Smelly

[saint168]

Lately, my dog is getting smelly very soon after I gave her a bath, usually within a week.  It used to take 2 month before my dog would smell so bad.  Her fur also lost the shine when she became smelly.  Moreover, the skin on her underbelly is getting darker now.  The vet said we gave her bath too often but for the last 6 month we've been bathing her once a month but her condition didn't improve.

[Kimberly Coyner, D.V.M., DACVD]

Changes in skin odor and increases in skin pigmentation can be signs of a hormonal disorder such as hypothyroidism, common in older dogs, and I recommend that you talk to your veterinarian about performing labwork to investigate hormonal disease. Additionally, dogs with underlying allergic skin diseases such as food allergy or pollen/dust allergies can be smelly due to changes in the oil content of the skin and overgrowth of normal skin surface bacteria or yeast organisms, so if the labwork is all normal then I would suggest talking to your veterinarian about trying a mild antibacterial/antiyeast shampoo such as KetoChlor and changing to a hypoallergenic diet.
Kimberly Coyner, DVM
Diplomate, American College of Veterinary Dermatology

[JaneinAZ]

My 15 yr. old will get the same problem.  It could be that the undercoat doesn't get dry and yeast/bacteria start to grow in the damp undercoat (does it smell yeasty?).   I did use the antifungal shampoo that you leave on for 10 min.  I've found after bathing, to make sure they get "completely dry".  You may want to try a groomer as they'll have the appropriate hair dryers to really get your dog dry.  A friend of mine also had this problem with Bernese Mountain dog.