Thursday, June 19, 2008

Yellow Labrador Retriever Smells Horrible after Swimming - part II

Subject: My Yellow Labrador Retriever lives in the water, but she smells horrible afterwards - part II.

From: Susan (USA)

Labrador Retriever Name: Maggie

Reader's E-mail - Susan's Response:

Fay,

Please see my answers below. We've started spraying her with a dog deodorant, but it's still almost unbearable.

Below you will find the questions I asked with Susan's answers in red:

Is it a sour or rancid type of smell? YES. IT'S A SOUR SMELL.

The next couple of questions are in regards to the location of the smell:

Is the smell to the whole body? YES.

Is the smell toward her rectum area (musty metallic type of smell)? NO

Is the smell from her ears? NO.

Do her paws smell? NO.

Does she have any yellowish brown or greasy scales on her elbows or around her ears? NO SCALES.

How is Maggie's weight? 10-15 POUNDS OVERWEIGHT.

What do you shampoo her with? WE'VE USED VARIOUS DOG SHAMPOOS RECENTLY, TRYING TO GET RID OF THE SMELL. IT NEVER COMPLETELY GOES AWAY.

Any medical conditions with Maggie? NOT THAT WE'RE AWARE OF.

All About Labradors Answer:

Continue Reading...


Hello Susan,

The information given here is to help you learn more about your Labrador Retriever and not to replace your veterinarian's advice. Disclaimer

Thanks for your patients waiting for my reply, as the many e-mailed questions I receive take me some time to answer. Love the photo, thank you, they are all adorable.

A sour smell coming from Maggie is usually the first sign of a skin infection. You want to look throughout Maggie's fur and take a good look at her skin. With skin infections you may notice pimples, boils, open sores or rashes. Maggie can get these skin infections anywhere, and there is a chance you might not even see anything, but you will definitely smell it.

Because of Maggie being slightly overweight, skin wrinkles can develop, which are an ideal place for yeast and bacteria to grow.

Yeast infections are common in dogs that love the water, and who loves the water better than our Labrador Retrievers. Without proper drying of Maggie (the quick shake that she does doesn't always do the trick), warm, moist areas are left on his body and in ears where the yeast love to breed.

A good dog degreasing shampoo (MalAcetic Shampoo) may be helpful, but if there is an infection on the skin, oral antibiotics or oral antifungals may have to be prescribed by your veterinarian.

If you suspect a yeast infection, you can try a solution made from equal parts white vinegar and water. This can help to prevent yeast infections, by lowering the skins pH. Spray it on her coat and leave it on without rinsing off. You can use this as a final rinse after shampooing.

You also want to make sure you're feeding Maggie a high quality dog food as odors come from within. If you need help in recommending some good foods, just ask.

Another great overall supplement is digestive enzymes and probiotics, which helps in keeping the pH balance of the stomach in proper balance, helping to prevent yeast infections. Probitoics are live cultures found in yogurt which will help out in maintaining and increasing the good flora (bacteria) of the gut.

Non-flavored yogurt with live cultures (probiotics) daily, can also be used. Make sure there are no sugars or sweeteners in it. You could add it to her food, or your can use it in the Kong toys if you use them. One reader of this blog stuffs it into the Kong toys and freezes it.

Last but not least, a supplementation with essential fatty acids can go a long way in helping out.

Let me know if you need any help in clarify any of this information, or need any help with other conditions that may arise. As always, please keep me updated on Maggie's condition. By letting me know what helped her and what didn't, or what your veterinarian tells you if schedule an appointment with them, will be of great help to the readers of this blog.

Take care of yourself and your Labrador Retriever (and your other doggies),

Fay

To read part one of this e-mail visit: Yellow Labrador Retriever Smells Horrible after Swimming - part I

To see a wonderful photo of Maggie visit: Maggie 06/19/08

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1 comments:

Anonymous,  June 15, 2010 3:27 PM  

We are dog sitting for two weeks and have the unique opportunity to adopt this wonderful Chocolate Lab. We live on a lake and as you've guessed He is in the water every day. He loves it! I don't love his body odor and don't want to keep him outside. Unless we come up with a solution, I'm probably not going to agree to adopt him. His odor is an oily smell. His fur is in good shape, he is a bit overweight but after these two weeks is shedding some pounds. He is 4 years old. I've read about Labs having oil glands that secrete an oil that makes their fur water repellent. Obviously this is a natural process then and one I can't prevent other than preventing him from swimming which doesn't seem right. Does anyone have any tips or experience to share? Hard decision ahead of me. He is such a great dog!

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