Stuck In The Dog House? Keep Pet Smells Under Control

Regular dog baths can damage their skin and coat, instead try to wash and rub their paws directly after walks. Dogs can be quite active and if they are off the leash running around, you may not know what they have stepped in. Not only does washing their paws on their way in help to stop muddy paw prints, it also means you can be sure that whatever they have stepped in does not get tracked through your home, leaving any bad smells.

Buying a black light might sound like a strange tip to keep on top of bad pet smells, but taking a forensic approach to hunting down the source is one way to help control lingering odors. Black lights can be bought for around $20 at home improvement stores and use UV light to show up any accidents your pet might have had^{3, 4}.

Especially useful when toilet training your pet, black lights show up dried urine on virtually any surface - furniture fabrics, rugs, tiles, wallpaper & bedding. For the best results reduce the light in the room and wave the light over any surface your pet might have been, or where there are lingering bad smells. Phosphorus in the dried urine will glow under the black light and be much easier to spot. We recommend marking all the glowing spots with tape so you can come back to them and wipe them up once the lights are back on.

If you decided to invest in a black light you might be horrified to see pet bedding glowing bright under the UV light. Just like humans, some pets are can be creatures of habit, so if your pet has a bed, or even loves to lay on yours, there is a chance that this could be where some of the bad smells are emanating from. As best practice, this bedding should be washed on a regular basis to remove the bacteria that cause bad smells⁵, as fabrics can hold onto smells easily⁶.

In the same instance, if your pets go on the sofa or on your bed then make sure you also wash any cushions or bed linen regularly to ensure unpleasant smells do not set into the fabrics.

The shape and size of a dog’s ears have evolved to increase their sense of hearing. With an increase in size comes an increased risk to infection which can be quite common. If you have bathed your dog and you’re still noticing a bad stench, or if they seem to be paying more attention to their ears than normal, they may have an infection. It is strongly advised you see a vet for a proper cleaning as ears are delicate and can easily be damaged.

Let’s not forget about the car, where pet smells can be especially bad. It may not be so easy to regularly wash your car seats, so try and lay down tarpaulin when you can, and of course have a bottle of Air Wick Pure handy for after the clean so you can have a burst of fragrance before setting off on your next adventure together!