Monday, December 1, 2025

How To Get Rid Of Canine Odor In Your Dwelling

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Couple sitting on sofa with dogs plugging noses.
Picture credit score: Krakenimages.com, Shutterstock

I lately noticed this query in a Reddit thread, “Do individuals with canine know their properties scent?” Not surprisingly, this was fairly an lively thread. You had these homeowners who absolutely embrace their eau de Fido residence, pup dad and mom who clear like loopy, and, in fact, those that discover their buddies or members of the family’ properties with canine an appalling fragrant journey.

Have you ever heard feedback in regards to the canine scent in your house from your folks or members of the family? Or maybe you’re uninterested in feeling like your home continually stinks like a canine. For those who’re as much as the problem, you may want to begin with an preliminary huge odor overhaul for a clear scent slate. However even for those who’re not a cleansing fanatic, there are lots of straightforward options to rid your property of its musky bouquet.

My Home Stinks Like A Canine: Begin With The Supply

Okay, earlier than I’m going additional on this article, I’ve to admit — I, like many canine homeowners, get used to the “distinctive” scents of my hound residence. Significantly, it’s solely once I go on trip for every week and return to my home that I notice what all of the stink is about with canine odors in a house. However for those who’re a pup mum or dad and care about your property’s odor, right here’s the place to begin.

The simplest place to eradicate canine stench is to go straight to the odor offender. Sure, I’m speaking about your canine. Listed below are some ideas to assist hold your pup from robbing your property of its recent scent. With a common hygiene routine, you (ideally) received’t have as many musky smells to take away from your home in the long term.

  • Recurrently bathe your canine, ideally each 1 to three months. The frequency will depend on your furry pal’s coat sort, hair size, exercise stage, and pores and skin issues. Bathing too usually robs your pup’s coat of pure oils and might result in dry, irritated pores and skin. Think about Arm & Hammer Odor Management Canine Shampoo or one among our high suggestions for the greatest canine oatmeal shampoos.
  • Brush your canine 2 to five instances every week to distribute pure oils, take away dander and useless fur, and decrease shedding. In case your pup has a thick undercoat, you’ll want a deshedding brush, too.
  • Use a gentle dry shampoo for canine in between baths to assist reduce down on odors. You may as well sprinkle some baking soda or cornstarch in your pup’s fur to neutralize the stink.
  • Don’t overlook about tooth. Canines want tooth brushing ideally day-after-day. In any other case, they’ll develop gum illness, which results in majorly smelly breath and saliva.
  • Wash your canine’s bedding, toys, bowls, collars, and leashes recurrently.

Feed Your Pup A Excessive-High quality Weight loss plan

Chances are you’ll not equate your canine’s meals with odor, however a wholesome physique can go a great distance to assist reduce down the smelliness. How? An all-natural, high-quality pet food will help enhance your pup’s pores and skin and coat well being and anal gland operate and cut back digestive points that result in gasoline and smelly poops. Learn my critiques of the greatest recent pet food to see my high picks. Many of those recent meals comprise human-grade, whole-food components with numerous superfoods to maintain your pup wholesome.

Air Filters & Air Purifiers Are A Should

Pug sitting in front of an air purifier in living room.

Conserving your home’s air as clear as doable is a straightforward means to assist filter out the canine stink. When the climate cooperates, open home windows to air out your property. Additionally, make sure to change your HVAC air filters recurrently. Specialists typically suggest altering your air filters each one to 2 months if in case you have a pet. With a number of pets in your house, it’s greatest to vary air filters not less than each month.

I’ve a canine, three indoor cats, and a number of allergy victims in my residence, and top-of-the-line issues I’ve finished is buy air purifiers. A high-quality air air purifier helps filter out mud, germs, allergens, pet dander, and odors. For properties with pets, an air air purifier with a HEPA filter is essential. Our high choose is the GermGuardian 5-In-1 HEPA Air Air purifier, which works for areas as much as 743 sq. ft. For extra choices, see our critiques of the greatest air purifiers for pets.

Professional Tip: Place activated charcoal luggage in each room your canine spends time in (simply hold out of attain from inquisitive pups). They’re efficient in absorbing odors to freshen your air for as much as two years.

How To Get rid of Canine Odor In Your Carpeting & Different Flooring

Easy methods to take away canine scent from a home can rely so much on the kind of flooring you could have. Carpets are particularly vulnerable to absorbing pet hair, dander, physique oils, and even saliva. It’s actually gross for those who cease and take into consideration what’s lurking in your carpet or rugs. Recurrently vacuuming your carpet is a should. See our critiques of the greatest vacuums for properties with pets. For those who hate vacuuming as a lot as I do, take a look at our critiques of the greatest robotic vacuums for pet hair, dander, and many others.

Frankly, a vacuum isn’t all the time sufficient if in case you have a canine who’s tremendous smelly or one who soils your carpets with urine or vomit. If this feels like your furry pal, you might also need to think about the Bissel TurboClean PowerBrush Pet Carpet Cleaner. This fairly priced machine provides you the power to spray cleansing and deodorizing system onto your carpet earlier than you vacuum it up.

For hardwood and tile flooring, your greatest guess is vacuuming first after which mopping with a pet-safe, vinegar-based answer. Many pup dad and mom swear by Aunt Fannies Extremely Concentrated Flooring Cleaner Vinegar Wash for mopping. It’s all-natural, pet-friendly, powered by vinegar, and is available in lemon, lavender, or eucalyptus scents.

How To Get Rid Of Canine Odor Out Of Couches

White dog sitting on yellow sofa with cleaner bottle spray.
Picture Credit score Emma Braby, Copyright Canine Journal 2025.

Like carpeting, upholstered furnishings is a pure suction for pet odors. I recurrently borrow my neighbor’s Bissell Little Inexperienced Transportable machine. It’s a tremendous upholstery cleaner to get the pet muck out of my couches and upholstered chairs. You may as well apply it to carpeting, however I discover it doesn’t work as nicely for flooring as a high-powered carpet steam cleaner.

In between thorough cleanings, you need to use a pet-friendly upholstery spray to clean up your sofa and chairs. I like to recommend the bestselling Indignant Orange Pet Odor Eliminator, which doesn’t simply masks odor; it neutralizes it. Indignant Orange has a recent citrus scent, and you need to use it on a number of surfaces, together with furnishings, tile, carpeting, hardwoods, concrete, and turf. For those who’re coping with stains and odor, Rocco & Roxie Stain & Odor Eliminator is a best choice for a lot of canine homeowners.

Another choice is to put money into a machine-washable sofa cowl. There are some reasonably priced and enticing ones on the market that may prevent the trouble of upholstery cleansing. See our critiques of the greatest sofa covers for canine for our suggestions.

Baking Soda Works Wonders

Significantly, that is one of many least expensive and simplest methods to deodorize your pup and your home. You possibly can sprinkle baking soda on almost something to neutralize odors — your canine’s fur, carpets, bedding, you title it. You possibly can even add a couple of small drops of a pet-safe important oil for a brisker scent. Usually, it takes about 24 hours for baking soda to completely take in odors.

What makes baking soda so efficient? Also referred to as sodium bicarbonate, baking soda eliminates odors by neutralizing acidic and alkaline molecules that trigger disagreeable smells. It really works by means of a chemical response, the place the baking soda interacts with odor-causing compounds to neutralize them relatively than simply masking the odors.

Take away Potty Accidents ASAP

It’s essential to clear up any potty accidents in your flooring as quickly as doable to forestall urine odors. For recent accidents, take in the urine with paper towels. When you’ve soaked all of it up, rinse the realm with cool water, and make sure to take away the water with towels. After the realm has dried, hit it together with your vacuum. For older accidents or dried urine, see my article on tips on how to get canine pee scent out of carpets, which incorporates extra of my suggestions for improbable canine odor and stain eliminators.

Want A Fast Pet Odor Remover?

In fact, you could have these instances while you get firm on the final minute. Be ready for these conditions for those who personal a smelly pup. What’s the easiest way to clear the air? Open home windows and doorways if doable, activate ceiling followers, burn scented candles, or use an air freshening spray. To shortly deodorize carpets, furnishings, or your pup’s bedding, create a easy spray. Combine ¼ witch hazel with ¾ water in a twig bottle, add about 5 drops of lavender important oil, and spray away.

In search of extra canine odor eliminators on your furry pal or your home? Learn my colleague’s article on the greatest pet odor eliminators & neutralizers for nearly any want.

How To Get Rid Of Canine Scent In Your Automobile

Having dog-reek in your automotive will be even worse than in your house as a result of it’s such an enclosed area. For those who cart your canine round with you within the automotive, Meguiars Entire Automobile Air Re-Brisker Odor Eliminator is a improbable canine odor eliminator. See what one man did to rid his newly bought used automotive of moist canine scent within the video under. He wasn’t even a pet proprietor!

When Is Canine Odor Irregular?

Canines naturally carry some scents, but when these smells are robust or long-lasting, they might point out underlying well being issues. Pores and skin circumstances can result in odors, particularly in breeds with pores and skin folds, the place micro organism can accumulate and create disagreeable smells. An odor out of your canine’s ears could counsel a yeast or bacterial ear an infection, whereas a fishy scent from their rear may point out anal gland issues. Take a look at our critiques of the greatest canine wipes to assist hold your furry pal’s pores and skin, ears, rear, and extra clear. For those who’re involved a couple of persistent scent, it’s clever to seek the advice of your veterinarian earlier than making an attempt to cowl it up with any merchandise.

Do you are taking offense while you hear somebody that every one pup dad and mom’ properties scent like a canine? Share your ideas in our feedback under!

Why Belief Canine Journal?

Sally has over 20 years of expertise in human well being sciences communications, together with 10 years as an professional on pet well being circumstances and therapy. She has reviewed and researched lots of of canine merchandise, together with pet odor-removal merchandise. Sally is a part of a crew of devoted canine professionals and long-time canine homeowners at Canine Journal. We take a look at and analysis the most effective pet merchandise, not just for our personal pups however for all of our readers.


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