How to get rid of the doggy smell due to skin allergies?

Question

My dog has bad skin allergies and seborrhea during certain times of the year. He loses a lot of his hair and gets hot spots from all the scratching. I bathe him in a medicated shampoo prescribed by the veterinarian (which I tend to think dries out his skin more), use a hot spot spray 2 or 3 times a day, and give him medicine daily. I have been keeping him in the house, but sometimes his smell is so bad that I have to spray air freshener all over the house.

Answer 1

We go through the same thing. There are a couple of things you can do to help his situation. Put olive oil, just a little bit in his food...this will help the dry skin and bring is coat back nice and shiney. As for bathing, don't do that very often. We bathe our Chow about every 4 weeks and yes, there are times when he really smells, but thats the nature of the beast. He only goes through this certain times of the year and fall is the worst. I don't give him any medication from the vet because I found it was not helping that much. I had the spray, etc. I use Neosporin on the hot spots when he does get them and give him benedryl which is drying, but with the addition of the olive oil in his food, it is ok. He scratches a lot less, sleeps better and has fewer spots. Good luck.

Answer 2

I would try working from the inside rather than the outside. Change his diet. Here are some suggestions:

Sometimes a simple meat and rice recipe will work, but some of the problems that you're having will respond better to a high-quality grain-free diet. All kibble, which is cheaper than canned or raw, must have grain, potato, or tapioca in it to hold it together. Potato would be cheaper than tapioca, and potato is better than grain.

HIgh-quality means that most of the ingredients are of HUMAN-GRADE quality. None of the recall products were human-grade. If it's not good enough for me, it's not good enough for my dogs.

The first ingredient should be a meat. It shouldn't be a meat by-product or a meal. Neither of these are human grade, nor can they be measured for there nutritional content. That's because the company cooks down a bunch of different animal parts that's different each time.

Don't get anything with wheat, corn, soy (or soybean oil), BHA, BHT, ethoxoquin, artificial flavors and colors, salt, sugars (including sucrose and fructose).

A lot of these poor-quality ingredients are cheap fillers, flavor enhancers, and preservatives. They offer a low source of nutrition, and weaken the immune system. That's what causes allergies. The only reason they're in the recipe is because they serve a purpose for the company, not to keep your dog healthy.

I suggest you read dog food labels carefully. Look at foods like Evo (made by Innova), Timberwolf Wild & Natural or Ocean Blue, Barking At The Moon (made by Solid Gold). They're more expensive, but they would seriously cut down on the allergies, which would mean less trips to the vet. I also suggest adding a cold-water fish oil, like salmon, krill, anchovy or sardine. This will help a lot with the ear problem and the yeast. You could also add probiotics and dygestive enzymes.
One product that has salmon oil, pre- and probiotcs, and digestive enzymes is Positive Health by Great Life. They also make an excellent food, but is expensive. Their website is http://www.greatlife4pets.com

Answer 3

Try using an oatmeal pet shampoo. Oatmeal is very soothing and may even help that odor by helping the skin. Actually, the smell is a combination of an excess of skin shedding (dead cells) and the high amount of oil produced by the skin. Possibly rubbing your dog down with clean towels several times a day would help reduce the odor by sloughing off the dead cells onto the towel and the towel also absorbing some of the excess oils. Go to a dollar store and buy a bunch of inexpensive towels just for the dog.

Answer 4

We have a lab with the same issue. Our best luck has been with Lamb & Rice formula food, oatmeal or conditioning shampoos and hot spot or hydrocortisone spray. There are certain times of the year that control is really difficult and we also give Benadryl at night so that she can rest from the itching. Also, before she was spayed, hormonal times seemed to aggravate the condition so if your big man is not fixed - it might help - plus as they age it prevents other health issues. Our girl also has her own blanket that we move from the bedroom to the den and she knows that it is her primary spot to lie in (then I can wash it every couple of days to help control home odor).

Answer 5

Yeah, I used to have one of those. The stench was incredible. I used to say that if anyone ever stole him, they'd bring him right back.

I was fortunate that I was able to clear up his allergy issues with diet, so we eventually got rid of the smell that way.

But otherwise, as long as the skin is bad there will be an odor. You can't, of course, use colognes or scented shampoos, because the perfumes are likely to irritate the allergies.

You COULD try either a baking soda rinse or a vinegar rinse. Ask your vet about whether that would be appropriate for him.

Answer 6

You might want to consider changing his diet. My dog used to get a rash and hot spots too, until we started feeding him Wysong Lamg & Rice. We'd tried a lot of other high end brands, and this is the first one we've found so far that doesn't make him have a skin reaction. His coat is beautiful and shiny now and no more hot spots and funk.

Answer 7

It has to be what your feeding.I know everyone on here is reccomending shampoos and conditioners. ill tell you now that will do little benefit and I'm sure you have already noticed. I suggest that for a month or so just try feeding a raw diet. and yes frequent baths will over time dry out your dog's skin. Give him some raw meaty beef bones,lamb bones,chicken meat. It really helps. My dog really stunk to but after feeding him a raw diet for a month he totally reversed. he smelled good, his breath smelled good, he was healthy. , his teeth were cleaner than when he was fed kibble.

heres one of my favorite articles.
http://www.totallyrawdogfood.com/faq.html

http://www.barfworld.com/

Answer 8

My Dogs Skin Stinks

Answer 9

Don't bathe him too often.
Ask your vet or a groomer as to how often you should bathe him.
You might be removing essential oils from his skin.
You need to find another oral medication.
There is a spray that just masks the odor from your dogs coat. Check at Petsmart or any pet store.

Answer 10

Get a second opinion from another vet, definitely but you might try oatmeal and conditioning shampoos. There is a great one I use on my dogs that has oatmeal and also baking soda to reduce odor its called "Fresh 'n Clean" Oatmeal 'N Baking soda shampoo. Try it, it works great on my girls. And maybe changing your dogs food.