<p>We got our son a 5-month-old mostly-lab mix puppy at Christmas. She’s a great dog, but we’re keeping her inside and she - and our family room - constantly smell “doggy.” Washing her more than every couple of weeks isn’t recommended due to the risk of the dog developing skin problems. Have you all found products that are good deodorizers that don’t require shampooing?</p>
<p>Is it a bad smell or a dog smell? I used to smell the head of the one purebred lab we had (like when the kids were babies–pathetic) because I really liked the lab smell. A dog is going to smell like a dog. (Same thing with a teenaged boys sneakers. . .)</p>
<p>It’s a dog smell. I was the holdout on dog ownership (well, our two cats and me), so it probably bugs me more than the rest of the family. I’m really just looking for something along the lines of a doggie cologne to help make the room and our hands smell less dog-like.</p>
<p>Has the puppy complained that he does not smell well? </p>
<p>(sorry! It’s just one of those language jokes that I recall…the bum replied: 'You smell, I stink!)</p>
<p>[Flea</a> and Tick Collars | Care2 Healthy & Green Living](<a href=“Care2 is the world's largest social network for good, a community of over 40 million people standing together, starting petitions and sharing stories that inspire action.”>Care2 is the world's largest social network for good, a community of over 40 million people standing together, starting petitions and sharing stories that inspire action.)</p>
<p>Adding essential oils to the collar not only can help repel pests (though probably not as well as a more conventional pest collar) but will smell pleasant…to you if not nec. to the dog. If he objects by scratching or trying to drag the collar off, don’t continue. </p>
<p>Dogs are like spouses; there may be a few things we’d change but we love them anyway. In a month or two, you won’t even notice any more.</p>
<p>If you think your lab smells as a puppy you are trouble. We have had quite a few lab and lab mixes and I don’t think they smell as puppies but they can down right stink when they reach around age 10.
We have a 10 yr old golden. He has begun to not smell like roses. I also have a 21 yr old son whose room stinks. The funny thing if our dog gets to pick the room he sleeps in he prefers the stinky room of my son.</p>
<p>You can wash a dog as often as you want without them developing skin problems, just like you can wash your hair every day. You just have to use a good quality dog shampoo. I use Eqyss and Buddy Wash. I like to rub my dogs (standard poodles) all over with the Buddy Wash conditioner and rinse that out–it cleans as well as using shampoo and leaves them soft and sweet smelling.</p>
<p>Gadad,
We use a shampoo called Sulfodene monthly on our Golden Retiever. It is for itching and flaking from which she does not suffer, but the coal tar and sulphur have been excellent in eliminating the doggy smell. We have small bowls of activated charcoal throughout the house which keep the envirnomental dog smell away. I buy both the shampoo and the activated charcoal at our local pet superstore. Our house is for sale so being free of odors is pretty important to us!</p>
<p>We had a black lab ( black dogs seem to smell a tad more). But that was just something we had to accept- I didn’t give her daily baths, ( unless she got into something) but she did smell like a dog.</p>
<p>I also like incense, I started using it when I missed D when she was away.</p>
<p>I just want to agree with dmd77, you can wash your dog as often as you want.</p>
<p>I was not a fan of washing our old dog in our bathtub (we live in a very northern climate, so outside with the hose isn’t an option for at least 6 months a year). My ex used to take him to a local ‘dog spa’ where for $10 he could use their tubs and towels to wash him. They had a date together every week to do this 
He developed skin problems in his old age (100 lb. Gordon Setter), and the vet had us wash him with a special soap every week (we never bathed him before the problems started). Along with diet changes, yada yada.</p>
<p>I do pay the boarding kennel to bathe our lab on the last day of her visits there, as she smells especially ‘doggy’ after those visits. Does not seem to affect her skin, but it is only 4-5 times a year.</p>
<p>And from Monty Python:
My dog has no nose.
No nose? How does he smell?
Awful!</p>
<p>But seriously, folks A Chesapeake Retriever is well known for stinking, and they are related to the more common lab. Could there be some of this in the dog’s bloodlines?</p>
<p>Sadly, Novelisto is right about getting used to it. I pity the houseguest that thinks: “What is that stink? How could the residents here not notice?”</p>
<p>Make sure she doesn’t have an ear infection. They can be quite odoriferous.</p>
<p>And I agree that, with the correct shampoo, you should be able to bathe her as often as you want to.</p>
<p>Maybe we’re just oblivious to it now, but we have a 10 yr old golden retriever. She smells doggy periodically, but I don’t mind the smell. It’s the silent f***ts that get to me. </p>
<p>When she was a young dog, we tried the flea/tick drops once. The chemical/insecticide smell was so strong in the car, I was almost sick. Bathed her as soon as we got home and never used it again. She is not only a house dog but a lap dog and I enjoy burying my nose in her fur as I play with her. We live in a high tick area, and we treat our yard, and give her brewers yeast (4 pills / day for a 90 lb. dog). I read somewhere it makes their skin give off a smell that the ticks don’t like.</p>
<p>Haha – we have a 14 1/2 yr old cat who loves to sleep in my lap, would do so all day if I’d let him. And recently, when he is deeply asleep, he has been letting out stinky gas. Silent stealth numbers. Never when he is awake. </p>
<p>Maybe he needs a diet change. Or maybe he needs not to be 14 1/2 yr old.</p>
<p>I have always had labs so maybe I am used to the smell because I don’t smell anything. I used to bathe my last one (died at age 10 in October) about two or three times a year, but definitely always after a trip to the kennel (or dog beach). He was always getting compliments on his shiny coat and never had skin issues. We now have a 3 month old black lab puppy who has occasionally has super cute puppy breath. We have not given him a bath yet. We once had a very old lab who did smell bad and guests did comment.</p>
<p>Does the stink come from your puppy? Or from his collar? </p>
<p>We have a black lab. He wears a thick, woven collar. It’s almost like a narrow canvas belt. We have to boil it from time to time to kill its stinkyness. I guess it holds bacteria, or something. </p>
<p>Try removing your puppy’s collar and comparing its smell to the dog. Which is worse?</p>
<p>Labrador retrievers are supposed to have very oily fur, because it helps repel water. Remember that they were originally bred as cold water retrievers in Labrador (where the water is really cold). That’s why they put on weight easily as well; fat makes an excellent insulator if you’re swimming in cold water. However, that skin oil (IMHO) goes rancid very quickly, and the smell of rancid Lab is truly unpleasant (a lot of people think that’s how all dogs smell, but really, it’s only the water retrievers). If you don’t like the smell and you’re not planning on having your dog do a lot of cold water retrieves, there’s no reason you can’t keep your dog oil free. </p>
<p>(I’ll note that I have standard poodles. My dogs do not produce that oil. Nor do they shed. And yes, they are still dogs.)</p>
<p>Hmmm… We must be lucky.</p>
<p>I have always had a “sensitive” nose. Also had a Chocolate Lab for 14 years. Except on rare occasions when she “got into something” (or hopped into the car when wet from the pond or lake), I never noticed a problem dog smell.</p>
<p>We also shampooed her whenever we felt like it, with Johnson’s Baby shampoo, lol… or whatever was handy.</p>
<p>What does your dog eat?</p>
<p>Our labs only smelled when they could not groom themselves (were “coneheads” for some or other surgical procedures) and we only bathed them if they got muddy etc. In fact the first time it happened, and we bathed him when we could, he could not have appeared more grateful! Checking the collar is a good suggestion; what about his bed, toys etc. In my experience, a healthy dog does not smell.</p>