently and properly. Mix together some all-natural dog shampoo (try homemade ones) with about one cup of apple cider vinegar. This deodorizes and acts as a rinse. Wash your dog thoroughly, without missing any spots. Rub the shampoo and vinegar well into the base of the hair using your fingertips to help massage the skin, and remove dirt around the hair's roots.
• Rinse thoroughly with clean water after washing
• Dry the dog completely before allowing it back into the house. Incomplete or inadequate drying can produce the sour 'wet dog' smell on the dog's coat, that can linger even after the dog dries. The wet doggie small can also be transferred to carpets and furniture. Use lots of clean, thick towels or even an old hair dryer using the lowest heat setting. When the coat is completely dry, brush in a natural deodorizing powder to complete the clean and ensure the smell is fresh. But make sure this doesn't annoy the dog and make it want to roll in dirt and muck.
• Repeat if necessary to eliminate excess oils, dirt, dead hair and bacteria that may still be clinging to your dog's fur and causing odors.
• If after washing your dog a couple of times, the fur still smells bad, apply somemouthwash to a cloth and wipe it over your dog's coat. Rinse off after a few minutes.

Restrict Access to Parts of the House

Time to Review What Your Dog Can, and Can't Do in Your House

If you allow your dog to climbing up the sofa or the bed you will generate a bigger odor and cleaning issues than if you exert more control. There is a middle ground where people put a rug on part of the lounge that the dog knows it is their spot. This makes it easier to keep this area clean by regularly replacing the rug. Exerting some discipline and changing your dog's habits can really help keep odors at bay.

Thoroughly Clean Your House and Furniture

A clean house is a deodorized home. If you have a dog the house will tend to get dirtier quicker and it will stat to smell. It is really that simple. Dogs tend to leave residues everywhere that accumulate and so you will need to clean the house more thoroughly and more frequently than if you did not have a dog.

You need to sweep and vacuum every nook and cranny of your house to get rid of hair, skin cells and general dirt that the dog brings into the house. Take particular care to check under rugs, carpets beds and furniture for loose items and hair.

The best way to deodorize carpets and furniture is using baking soda. Sprinkle it liberally over you carpets, sofas, rugs and bed coverings. Leave it on for a while and then vacuum again thoroughly. The baking soda will generally deodorize the carpet and furniture. If the smell remains you will need to shampoo your carpets and furniture coverings with products that leave a fresh clean smell. Renting carpet and upholstery cleaning machines or getting it done professionally may be required to get a fresh start.

When you wash doggie towels, sheets, rugs and bedding, add some baking soda to the laundry powder, and some white vinegar in the rinse water to provide extra cleaning power and remove odors.

Similarly wash all of your linen, bedding, blankets, rugs, doonas and cushion covers in a mix of good quality laundry detergent. Add about 1/2 cup of apple cider vinegar to the mix, or use it as a rinse.

Deodorizing Tips

There are many commercial products that are supposed to remove odors generally, some of which are designed to neutralise doggie odors. This generally only masks the problem, but may be helpful in the short-term before you can tackle the cause.

       Source: Pleple2000 (Own work), [CC-BY-SA-3.0], via Wikimedia Commons

       Source: Michael McPhee (Own work), [CC-BY-3.0], via Wikimedia Commons

       Source: By Asmadeus (Own work), [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons