Why does our dog smell?

[bonnymiffy]

We have a rescued Greyhound for 3 years, he's now 10 years old. He has a lovely temperament, he's fit and healthy, but he smells. REALLY bad. He's indoors at night, and outside in a lovely large kennel in the daytime in the back garden which is a decent size from him to roam around in. He's only started smelling since he's been outside in the day time (the last month or so, ie since the weather has picked up) so it seems reasonable to link the two, but we can't think what's causing it. DH thinks he must be eating fox poo, but seeing as I've never seen any other animals' poos but his this seems unlikely. Does anyone have any ideas?

Our dog smells more when outside during the day. The vet said it is very common as some dogs excrete more oils which is what causes the smell. We have a golden and wash him weekly (use oatmeal shampoo which is very gentle) or more often if I catch a whiff of him. The vet said sometimes a bit of olive oil on the food helps with the smell too.

Where is the smell coming from? Coat/bum/mouth? A very common cause of smell in older dogs (and especially greyhounds who are not known for their good oral health) is gum disease and tooth decay - the saliva pongs horribly and the smell transfers to the dog's coat, furniture etc.

Dog2 likes to roll in rubbish and fox poo and that really makes him stink.

Another possibility is anal glands. Does he scoot his bum along the floor at all? Is it a fishy kind of smell? Some brave souls deal with this themselves, but most visit the vet or groomer (you would want to see the vet first to confirm that's the problem).

hmm greyhound...you could bath him and wash all his bedding and see where the problem re-establishes

older dogs can get continence problems just like older people, though a change of smell can also be a health problem sign....

Have you given him a bath recently? How often are you washing his bedding? Are you regularly washing his coats/muzzle/grooming brushes etc? If you've bathed him recently, then I'd be along to the vets, pronto. Def get his teeth checked out, any continence issues and his anal glands. On his daily walks, is he off lead and able to roll in anything?

I'm really surprised he's outside - most rescues do NOT endorse this for rescued retired pointies. Was there a particular reason for moving an older dog outside?

How thoroughly are you cleaning his kennel/run? Could he be picking up smells from that? On the very rare occasions that ours go to kennels, they smell completely different when they return for a few days.

Have you changed his diet at all?

A sudden change like this would concern me and I would want to resolve it.