Dog smelling

Ms Tootsie

Hi all

Recently we got our wheaten groomed and got a much shorter cut that normal. Since then we have noticed he is smelling a bit more and his odour is a lot stronger. We frequently wash (usually every 2-3 weeks) and he is fed a mixture of a fresh raw diet which he has been on for several months.

He never had an odour before, is it just this time or year or are we just smelling it more because of the shorter cut? Anything we can give him to help with it as it is particularly strong when he has been in his crate in the hall with the doors to other rooms closed.

Also how often should we change his bed in his crate? It is just a cushioned one. Should it be every couple of months? We have this one about 8 months but have washed it maybe 5 or 6 times. I'm just wondering could that be causing the odour?

Thanks.

Kukey

Those cushions get very smelly & would need to be washed at least once a week,although I know they take ages to dry.I use vet bed for my dogs,it washes well & drys quickly.It also doesn't smell as bad as those cushions.I also bought waterproof crate mats in Argos for a bit of comfort under the vet bed,this only needs a wipe down and they have plastic dog beds as well.:)

Ms Tootsie

Daft question but what is a vet bed?

Knine

kaza2710 wrote: »

Daft question but what is a vet bed?

It is fleece type material with deep pile that keeps a dog dry and warm. Some are non slip. They come in various colours and wash easily and dry very quick.

Its all I use. I change all bedding once a week or sometimes more often. I use it in crates, the car and in plastic dog beds. Sometimes I put some on the floor for the dog to sit on rather then using a bed.

Kukey

Here it is here http://www.zooplus.ie/esearch.htm#q=Vet%20bed Most pet shops sell it on a roll and you can choose how much you want off it.Its great stuff & dogs love it.

westies4ever

could he possibly have a yeast or skin infection? or have you changed food recently?

DeVore

I use Vet Bed and whiles its expensive its very good. Unfortunately Josh loves it so much that he gnaws holes in it and literally chews it into lumps. All the same, it still works as bedding and he drags the biggest lump of it around the house as a kinda portable bed / chew toy. Its supposedly indestructable to chewing but dont you believe it . Its a good investment anyway, recommended.

I bought him one of those soft cushion beds at the start. This is what happened to it:

Who? Moi?! by devoresphotos, on Flickr

tk123

Don't confuse crappy vet bed from the petshop with the real deal from Broteglen.ie! Much better quality and better rubber backing

Ms Tootsie

westies4ever wrote: »

could he possibly have a yeast or skin infection? or have you changed food recently?

We ruled out skin infection. Although how would we check for a yeast infection?

His food has been the same for months, we dont change food much due to his food allergies

westies4ever

kaza2710 wrote: »

We ruled out skin infection. Although how would we check for a yeast infection?

His food has been the same for months, we dont change food much due to his food allergies

I see now hes on the raw diet so its unlikely food related. i presume the vet would need to do a skin swab to check for yeast infection. have a google of it - theres loads of info. my own little lady suffers from allergies and I always know if they're troubling her as she smells strongly/different. i actually just noticed her a bit smelly this morning - this time of year they generally flare up.

DBB

kaza2710 wrote: »

We ruled out skin infection. Although how would we check for a yeast infection?

His food has been the same for months, we dont change food much due to his food allergies

Yeast infection is characterised by a pretty distinctive yeasty smell from the dog, and the skin and hair often develop a greasy look and feel. If he's prone to food allergies, you can bet your bottom dollar he's prone to yeast infections too! Would any of this sound right for him?

tk123

westies4ever wrote: »

my own little lady suffers from allergies and I always know if they're troubling her as she smells strongly/different. i actually just noticed her a bit smelly this morning - this time of year they generally flare up.

Wow thanks for saying that because I've been saying the same thing about our guy smelling different - he nornally breaks out in hotspots/blisters around his tummygroin/legs so been checking him every day for signs of it.

Could it be AGs OP - did the groomer empty them?

Ms Tootsie

Yeah the groomer emptied his AG. He got a full work up.

If yeast infections / allergies play up at this time of year maybe thats what it is. Best bet is to take a trip to the vet I am guess? Ask him to check for a yeast infection?

Ms Tootsie

tk123 wrote: »

Wow thanks for saying that because I've been saying the same thing about our guy smelling different - he nornally breaks out in hotspots/blisters around his tummygroin/legs so been checking him every day for signs of it.

He had 'pimples' before when his allergies were playing up but I checked all over him (much MUCH easier to do with the shorter hair :rolleyes:) and there was no sign this time. Everything else seems fine, his mood is great, usual hyper self, stools are grand so the food allergies must be in check.

DBB

kaza2710 wrote: »

Yeah the groomer emptied his AG. He got a full work up.

If yeast infections / allergies play up at this time of year maybe thats what it is. Best bet is to take a trip to the vet I am guess? Ask him to check for a yeast infection?

A skin scrape will confirm, but you'll have to wait for results! There is definitely a seasonal influence with these things, many owners reporting that it becomes less seasonal over time. I'm reasonably sure that Wheaties are a bit prone to skin problems? You may just find that he has an allergy to chicken, hence the raw food not appearing to work as well as it usually does.

Ms Tootsie

DBB wrote: »

A skin scrape will confirm, but you'll have to wait for results! There is definitely a seasonal influence with these things, many owners reporting that it becomes less seasonal over time. I'm reasonably sure that Wheaties are a bit prone to skin problems? You may just find that he has an allergy to chicken, hence the raw food not appearing to work as well as it usually does.

Oh they are indeed! There are very few allergies they are not prone to :rolleyes: still, as long as we dont feed him stuff that aggravates them they are very very easy to keep in check so I cant complain. They only really are aggravated by cheapy crap food such as pedigree and the likes. We found that a lot of chicken can cause him to itch a lot so we only give him raw chicken as a 'high value treat' for training and he gets one raw chicken leg a week. The rest of the time it is mainly beef, lambs liver, hearts, livers and pork along with beef scraps. Appetizing

Dont mind waiting for the results. Would rather know one way or the other. I presume it is fairly straight forward to treat from what I found on the interwebs.

DBB

I absolutely LOVE Wheaties, I think they look... Perfect! Pity about the damn health issues though.
Yes, you can use a medicated shampoo to treat it, but it might also be worthwhile investigating dietary stuff which helps reduce yeast... That is assuming he has a yeast infection!

Ms Tootsie

DBB wrote: »

I absolutely LOVE Wheaties, I think they look... Perfect! Pity about the damn health issues though.
Yes, you can use a medicated shampoo to treat it, but it might also be worthwhile investigating dietary stuff which helps reduce yeast... That is assuming he has a yeast infection!

Down to the vets tonight to get his latest worming tablet so we will check it out then. Might even get him a wee pigs ear as a treat.

Ah yes, the health issues. Not that you would know it to look at him!

Frodo and his arch enemy the toy dinosaur


As I said though we are lucky that his health issues are very treatable just by adjusting his diet

westies4ever

omg hes gorgeous! such a sweet face as well!

ABajaninCork

OP. Have you tried rinsing him off with warm water with a drop of tea tree or lavender oil added? Both are very good for calming the skin, and he'll smell nice!

Mine has doggy hay fever and I also find camomile tea good for his skin too.

tk123

Just rememebered - the other week my brat rolled in a dead bird and a groomer I know on FB told me to wash the area with a litre of warm water with 1cap of vinegar so might be worth a try. I find too depending on what shampoo you use if the dog gets wet the stink!

Ms Tootsie

Oh tea tree oil and vinegar. Good tips. Will try those if the vet rules out the yeast. It might just be the time of year for him to be a bit smelly so those might help.

Gorgeous as he is he is also a wee devil. When I am putting away the washing I have to put the dinosaur at the stop of the stairs otherwise he steals any clothes I leave unguarded for a split second and takes them to his bed!

westies4ever

kaza2710 wrote: »

When I am putting away the washing I have to put the dinosaur at the stop of the stairs otherwise he steals any clothes I leave unguarded for a split second and takes them to his bed!

too cute!:P

DBB

kaza2710 wrote: »

Frodo and his arch enemy the toy dinosaur

LOL

kaza2710 wrote: »

Gorgeous as he is he is also a wee devil. When I am putting away the washing I have to put the dinosaur at the stop of the stairs otherwise he steals any clothes I leave unguarded for a split second and takes them to his bed!

LOL again :D:D
Gotta lurve the terriers

tk123

We have a similar force field to stop my eejit trying to hide under table - he doesn't realise he's grown too big lol!
(He doesn't like umbrellas) lol at the spongebob dummy by the chair

JustAThought

Haha brilliant! Dinosaur & evil tablecloth gaurds!!

OP mine smelt like a pig farm but LOOKED ok last week - turned out she had sneeky eated something demonically foul causing her to leak effluent smells consistantly -she had rolled in something evil which had got encrusted into her collar :0

A day with all the windows open & a shampoo & collar change later ...and she's back up overloarding on the couch : )

Ms Tootsie

Just a quick updates, had him down in the vets who took a whiff of him. He said he strongly doesnt think it is a Yeast Infection - he said there is a very distinctive smell that is associated with yeast infections.

Bathed him last night with the Jonsons sensitivity shampoo and a drop of tea tree oil. Going to pick up a decent bed for him in the bed shop this evening. Vet said we really shouldnt be using those cushion beds for longer than a six months as they are a hive for germs and bacteria which could be causing the problem. That, and washing the bed in washing powder and softner which could be irritating his skin.

When I lifted out his bed I also found a 'buried' bone so that probably wasnt helping matters!

eisenberg1

kaza2710 wrote: »

Just a quick updates, had him down in the vets who took a whiff of him. He said he strongly doesnt think it is a Yeast Infection - he said there is a very distinctive smell that is associated with yeast infections.

Bathed him last night with the Jonsons sensitivity shampoo and a drop of tea tree oil. Going to pick up a decent bed for him in the bed shop this evening. Vet said we really shouldnt be using those cushion beds for longer than a six months as they are a hive for germs and bacteria which could be causing the problem. That, and washing the bed in washing powder and softner which could be irritating his skin.

When I lifted out his bed I also found a 'buried' bone so that probably wasnt helping matters!

Hi, just wondering how you are getting on re the yeast problem? I have a male wheaten, almost four, and no smell issues, but he has (on and off) what the vet describes as acne.....just on his back, they don't seem to bother him, but annoys me:). As far as I can figure is an issue with the wheatens.

aonb

Kaza, he is so gorgeous. I love Wheatens too, but the health problems....
Having an Arch Enemy is so useful!! We have one here too! :rolleyes:
(Just out of curiosity - why dont they get 'used' to their arch enemies eventually?!?!?)

Ms Tootsie

eisenberg1 wrote: »

Hi, just wondering how you are getting on re the yeast problem? I have a male wheaten, almost four, and no smell issues, but he has (on and off) what the vet describes as acne.....just on his back, they don't seem to bother him, but annoys me:). As far as I can figure is an issue with the wheatens.

It wasnt yeast. A good bath and a change of bed and the problem was resolved. Vet said it could just have been the time of year as well.

Never had the acne issue with him!!! I wonder if it is uncomfortable for your wheaten. Poor breed has so many health issues. Wouldnt swap him for the world though

Ms Tootsie

aonb wrote: »

Kaza, he is so gorgeous. I love Wheatens too, but the health problems....
Having an Arch Enemy is so useful!! We have one here too! :rolleyes:
(Just out of curiosity - why dont they get 'used' to their arch enemies eventually?!?!?)

I have no idea. Two years they have been cohabiting together and he still wont pass him on the stairs :rolleyes: handy to have though as you say. Although I am pretty sure some visitors to our house have seen the dinosaur on the way to the bathroom and wondered what the hell it would all about!!