I hate to admit this, but our dogs are stinky. Their crates are stinky. Their bedding is stinky. And the breath? Oh, don’t even get me started. Looking for how to get rid of stinky dog smell in your home? Keep reading!
Gus and Woodrow, our two 100-pound Labrador Retrievers, have lived with us their entire lives. They have it made in the shade. These sweeties spend most of their days sleeping side-by-side, lounging pool-side on piles of cushion-y dog beds and being hand-fed snacks by a certain six-year-old. Thankfully, they are low-maintenance dogs, but the one area where they are lacking the most?
Personal hygiene. It’s pitiful. They stink.
Anyone who has ever owned a labrador retriever knows that it takes minutes after a bath for them to smell like a goat with a skunk scented albatross hanging around its neck. The stink clings to their coats and gets left behind on anything they rub against. Which is mostly my carpet, couches and their dog beds. In my experience, cats don’t smell bad unless they spray or pee on things. But dogs are a whole other animal. They just naturally stink. I had to figure out how to remove the dog smell from my house.
So how to get rid of stinky dog smell?
How to Get Dog Smell out of Carpet
Diamond Life Carpet Deodorizer for rugs, carpet, couches, your bed AND your pet beds! Just sprinkle on and vacuum it up and it helps erase the odor. It smells great, and it’s made by a small business so you can feel good supporting her with your purchase! She has other scents, as well.
What Gets Rid of Dog Pee Smell?
If urine a home where dogs have peed (see what I did there?) Angry Orange Pet Odor Eliminator removes stinky pee smells from laundry, shoes, clothing and carpets and so many other things around the house. There is even this kit that comes with a blacklight flashlight so you can act like a criminal investigator and sniff out every pee stain in your home.
This combo totally works! It’s like we have sweet stink-free little baby puppies again! If you need help to remove pet odors in your home, give these two solutions a try. You’ll feel you have sweet little puppies again!
PS- I just ran across these tips on how to get rid of skunk smell if your dog gets sprayed by an actual skunk! I’m including it in case you need to know! Now, if you have any tips on how to make dog breath smell better, please let me know!
This just cracked me up. Probably because I relate so well, too well, to stinky dog smell.
I have NEVER left a negative comment on any blog. But, this post has brought me to tears–very angry tears! I always enjoy your wry humor, Beth, but there is nothing funny about the neglect of animals. Not bathing outside dogs in over seven months is CRUEL. They don’t need a bath just for your olfactory pleasure–they also need dirt & pests airborne irritants removed from their skin. Bathing & hands-on grooming also provides the opportunity to check for ticks, wounds, tumors, etc. I’m not easily angered, but neglect and cruelty to those who can’t speak up for themselves, such as children, and animals makes me very angry and very sad. Having outside pets is possible–but routinely caring for them in a timely and responsible manner is NOT optional, it’s required of caring pet owners. I find using the neglected condition of your dogs to market a product inconceivably shameful!
Thanks for this article! We very rarely bathe our dogs, either….and they are indoors alot. However, our youngest ~ a Golden named Buddy ~ likes to roll around outside in their toilet (you know, the lawn) and he will eventually smell like pee. We run them through the woods and through the meadows and at the beach. So, they have ample opportunity to pick up ticks and other equally unpleasant travelers. We brush and pet them, we always check them out after an adventure because one or both of them can get hurt and we won’t know it until we see the blood, otherwise. I never thought to use my essential oils as stink-eraser! But I’m going to try it. Thanks again.
P.S. I let the dogs have a spoonful of plain Greek Yogurt now and again to help them with their stinky breath. If you haven’t tried it, you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how well it works.
Hooray for Beth!
Years ago an older vet told me the least you bathe them, the better. It dries out the skin if done too often. Several times I have seen owners bathe their dogs all the time in things from Dawn to Baby Shampoo and wonder why the dog is so itchy.
I just listened to a dog groomer talk about this on the Happy Healthy Dog Summit. He said to remember that the gentlest human shampoo is way stronger than the strongest dog shampoo. They need very gentle cleansing so it doesn’t remove the protective oils from their coat. It was a very good informational summit. They even had a Vet speaking about using essential oils on dogs.
Bathing a dog too often DOES cause problems and since their skin has a different pH, you should never use human shampoo.
Merri Jo ,
I have INDOOR dogs that don’t get baths for SEVERAL months. Of course they’re your pets, but you have to remember that they are animals… Example, I have a husky and live in Canada, if I bathed that dog over the winter season I would be removing his undercoat and he would freeze outside. being a pet owner is sort of your duty to routinely check for mites and infestations. But unless you have a prize winning dog these animals don’t NEED to be pampered and groomed every month.
Totally 100 percent agree with you!
Very creative use for those oils Beth, I like it! Covers the smell and does some bug repelling too! Labs come out of the bath stinky if you ask me!
Ohhhh and those puppy pictures are too cute for words! I’ve met and loved on these dogs in person and I can tell you – my Charlie is VERY jealous of Gus and Woodrow’s setup! Except the baths, Gus and Woodrow can be jealous of Charlie’s annual bath! 😉
Charlie B. Barkin is too sweet to stink.
Oh Merri Jo I just saw your comment! I have to let you know that Beth’s dogs are in the absolute best care! I’m an animal-loving vegetarian and approve of her setup! I’ve met Gus and Woodrow in person and they are living the ultimate dream life with freedom to roam (safely), shelter when they need it, a pool to lounge at and a six year old little boy that keeps them very entertained (and fed with treats!)!
I promise you it’s not the vision of ‘outdoor’ dogs you would see on TV or in the redneck backwoods.
Just wanted to follow-up on this post. I had a lab for many years who, at the instruction of my vet, was only bathed when he was dirty (e.g. played too hard in the mud outside). Labs naturally produce oils that keep their fur healthy. Over-bathing or bathing when unnecessary can actually dry them out and cause problems. Letting them play outside daily not only allows them freedom (that they so desperately need), it helps keep their skin moist.
I wish I’d had these oils back then. Cosmo was a smelly, stinky dog who certainly could’ve benefited from some good smelling oils. 🙂
Thanks Nat!
Beth this is great info – I will be buying some of this oil from you!! Calhoun is an indoor dog but he still has a dog smell…shew!
And to the commenter who got upset – let me just say that I’ve been to Beth’s house and have seen this setup first hand. These dogs are happy happy happy. They have an awesome yard and amazing pool deck area to lounge in. They are constantly wagging their tails and smiling. They’re very well behaved, socialized and healthy. I’m a dog owner myself and my pup only gets a bath once a quarter or so (he’s a cocker spaniel so he has to get the hair cut too). These dogs are just fine. Don’t you worry about them – they live a great life!!
Thanks Kent! 🙂
Does it work on stinky teenagers too?
I actually caught my Beagle, Lois Lane rolling in something hideous in the yard yesterday. Thanks for the tip!
Ha! You know it’s funny, but Purification will totally eliminate the smell of stinky sneakers, too! I say spray your teenagers down and see what happens. 🙂
Beth – lm sending this post to my mom! She will LOVE! She has three outdoor dogs. They have raised dogs since before I was born, and don’t get a bath but once a year. The vet is QUITE fine with them being outdoors and bathing them once a year. Some of the happiest dogs I know!
Thanks Jana! We use a mobile Vet who comes to our house to take care of the dogs. Every time she visits she says they are living “the good life”. They are definitely the best and happiest dogs I’ve ever owned. Way back in my single days I had a labrador retriever named Cowboy who was an indoor dog. For years I lived with chewed up door frames and window sills. In 8 years I’ve never had any issues with our dogs chewing or being bored and destructive. They are awesome dogs. Hopefully I didn’t just jinx myself. LOL
Labs can go long periods without proper baths; it’s hardly “neglect.” They have a double coat, which keeps irritants away from their skin and they have a naturally oily coat, being water retrievers, which keeps dirt from accumulating. If you’re not familiar with the breed, it can be easy to misunderstand, but bathing a Labrador more than necessary can actually harm it by removing the natural oils and causing undue shedding.
Beth’s dogs look beyond happy and healthy and I’m sure are quite loved. I think your anger is misplaced.
Thanks for that info, Amber! Labs are like ducks- water rolls right off their back. I call Woodrow “Buffalo Butt” because his coat is SO thick. I think I could make a whole other dog out of the undercoat that I have to shed off of him every spring and summer. Instead I use the extra hairballs to keep the deer out of my flower beds. Works pretty well. 🙂
Agreed! I won’t be following this blog anymore. People like you shouldn’t have pets!
LOL, are you for real? Who are you agreeing with? Cause the rest of us know that this is not “controversial”.
People like who? People who allow their well-behaved dogs to live outside on a super posh porch, with super posh doggie beds, and super posh doggie toys? People who allow their animals the freedom they innately desire, freedom to roam within a secured, fenced area versus sleeping in a cold, small crate all day with no fresh air and no stimulation? People who spend a small country’s budget on vet bills and expensive pet food all to ensure their animals live long, healthy lives?
Yeah, you’re right, people like Beth should NEVER have pets.
Beth, I have a friend who has golden retrievers and the only baths the get are the ones they take themselves in the swimming pool in warm weather. I have three small dogs that I have take to the groomer religiously every four weeks for the past 12 years and honestly after 3 weeks they have the “dog smell”. I can fully appreciate that your methods is not cruel and it seems that you have real life friends who can attest to this. If you lose a couple of readers because of this post that will be ok, too. I am new to your blog so my new membership will cancel out one of theirs. I think your idea for a spritz bath is a great idea.
Aww thanks Cindy! 🙂 A spritz bath is a great name for it! Like a birdie bath for dogs.
I’m jumping on the stinky dog train! My Golden actually gets nasty hot spots if I bathe him too often. Love those sweet pictures of your happy dogs!
Thanks Vanessa! They may be stinky, but we’ve never had any issues with hot spot or allergies on our pups. :knocking on wood:
OMG! And in the last pic I saw your baby outside barefooted. In a wet environment. Oh, never mind, he flourished, didn’t he?
I can only imagine how you will one day take care of your elderly parents. 😉 bahaha I gave Gus and Woodrow some (4 exactly) Steak n Shake French fries when I carried G home Sunday night. Reckon they were fried in the correct doggy oils?
Sigh. Intense makes me want a nap. Gus and Woodrow are probably napping, too. Like them, I have a very spoiled good life. Somebody toss me a French fry and spray me with Beth’s oils if I get too smelly.
Bwahahah!! Good one! I agree, some people need to take a chill pill. My outdoor lab only was bathed when she rolled in the neighbour’s freshly-manured flower bed! ?
I don’t believe that I’ve posted on your blog before. But I read regularly and will tell I too was brought to tears … when reading your story about the ice storm, “God get me to Garrett, God get me to Garrett”. My heart felt your pain and love. It is hard to believe that Merri Jo and Olivia would write such words, when everything about you “reeks” of love. Your post in no way reflects abuse or neglect. We have all heard of, some even seen, actual “abuse”. It’s disheartening that with real animal abuse to direct anger towards, that these to readers would write such comment to you. Submerging a dog in water is not the only way to care for them. Brushing teeth, vet visits, cleaning of anal glands by professionals are all part of animal care. My little dog is almost 13 and has had 2 baths her entire life! Once when she rolled in rabbit poop and once when my other dog peed on her. On the other hand, I have spent $3000. on vet care during the last couple years, dealing with age-related, glaucoma. Your “chicken” based dog food costs more than other options. Selective “abuse”? No, just different styles of care based on the needs of the animal, that should be addressed respectfully.
Thanks so much, Paula, for your kind words. Gus and Woodrow will be turning eight years old next month. They are entering the stage where they will need a lot more care. One of the reasons we bought this current house that we are in was so the dogs would not have a single set of steps to walk up and down as they get older. Our old house had a huge flight of stairs that they had to run up and down daily to get to the backyard. It wasn’t ideal for dogs with old hips. I’m glad we don’t have to worry about that. Thanks again for your support. Pet care is always a hot topic.
😉 Years of practice?
Awesome tip!!! I already “pinned” it! Thank you!!!!! I love this tip! I don’t mind bathing my dog, but it amazes me how quickly the stink comes back!!! Plus it’s not good for their coats to over- bathe them. This will be perfect!!!!!!!
Thanks so much!
Beth, I’m going to order some of this essential oil from you because our dog stinks to high heaven right now. We’re going to take her to the groomers next week (have to wait until the retirement checks flies in here because it’s so expensive!) 🙂
You’re a hoot, Beth! I’m so glad you posted this. My dogs are much smaller than yours and have to be clipped so they go to the groomer about every six weeks. Their sweet, freshly washed smell only lasts a few days though and I’m too lazy to bathe them every week. Sad, but true. Definitely going to order some of this from you!
Wow, it’s like a mind- and heart-opening lovefest in this comment section. Love it!
I’ve told Beth this before, but there was a time I looked down on people with outside dogs as well. My experience with outside dogs was always that they were neglected, lonely animals who weren’t part of the family (or worse). In upstate NY, the weather kept the humans in and the pups out. Heartbreaking!! Beth and G&W were actually what challenged my bias on that. I saw loved, happy dogs very integrated with and bonded to the family. It reminded me of summers on the farm with everyone indoor-outdoor. (Yes, dogs can learn to open screen doors LOL.) Hmmm… that reminds me, I met those boys in the house…
Anyway, biases tend to stick around until challenged, so props for a great story and the dialogue Beth!! I, too, can attest to G&W’s happy life… and their stinkiness, which was impressive in a lab-elicious way but can’t compete with my dog Huxley’s funk!
awesome! definitely have to check these oils out and soon!
We totally need this for Fenway. Asher (our Yorkshire Terrier) gets a bath every 2-3 weeks but Fenway (the Dalmatian) can’t be washed more than 3-4 times a year due to allergies. We have found that 3 or 4 might actually be too many and sometimes it’s only twice a year. I get soooo over the dog smell, constantly washing bedding and hoping our guests don’t notice the smell… So glad to hear that something works!
Our two dogs are in the same boat. Stink, stank, stonk! This sounds like a miracle product.
WOW!! telling someone they shouldn’t own pets because they don’t bathe their dogs regularly??!! I have a lab who stinks to high heaven this winter (I live in WI so outside time for him lately isn’t much) He has gotten two baths since Nove,mber and that was only because he would be traveling in our car and we didn’t want to smell him for a 2 hr trip! I take my dog to a local pet wash (its inside a car wash) and in the summer I just shower him on our deck with the hose! He loves getting bathed and when I get the hose out he actually tries to attack the mist being sprayed (makes for a difficult time watering the flowers when he follows me around)
Why have dogs if you keep them outside and make them sleep in crates in the garage? Dogs are pack animals. Forcing them to live a solitary life outside and wear shock collars is not my idea of kindness. I, too, find this post disturbing.
Do essential oils for odor work on carpet? Ceramic tile?
Yes for carpet. You can mix up some Purification with alcohol (vodka even!) and spray it on carpet. Alcohol helps it dry faster.
I’d be cautious using oils on ceramic just for the slipperyness factory, but you could try a small area and test it out. 🙂 I doubt it would hurt the actual tile, I just don’t want to cause anyone to fall.
Think this would work for car upholstery? I take my chocolate lab just about everywhere, meaning my Jeep smells like my sweet Zoey all the time… yuck.
Thanks!
Yes! I do think it would work on car upholstery. You can do a test patch first to make sure it won’t fade anything. I would NOT use this anywhere near plastic (like car upholstery binding, etc) as the citrus oils will eat through/ degrade petrochemicals like plastic or vinyl.
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Ha! Leslie Anne…your comment really made me chuckle. I have two stinky beagles that LOVE to roll in equally stinky stuff and a stinky teenager!
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Merri Jo, I haven’t been a regular reader of this blog, since I just discovered it a few minutes ago on pinterest, (however, I plan to check out more of it now). I am glad you have such a passion for animals. However, I think you are overreacting a bit. I am the first one to get all upset over animal neglect, but I can clearly see these animals are not neglected. I am like the author, I grew up in a poorer area of the south. I have seen true animal neglect. I am aware of true animal cruelty. This is definitely not neglect. Heck, my spoiled, regularly bathed, inside Labrador would be jealous if she knew of their life by the pool.
To the author of this, I am interested in this for our between bath days. I just wanted to know if there is any indication that this might be unsafe? I am intrigued at the idea of using essential oils, but I also am a believer in “just because it’s natural, doesn’t mean it is necessarily safe”. I admit I haven’t researched it yet, and I am more than capable of using google 😉 I am sure you wouldn’t use anything that you knew to be unsafe, but do you know if there has been any research on it? Thanks for posting this. I am looking forward to checking out the rest of your blog and pinterest site.
Thanks Heather! if you’re game for some heavy duty reading, I just stumbled up on this study by the EPA on the effects of several essential oils that can be used as an insecticide, including some specifically to be used on pets. http://www.epa.gov/oppsrrd1/REDs/old_reds/flower_veggie_oils.pdf
I just tried this on my two dogs and it is fabulous! This going to be great for between baths. Thank you so much for sharing!
WOOHOOO!! SO glad it worked for you Suzy! 🙂
I love this post. Just have now stumbled upon your blog. My Boston terrier-Pomeranian mix in an indoor dog and she is underbathed as well lol. Mainly because she gets really itchy. Hey I am thinking this might be a good spray for my newly teenaged son and his room. He is underbathed as well. Not by my choice, His. He’s stinky too. LOL. People are way too intense.
Wow, what a nice response! I would not have been so pleasant had I been attacked like that. I’m sure you are a great dog mom. 🙂
THIS REALLY WORKED!!!!! I would have to give my Timon a bath everyday if I wanted him to smell like the sweet little puppy that he does now. By the way he is 9 yrs old and loving life right now!!!!! Thanks so much
Which Essential Oils did you use to spritz your dogs?
Beth-
First, I love your dogs’ names! We watch Lonesome Dove (while curled up with our lab) over and over again. Second, I want to try this puppy spray (so I can ENJOY curling up with my lab! ) and am wondering what type of spray bottle you used. Should it be glass because of the oil? Or is plastic ok because it’s not “citrusy”? Thanks in advance!
Does this mixture need to be in a glass spray bottle or will plastic be ok? 🙂
Plastic will be fine for this use!
We too have a chocolate lab who is quite stinky and doesn’t get bathed much. Everytime I book her for a bath at the vet it turns I to a a bill over $200. It’s worse than going for an oil change because you feel like you cannot say no because this is your baby. She’s impossible for me to bath alone because she weighs as much if not more than I do. How much is the oil? My problem is the area of my back porch where she lays when she’s outside stinks now and it’s horrible. I wonder if I could clean that area of concrete w the oil? Thanks!!
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Beth, just saw your blog post and think it is a great idea. ( I did the same thing tonight then thought I should research what others are doing to.) I just got home from a run in the rain with my mutt and we played in the lake for a good twenty minutes. He smells like an awful wet dog and the worst thing is he sleeps right by our bed. Anyways threw some on him tonight and we are still in the same room as him 🙂 for a suggestion about bad breath, could you add peppermint to their water…??? I am really new to this as I got my first oils in the mail yesterday! (Hopefully this post works the second time around)
If it makes you feel any better, several Vets (including a Small Animal Veterinary Professor at Auburn University) have told me it is more unhealthy to wash my Labradors more than every 3-6 months because a) it dries out their oily water-repelling coat, b) it’s pointless since they stink naturally and **belong outside** where they get dirty anyway, and c) it literally makes them forget their own scent causing them to forget that they are dogs, not humans! They are happy outside where they can explore, play, get dirty and freely wallow on their choice of poop or dead prey animals! Some people just don’t understand this concept. I wash my Labbies only about every 4-6 months, at which they act pitiful like I’m actually torturing them, so one might have an argument that bathing them is actually animal abuse! Like yours though, they are very well taken care of….heck, they eat and live better than some people I know…but they’re still dogs…they lick their butts and roll on dead birds for goodness sake! ! 🙂
I love the grand idea in this post though. I’m just now discovering the wonders of essential oils and I can’t wait to try this out!
Great post! I have a mutt who always stinks unless the groomer uses the harsh deskunking formulas on him which I imagine can’t be good for his general bathing. He likes to roll in gross things when outside so I do bathe him more often than I normally would another low maintenance short haired dog. I am very interested in trying this and any more information you could share about what the oils are used for. I also wonder on the recipe at the end of your post about the flea, tick and mosquito repellant if I were to make this and go the route of soaking his collar in it how often would I need to soak? I currently use a 6 month tick collar from the vet (so far so good I was using the 3 month ones last year with little to no effect) but using something natural sounds much more appealing (esp to this chick who is allergic to pesticides)
Are there any other oils we can use like this for the smell? I have a bunch laying around my house and would hate to spend the money when I can use what I already have.
I have (all Nature’s Sunshine brand):
Tea Tree
Cinnamon Leaf (doubt I can use that)
Lavender Fine
Breathe Free
Geranium
Pink Grapefruit
Wild Orange
Lemon
Thanks!
WOW, never in my wildest imagination did I think your dogs were neglected because you didn’t bathe them in 7 months. They look absolutely healthy and radiant in all the pictures I’ve seen. I prefer not to bathe my Corgi very often, either. Bathing tends to dry out a dog’s skin. Even a double-coated dog like a Corgi. You keep doing what you’re doing. 😉
This article is intersted and I must to follow it. I Love labradors
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Beth is there any way you could mail me a sample? My jack Russel mix has horrible allergies to everything and he stinks soooo bad..but want to make sure his skin can handle it.. he even gets severely irritated with oatmeal honey baths!!