How does your dog smell?

“Mmmm! Frito feet!” Isn’t it the best dog smell, ever?

Everyone who loves dogs knows that scent. When your dog is really, deeply sleepy and you get a whiff of that unmistakable, irresistible, uniquely doggy aroma.

Turns out it’s probably caused by a couple different bacteria: pseudomonas, which smells a lot like popcorn; and  proteus bacteria, which smells like corn tortillas.

Before you get all “ewwww, bacteria!” neither one is usually anything to worry about. Our environment is chock-full of harmless microscopic thingies and it turns out that exposure to more of them is probably good for our immune systems. The more “exercise” the immune system gets, the more “fit” it is to cope with the world around us. We think that makes sense.

Delicious dog smells

Years ago a friend had a Border Terrier (MacDuff) who had a very distinct smell. You could only sniff it on the top of his head. His “mom” loved that scent.

Two Boston Terriers, a French Bulldog, and a Brussels Griffon
Simon (left) smells like caramel!

Until Simon, none of our dogs had a particular dog smell. The top of Simon’s head has a pleasant, uniquely “Simon” smell. It’s like caramel. Apparently it’s not rare for dogs to have a uniquely good smell about them – although you have to look around a bit to find information. The most common stories on dog smells are not about pleasant perfumes!

Smell the change

Dogs use their sniffing skills to find all kinds of stuff:

  • Escaped prisoners
  • Illegal drugs
  • Truffles
  • Diseases including diabetes and cancer
  • Rabbit poop in the yard
  • Decaying leftovers the last hotel room tenant left behind
  • Gooey disgusting things you have to grab from them without gloves
  • Other dogs’ recent proximity

But we need to use our own, much inferior, sniffing ability to keep tabs on our dogs. How does your dog smell? Has it changed?

Scent detectives

Healthy dogs really shouldn’t have much in the way of detectable odor. But you know how your dog smells. And if that changes, your pup may have a problem.

Dogs produce oil that keep their skin and coat conditioned. They don’t sweat like we do – just from their paws. If your dog’s normal scent changes, or becomes unpleasant, there are a few things that could be going on.

With the smell is emanating from the ears, chances are there may be an infection that needs to be cleared up and a visit to the veterinarian is in order.

Bad breath? Check with the vet to make sure it’s nothing serious. If everything looks okay, we recommend adding tooth-brushing to your dog’s regular grooming regimen. We’ve had wonderful success with our GG Naturals Toothpaste – our dogs seem to like the taste and texture better than the mass-produced pastes.

Our dogs all have skin folds on their faces and we’ve learned to give them a wash most days. Hope’s Torque is a particularly messy eater – we know what flavor he’s eaten by the evidence all over his face! Fortunately, Torque loves essential oils, so he runs into the bathroom after meals for his Animal Scents Shampoo face wash.

We love it, too

Non-dog people may think we’re all crazy – but we think it’s perfectly normal to bury your nose in your dog’s neck and take a whiff. We love our dogs – playing with them, training with them, cuddling with them, and even the way they smell. If somebody else disapproves – it’s their problem. Dog is our favorite perfume!

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