Surely on some occasion you have heard the expression “smell like a wet dog” with negative connotations. It is true that sometimes dogs give off an unpleasant odor for various reasons that their companion humans dislike, but this is something natural and normal.
After all, no matter how humanized they are, they are still animals, with a nature and customs that can worsen their body odor. Many people abuse excessively bathing their dogs. Something very harmful, as it damages the pH of their skin and the oils naturally present in their fur. It can even lead to infections and allergies.
As an alternative, others choose to spray them with cologne, with the goal of making them smell good. But this practice is not recommended.
Colonies intended for humans have very aggressive artificial components, with a high alcohol content. Although our skin tolerates them without problems, this is not the case with dogs. Perfumes damage their fur and skin, and can cause allergic reactions, rashes, irritations or dermatitis. Also, the cologne for babies is not suitable either, since as much as it is more delicate than other perfumes, it is still not suitable for a dog.
It should not be forgotten that dogs have a much more developed sense of smell than that of humans and use it to interact with and recognize the environment. If we put a cologne on them, their smell is too strong for their gifted nose, damaging their sense of smell. That intense aroma makes them uncomfortable and unpleasant, it can even put them in a bad mood, make them sad or make them feel insecure.
It can also disorient them and hinder their relationships with other dogs, since they recognize and identify each other by smell. As a consequence, your dog may develop unwanted behaviors to get rid of that smell, such as rubbing in the grass or other animals’ feces.
On the market there is a wide variety of colonies specially formulated for dogs. They do not contain alcohol, they are designed so that they are not allergic and their smell is less intense than that of perfumes for people.
These can be applied to the dog without danger in a timely manner. But they should only be an occasional resource to cover the bad smell of him if we need it, we should not abuse them or throw them every day. In short, the dog must smell like a dog, its natural scent without camouflaging it.
