smelly dog problem

[muffy32]

My dog stinks!! she is a Bulldog so I expect her to smell a bit but she seems to have got worse over the last few months, now the smell is overtaking the house and its unbearable. I have tried to bath her regularly with different shampoos and she has clean bedding daily.
I have taken her to the vet and we have tried lots of pills etc but to no avail, she still smells bad ( its a very strong doggy smell) the vet doesnt really give me an indication of what wrong just sends me to the reception desk to get yet more pills and pay yet more money.
I really cant afford £40 every ten days or so, so I think I will change vets especially as they never tell me anything. thing is changing vets costs £30 to do in this area as you have to pay for your dog to have a thorough MOT at the new vet practice when you change over. I am assuming they will give me some pills to try which will cost more money so I will have to wait a while til I get some money together.
in the mean time does anyone have any ideas how I can help to de stink my skunky dog as she has become very unpopular in the house, the kids cant play with her at the mo cos she smells so bad and it makes them smell to.
I wondered if anyone had any ideas to

 

[AmyMay]

The more house bound a dog the smellier they become in my experience. The dogs on the farm never smell as they run around outside most of the day.

Could she do with more fresh air??

 

[samerlin]

Bath her in baby shampoo and once completely dry give her a light coating of baby talc..............makes them smell all babyish..........

 

[K9Wendy]

Do you know where the smell is actually coming from? ie her face, ears, bum? If the smell is from the folds of skin around her face and jowl, after bathing her in a good shampoo rinse with a dilute mix of Listerine (the mouthwash) & water. If the smell is from bum direction check if she needs her gland expressed. If ears, then clean with a mix of 1/3 white vinegar 1/3 water. 1/3 surgical spirit..

If dog just smelling strong all over then a coal tar shampoo can be benefical, but not everyone likes the smell of that, I love it!

 

[Tufty]

my dog lives outside for most of the day and it really stinks, I thought it smelt more because it was outside and it produced more oils to protect his coat. Someone told me the more you bath a dog the more it smells, unless of course you bath it every day then it wont. - rambling now !

Seriously I dont think there is an awful lot you can do they either smell or not luck of the draw.

 

[cheeryplatypus]

we usually take ours to the beach, being a lab she loves to swim and the salt water seems to clean the coat without being too harsh. smelly dog no fun though, totally sympathise with you. have you washed its bedding after each bath, when solo smells we usually find her bed really stinks

 

[muffy32]

yeah I change her bed every day cos it gets stinky and it is definately fresh bedding when she has been bathed.
The smell is from her body, I have had her bum glands checked, her ears are fine etc etc she just has a smelly body ( although she never looks greasy/oily)
I use hibiscruff when I bath her and usually add a touch of Nizoral shampoo ( for skin conditions) I have tried doggy deoderants ( spray and shampoo) as well as very strong smelling human shampoos.
I might give the listerene idea a go cos thats quite strong smelling, even if it masks it for a while it would be a short but welcome relief. I will try anything at the mo as my house is starting to really smell, its awful

 

[cheeryplatypus]

what about her diet?
solo is fed a herbal food but when her arthritis plays up and she gets cod liver oil you can smell the fishy smell. maybe you could feed yours something to help
dogs love curry powder (mild!

) maybe a little in his food would help mask the doggy smell, would prob take a few days to build up tho

 

[muffy32]

i have tried a few different types of food to see if that helps but it doesnt seem to make any difference, she has a diet that is recomended for her breed as they are known for their sensitive bellies
I will defo bear the curry powder in mind tho, thanks x

 

[chunk]

i sympathise completly first of all id like to express that you vet is a nutter
in my opinion herbal shampoo or anticeptic spray should get rid of the problem completly

hope it helped

 

[WishfulThinker]

Does she need her anal gland drained by any chance?? My friends Jack Russle becan to smell - funny - so they took her to the vets and he drained this thing near her anus. Seems she had been rubbing it and it was making her pongy

 

[muffy32]

no she had her glands checked.
I went and brought some listerene, more hibiscrub and some polytar shampoo today and I hope to be able to change vets soon, Im not sure how much longer I can cope with the pong

 

[AmyMay]

Muffy, just another thought - does she have a problem with her thyroid?

 

[snoopyinfrance]

OK, here goes - I've had a couple of thoughts. This problem cropped up a few times while I was working for the Hearing Dogs for the Deaf.
Try these:
Diet - Eucenuba (please don't trust my spelling!) stops the poops smelling (not related to your problems but may interest others!).
Skin - with all the washing you're doing you are stripping the essential oils from the coat. She may need extra oils in her diet. Try cod liver oil or even olive oil. This has worked on several dogs I've trained.
I have tried all sorts of fancy shampoos on various dogs and have found that good old washing up liquid is the most effective. They all rolled after a wash in 'proper' shampoo, but not after washing up liquid. Can't explain it, but it stops mine smelling for weeks!
Breath - does she go with you to the horses (if you have any)? If so, does she eat their poos? This gets into the system, like garlic, and then seeps out through the pores!

If the problem is her coat I would start by looking to her diet - ie; do you need suppliments (oil) or to change what she eats?

Good luck - I'd be very interested to know if any of anyones suggestions have helped at all. We can all learn new tricks!