# Are there any bad smells for a dog? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 27, 2012, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470 "2012-06-27T15:42:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/21 "2012-06-28T00:21:04Z")
There are substances that would be physically damaging to a dog’s olfactory tissues just as it would for humans. I’ve noticed individual dogs have their preferences and dislikes. But it is remarkable some of the things they will stick their nose in. And if it’s really good (to them), they’ll roll around in it. ---
**Author:** ![thelabdude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dc4da7/32.png) [@thelabdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelabdude)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/22 "2012-06-28T00:32:43Z")
I had a dog that hated cigarette smoke, chemicals like gas, and several that didn’t like perfume. ---
**Author:** ![Toucanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3bc359/32.png) [@Toucanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toucanna)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/23 "2012-06-28T02:37:51Z")
Re: oranges. I had a dog that loved to eat oranges and enjoyed the occasional lemon. I had another dog who gagged and retched when he smelled fresh fish. Last year, I fostered a litter of pups and put them through the “Rule of Sevens” program. Some of the pups enjoyed the smell of liquid bleach and tried to lick the sample. All pups recoiled from the smell of ammonia. Which is interesting when you think about how dogs smell each others’ urine and how ammonia is a component of urine. Hmmm…[wanders off to ponder] ---
**Author:** ![typoink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecb155/32.png) [@typoink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/typoink)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/24 "2012-06-28T02:50:32Z")
The only smell I’ve seen my dog actively react to is New Skin Liquid Bandage. If you’ve never used it, the smell is something like acetone and clove oil. Very strong, even to my nose. Any time my wife or I use it, the pup’ll follow us around barking at our wounds. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/25 "2012-06-28T12:05:44Z")
I haven’t yet found any odor that repulses a dog, though I haven’t resorted to butyl mercaptan yet. “Natural” odors all seem to attract canines, particularly odors of decomposition, urine and feces (I realize the latter is a means of communication among the dog set - I just wish that when you’re walking your beast, it didn’t have to stop at every lamppost and mailbox to get the latest news). ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/26 "2012-06-28T12:33:16Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > I’ve heard it speculated that dogs regard disagreeable odors the same way we regard ugly sights: A human can look at something, and agree that it’s ugly, but still continue to look at it without feeling any actual discomfort. Alexandra Horowitz writes in _[Inside of a Dog](http://www.scribd.com/doc/85481300/Inside-of-a-Dog-What-Dogs-See-Smell-and-Know-by-Alexandra-Horowitz-excerpt)_ that she admires the “brave” way dogs directly interact with their world by thrusting their noses at everything without seeming to worry it might smell bad. Our dog Simone occasionally smells things and recoils with her mouth open and her nose wrinkled, in what looks to a human like it might be disgust. But she never hesitates to smell the very next spot. I think she might just be “clearing” a strong smell out of her sinuses and not really reacting with disgust. ---
**Author:** ![Dogzilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@Dogzilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogzilla)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/27 "2012-06-28T15:00:20Z")
My dog is not fond of bleach nor nail polish. She will tolerate me painting her nails but looks at me woefully, as if I’m trying to ruin her feetz by making them all stinky. When the polish dries, she doesn’t care that her toenails are pink. Hey, she’s a 75-pound bulldog. I paint her nails so she looks _slightly_ less scary-as-shit when she’s happily walking down the street. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/28 "2012-06-28T15:54:19Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > My dog doesn’t like to take more than one sniff of hard liquor. Maybe he’s in recovery. ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/29 "2012-06-28T15:58:42Z")
> [@Athena](#): > > And UP, too. My dogs will happily lap up various drinks. Makes sense to me, since we all know the UP is really just a misappropriated extension of Wisconsin! ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/30 "2012-06-28T16:07:27Z")
Well, tigers love pepper…they hate cinnamon though… (A dog is like a small tiger, right?) -XT ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/31 "2012-06-28T16:09:28Z")
> [@August\_West](#): > > That’s odd, because my dog will happily lap up an unattended brandy Manhattan. > > Must be a Wisconsin thing. Both of my dogs got drunk once and have hated the odor of alcohol since. It’s funny, if you put even a weak drink near their faces, they’ll show their teeth and run away. ---
**Author:** ![crazydoglady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7bcc69/32.png) [@crazydoglady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crazydoglady)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/32 "2012-06-28T18:05:16Z")
One of my dogs hates the smell of farts, including her own. Will leave the area as soon as she’s sniffed it. It’s funny to watch. Both dogs HATE the smell of tea tree oil, probably aided by the fact that I will put it on any cuts or abrasions they have (diluted, ofc) - but they scamper out of the room if they even smell tea tree oil at all. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/33 "2012-06-28T19:03:28Z")
My dog is repulsed by her own poop. Other poop she’ll happily smell. Goose poop she’ll happily eat. But if I throw a ball and it lands in the yard near her poop, she’ll make a big circle around the ball to come up from “behind” it instead of having to pass by her poop to get it. Or she’ll just stop playing. This came in quite handy when she was a puppy and had a digging issue. I’d put her poop in the holes she dug around the fence, and she’d stop digging. ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/34 "2012-06-28T21:45:12Z")
> [@Sailboat](#): > > Our dog Simone occasionally smells things and recoils with her mouth open and her nose wrinkled, in what looks to a human like it might be disgust. But she never hesitates to smell the very next spot. I think she might just be “clearing” a strong smell out of her sinuses and not really reacting with disgust. [slight hijack] One of my dogs will periodically snort (that is, exhale) when she’s engaged in a intense sniffing session. I’ve often wondered if she was “cleansing her palate”, to switch sensual metaphors. [/slight hijack complete] ---
**Author:** ![Weaver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Weaver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weaver)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/35 "2012-06-28T23:43:42Z")
> [@crazydoglady](#): > > One of my dogs hates the smell of farts, including her own. Will leave the area as soon as she’s sniffed it. It’s funny to watch. > > Both dogs HATE the smell of tea tree oil, probably aided by the fact that I will put it on any cuts or abrasions they have (diluted, ofc) - but they scamper out of the room if they even smell tea tree oil at all. My dog hated tea tree oil too. I had some tea tree anti-zit stuff when I was in my teens and he’d avoid me for a while after I used it. ---
**Author:** ![WolfpackJeep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpackjeep/32/2921_2.png) [@WolfpackJeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WolfpackJeep)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2012, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/36 "2012-06-30T21:16:32Z")
My dog loved oranges. She did show a strong sensitivity to odors of decay…for example, if an onion or potato in the bin had started to rot, she would pace anxiously in front of it until someone investigated. Farts were interesting…sometimes she would rip one and then wag her tail a bit, and other times she would just quietly move to the other side of the room. Human farts would also send her to the other side of the room. ---
**Author:** ![Simple\_Linctus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Simple\_Linctus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simple_Linctus)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2012, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/37 "2012-06-30T22:16:32Z")
> [@crazydoglady](#): > > One of my dogs hates the smell of farts, including her own. Will leave the area as soon as she’s sniffed it. It’s funny to watch. I had a dog who didn’t seem to realise she farted. That is to say, whenever she did fart, she was surprised and ran away. It didn’t seem to be the smell, it was the sensation of the thing that was a shock to her. Miss her. ---
**Author:** ![JackieLikesVariety](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackielikesvariety/32/296_2.png) [@JackieLikesVariety](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JackieLikesVariety)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2012, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/38 "2012-06-30T22:36:15Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > I haven’t yet found any odor that repulses a dog, though I haven’t resorted to butyl mercaptan yet. > > “Natural” odors all seem to attract canines, particularly odors of decomposition, urine and feces (I realize the latter is a means of communication among the dog set - I just wish that when you’re walking your beast, it didn’t have to stop at every lamppost and mailbox to get the latest news). they have to get their Pee Mail 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2012, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/39 "2012-07-01T00:30:10Z")
My dog has no nose. ---
**Author:** ![WolfpackJeep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpackjeep/32/2921_2.png) [@WolfpackJeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WolfpackJeep)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2012, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470/40 "2012-07-01T02:21:11Z")
OK, I’ll bite. How does he smell? 😉 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-bad-smells-for-a-dog/626470.md?page=3)