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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think dogs are unhygienic

218 replies

bottomsup12 · 18/02/2024 11:05

I know it sounds judgey but hear me out..

DH would love a dog and I do love the idea of having one when I see them out and about it seems really nice and fun having a dog as a companion. I absolutely love other people's dogs!

However when I get down to the nitty gritty of thinking about the actual reality of having a dog in the house it gives me the ick because...

  • I hate dog poo and I don't want to pick any of it up in the garden (DH says he will but I just know this will be slack and I'll end up stepping in it)
  • they're butts are just there out in the open and it will be sitting on the floor maybe even the furniture (have a baby so I don't want him crawling around where the dogs arse has been after a horrible dog poo!
  • I think they all smell bad! And I don't want me or the house to stink!
  • they lick everything on the floor outside and lick things in the house which makes me wince.
  • they obviously walk barefoot outside treading in all sorts of shit and the streets are filthy and they'd be walking all around the house and furniture with these gross dirty feet.
  • the hairs would be everywhere

I just can't get past all of that but I feel I am being unfair on DH who really wants one and grew up having them in the house

OP posts:
BurbageBrook · 18/02/2024 11:07

I love dogs but no one should get a dog unless they really want one, so for that reason YANBU. FWIW research has shown that kids who grow up with pets have better gut health than ones who don't though because it's not good for you to grow up in a sterile environment.

Strawberrycheesecake7 · 18/02/2024 11:08

They can be unhygienic but only if you don’t clean up after them properly. Don’t get a dog if you don’t want one, it wouldn’t be fair on the dog to be in a home where it’s only wanted by one person.

Brexile · 18/02/2024 11:09

YANBU. Dogs smell so gross, and I haven't even got a powerful sense of smell.

Porfirio · 18/02/2024 11:10

My children are adults and I've always had dogs.

Out of the two, many dogs are more hygienic than some children.

An example being a very stupid woman screaming at me to get my dog away from her toddler who was fast approaching one of my dogs (a Malinois) who incidentally was on a lead.

I did move my dog away from her child because the child was had his finger rammed up his nose and was rooting around and I didn't want the 'dirty' child to touch my beautiful dog.

saveforthat · 18/02/2024 11:11

Don't get a dog. Dogs are all the things you say. They are also joyful, loyal companions who don't care what you look like and will love you forever if you love them and feed and walk them.

Augustus40 · 18/02/2024 11:11

If you get a short haired dog and shampoo them very regularly I imagine any dog smell is minimal.

I have not had a dog for years and don't want the bother for most of the reasons already stated. They are good companions though.

BarbieDangerous · 18/02/2024 11:12

I agree. For all the reasons you’ve listed is why I wouldn’t ever get a dog (or any pet for that matter)

Floralnomad · 18/02/2024 11:13

I will answer your points 1 by 1

  1. You need to pick up poo as soon as they go . If you feed a quality diet the poo barely smells and should be firm and not too frequent .
  2. my dog rarely has a dirty bottom and if he does I wipe it . Pick a breed with a tail that covers the actual hole a bit if you are really that squeamish
  3. my short haired dog goes to the groomers every 4 weeks for a bath and trim and he smells of biscuits usually
  4. many dogs do not eat everything they see or lick stuff , my own dog never licks people or things in the house 5)dry their feet when they come in and have wood / tiled flooring downstairs . Besides exposure to dirt is good for you
  5. get a non moulting breed I actually don’t think you should get a dog because you don’t sound remotely suitable but you should unclench a bit about dirt / germs for your child’s sake and it’s lovely for children to have a pet .
Itscatsallthewaydown · 18/02/2024 11:14

Dog owners’ houses often are a bit smelly (often they just can’t smell if any more). The ‘my dogs are better than your kids’ nutcases will be along any minute though.

ChardonnaysBeastlyCat · 18/02/2024 11:15

Please don’t get a dog.

Applespies23 · 18/02/2024 11:15

They do smell, however pets are great for the immune system!

LauritaEvita · 18/02/2024 11:15

It’s not realistic for your husband to say he’ll always clean the poo up- at some point you will end up doing it, either in your house/ garden or on walks, esp if you’ll need to train up from a puppy.

Dogs also mean a big step up in terms of cleaning so have you got the physical capability and energy for that?

Also, consider things like, who will look after it if you go on holiday, while you’re at work etc. And who will do all the walking in all weathers including going out in the dark in the winter? It’s a big commitment and I’d say you both have to really want it otherwise it could cause resentment.

Ginmonkeyagain · 18/02/2024 11:18

Yes, dogs are gross. Which why when I was growing up (on a farm) our dogs were only allowed in rooms with hard (bleachable) surfaces, we had to wash our hands after touching the dogs and they were never allowed to lick our faces.

pizzaHeart · 18/02/2024 11:19

It’s all true.
Some people can tolerate this some can’t and have no desire to deal with all this extra work e.g me.

user146990847101 · 18/02/2024 11:19

Having had dogs all my life, and kids for 10ish years, I’ve never once been made ill by a dog…germs of all descriptions brought home by the kids though. I wish they’d install some sort of chemical virus killer and give the little darlings a good spray as they walk out of school!
Plus the mess…dogs drop a bit of hair, kids far worse!
But if you don't want a dog, don't get one. Everyone in the household needs to be on board with it.

Shopper727 · 18/02/2024 11:19

We’ve always had a dog, a golden retriever and he’s hairy and gun dog so smells when he’s wet, and prob when he’s dry too. He’s lovely and kids adore him. Yes he poos and everything else you say. But no one is licking the carpet after he sits on it or had any illness from said dog I think animals are lovely we also have cats. You don’t want a dog, it wouldn’t be fair on a poor dog to live in a home where someone felt so threatened by it being there.

if you don’t want one, for the dogs sake don’t get one. But just say you don’t want one the rest just sounds silly,

Original poster
bottomsup12 · 18/02/2024 11:19

No I don't have the capacity for all the extra housework that comes with having a dog and I have said so to DH.
The idea of having to take time off work for vets or more errands with dog grooming and washing them also does not appeal to me I am busy enough and I really love my down time.

But DH says he will do everything and I won't have to deal with any of it. Do I trust him on that??? He is messy himself at times (as am I) I just don't see this happening.

I'm not squeamish about general dirt or being too tidy I think some responses have assumed im a germaphobe - I'm really not but dog germs seem to be WAY behind the normal level and variety of germs we currently have

OP posts:
LauritaEvita · 18/02/2024 11:19

Itscatsallthewaydown · 18/02/2024 11:14

Dog owners’ houses often are a bit smelly (often they just can’t smell if any more). The ‘my dogs are better than your kids’ nutcases will be along any minute though.

Yes! 😂 I checked the comments for this and knew there would already be at least one person rushing to compare kids to dogs unfavourably. Like clockwork!

Original poster
bottomsup12 · 18/02/2024 11:20

Also I would love the dog entirely but I just think it's so much stresss?

OP posts:
Headstarttohappiness · 18/02/2024 11:21

I feel the same about many of your points! Occasionally I think the walking everyday with a dog looks great - and then I remember that I would probably be going for that walk carrying a bag of dog excrement.
I think many PPs are right in saying don’t get a dog. I think both people have to want the hound. In my own family I have seen the tension caused when they didn’t agree and went ahead with dogs.

Champagnebar · 18/02/2024 11:22

I’m with you OP

i like dogs but don’t want the responsibility or a smelly house/muddy car

So we don’t have one

Direstraightsagain · 18/02/2024 11:22

I don’t think you should get a dog as I’d worry about the dog.
🐶
they are all the things you say (you can have rules about going on sofas/upstairs etc and lots of baths but you have stated facts) so if you can’t reconcile yourself to that then don’t get one as it’s won’t be the right home for a dog.

if you want to try you will need rules from the start. We’ve got a dog and she’s lovely. We don’t let her on the sofas or upstairs: I’ve got friends who have their dogs on their beds and I can’t get my head around that at all and never will.

Deedippy · 18/02/2024 11:22

Every point expect the last one has been spot on in my own personal experience.

My small/medium size dog does loads of poo and if he's been a bit unsettled by something they are occasionally runny and it's grim. The other week I had to bathe him and get dried poo out of his bum hole. He licks anyone and everyone including the kids and loves a muddy puddle. I'm constantly wiping his paws and wiping up muddy paws prints. He loves a muddy puddle and rain and is generally a grubby boy. I'm not a dog person and was reluctant to get one for all those reasons. We've had him nearly a year now and other than removing the dried poo nuts I couldn't care less about the other stuff as what he brings to every member of our family is amazing. He's so full of love and just wants to be with his people. They become part of the family and it just isn't a thing anymore for me

mrskimsneakattack · 18/02/2024 11:22

<looks around in despair at all the muddy pawprints all over the kitchen floor, and considers how many throws I've washed this weekend>. Yep they can be a bit grim, but they give so much more, such a joy and noone is ever as pleased to see me, ever!

If you don't want a dog, you don"t want a dog though.

fabio12 · 18/02/2024 11:22

Dogs are not hygienic in many ways, but then a lot of people flush the loo without shutting the lid, wear shoes in their homes and have long fake nails that are a breeding ground for germs. If you find mud and hair more important to you than the responsibility and love that comes with a dog then that is your choice made.