Can You Wear Perfume Around Dogs
Every dog is gifted with an extraordinary sense of smell. That’s what made them so useful to our hunter-gatherer ancestors. However, it also comes at a price, because dogs are sensitive to many smells we enjoy, including perfume and cleaning agents.
Generally, you can wear perfume around dogs, but it’s important to know that most fragrances include toxic ingredients like phenols and parabens. While most bigger dog breeds won’t get harmed by inhaling perfume, smaller breeds are at risk for adverse reactions like wheezing, sneezing, and shortness of breath.
If you want to know more about wearing perfume around your dog and other nuisances of using scents when owning a dog, keep reading this article.
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Concerns About Wearing Scents Around Dogs
Dogs have a sense of smell that’s much better than humans’. It makes even natural scents that aren’t toxic to dogs possibly irritating to your pet. Imagine smelling something you like with 100 times the intensity. Chances are you’re going to hate that smell.
However, it’s important to note that most perfumes and other scented products include many ingredients which are toxic to dogs, specifically phenols and parabens. Phenols are found in most essential oils that make perfumes fragrant, and parabens are used as a preservative to stop the growth of bacteria or fungus.
These ingredients make perfume dangerous to most pets, but dogs are usually bigger than your usual cat or rodent. As a result, it’s unlikely that perfume is going to harm the health of your dog, but it can still be irritating. We recommend you test out a perfume in small amounts to see how your dog reacts to it.
If you notice any behavioral cues indicating they don’t like the smell, you should stop wearing that perfume around your dog. However, if your dog doesn’t seem bothered by the scent, you can incrementally increase the amount of perfume you wear until you reach the amount you’d normally wear.
That being said, you should never apply perfume on your dog, or when it’s around you. If you want to wear perfume when owning a dog, apply it in a separate room or even outside. It’ll minimize any potential risks of wearing perfume.
Additionally, we recommend wearing light scents with low projection and sillage. Projection means how far away from your body a scent travels, and sillage refers to the trail of scent you leave. As a rule of thumb, if other people are bothered by your perfume, chances are your dog won’t be too happy about you wearing it either.
Best Scented Products For Your Dog
What we just explained doesn’t mean that you can’t use any scented products on your dog. After all, these furballs get rather messy and you should still take care of their hygiene. Here are some of the best products for making your dog smell nice without jeopardizing its health:
If you want to maintain the best shine and beauty of the coat of your dog, this spray by Isle of Dogs is the product you should consider. It detangles and softens the coat of your dog and repels dirt and dust, making it easy to maintain the hair of your dog.
You can use it daily, and it includes a light jasmine and vanilla fragrance, which isn’t likely to irritate your dog. Finally, Everyday Elements is alcohol-free and made in the U.S.
You can buy 250ml (8.4 Fl. Oz.) of it for just about $6.50, so even if your dog doesn’t like it, it’s not an expensive mistake to make.
Some people don’t like the smell of jasmine or vanilla. For those, we recommend this grooming spray by Crazy Dog. You can use it in-between baths or after baths to maintain the shine and softness of your dog’s coat.
It includes just over 10 ingredients, compared to some other dog sprays that include dozens or even hundreds of ingredients. As a result, Baby Powder Grooming Spray is unlikely to cause any problems for your dog.
You can buy 236ml (8 Fl. Oz.) of it for just $7.99
Every dog owner knows that as cute as their pets are, they can get smelly rather quickly. Bathing their dog frequently isn’t an option for most owners, because it’s so time and energy-consuming.
Luckily, this pet deodorant by Wahl is a great option for making your dog smell great in-between baths. It’s pH balanced, paraben, and alcohol free, so it’s unlikely to cause any harm to your beloved dog. The best part about this deodorant is that it has a light cornflower and aloe scent, which will make your pet smell fantastic.
You can get 236ml (8 Fl. Oz.) of it for just about $7.50, so it’s worth trying for every dog owner.
For another deodorant option, we recommend this dog cologne by Espree. It’s safe to use with flea treatments and will leave your dog smelling like a rainforest! The only concern with this product is that it contains some alcohol, so you should first test it with a slight spray to see if it doesn’t cause dermatitis in your dog.
You can buy 118ml (4 Fl. Oz.) of Rainforest Cologne for $8.99
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
(Q): Can You Wear Perfume Around Cats?
(A): It’s not recommended to wear perfume around cats because they have problems metabolizing phenols which are commonly found in most perfumes.
(Q): What Foods Are Poisonous To Dogs?
(A): Most people know that chocolate is poisonous to dogs, but other foods that your dog shouldn’t eat include avocado, alcohol, cooked bones, onions, garlic, chives, corn on the cob, xylitol, grapes, and raisins.
Final Words
Most dogs, especially bigger breeds, won’t be harmed by you wearing perfume around them. Regardless of that, because of their great sense of smell, many scents can offend your pet. We hope this article helped you understand what you should be aware of when wearing perfume around dogs.
