Doggie Odor
It’s summer time, that glorious time of year when we have warm weather, sunshine and we run through the sprinklers and play in the hose…..and of course the dogs start to stink to high Heaven!
The natural bacteria and yeast on a dog’s coat can get a bit out of whack with the added warmth and moisture in summer. This can lead to a musty, yeasty smelling dog. If you’ve ever smelled it before you know exactly what I’m talking about!
There are some simple things that can help keep things in balance:
1) wash your dog thoroughly with a good shampoo at least once a month.
2) give your dog a good brushing at least once a week- this helps remove mats and dirt, which improves air and blood circulation near the skin.
3) I use a homemade doggie deodorant spray daily at the first sign of ‘funkiness’ and it usually has things back under control within a few days.
Here’s the recipe:
In a large spray bottle mix
3 cups of water
1/2 cup of white vinegar- for its natural anti-bacterial properties
1/8 tsp of of tea tree oil -for its anti-viral, anti- bacterial and anti- fungal properties.
(optional to add 1/8 tsp of lavender oil)
Mix well and when you spray you dog make sure you rub the spray into the fur so it gets down to the skin.
Michelle, I forgot to say thank you for posting this. I have a couple of stinky dogs that will be getting this sprayed on them this weekend. 🙂
Linda, would you mind sharing your dog shampoo recipe?
Really good post Michelle. I’ve been using this recipe for years. I do use this spray 2x a month on my one dog because he has had skin issues ever since he was a pup and that has been 11 yrs. For shampoo, when I used to buy it I used a good oatmeal shampoo. Now I make my own for the fraction on the cost.
Also, there is garlic treats just for dogs that seem to help the funkiness too.
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