@Saving thank you very much for the suggestions!
Not cleaning himself.
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Gizmo does not clean himself very often. The only thing he does is wash his privates, and his feet if they are wet after a walk.
And after seeing this I have gotten a little worried. I have never witnessed Gizmo clean himself like that.
He smells, and I smell because of it. I get comments like "You smell like dog", when I think to myself "But Basenjis are not supposed to smell, they are supposed to clean themselves a lot".
I have to soak a towel and wash him down every so often. His coat will become "sticky" due to him not cleaning it.
If I pick him up and have him on my lap, I will 90% of the time end up having poop on my pants from his dirty bum…so now I am considering having to wipe him.He just turned 11 months. Is this something that will start once he is older? Or should I be worried?
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Most likely if he does not have these habits at this age, he is not going to develop them.
Mine are very clean as youngsters.
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I have to say, Maya doesnt clean herself often unless her feet/legs get mucky. She will clean the other dogs but I rarely see her cleaning herself. I have always just assumed its a little quirk she has, however, she does not smell bad at all, she always smells fresh and clean.
As for having a dirty bum, that seems a little odd
whilst Maya is not OTT about washing in general, she does always clean herself up after having a pee/poo.Could there be a medical or behavioural reason for it maybe?
Hopefully someone will come along with some better suggestions.. -
Bowpi and I did not mean to make you worried about your Gizmo! >_<'
I haven't observed enough basenjis to know, but one thing that attracted me to the breed is that they supposedly clean themselves like cats. And that they're reputed to be clean in general and don't give off noticeably musky odors (unlike, say, Bassett Hounds, as I've heard).
I wonder if this is something that is a partially learned behavior? Do they tend to do this more if it is modeled for them, say, by their mother or other adult basenjis? And can diet and hormones affect the smell of a dog?
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Of mine, Brando cleans himself all the time - super clean.
Ruby cleans herself lightly during the day and more in the middle of the night.
Liyah (1.5 yo) is like Pig Pen in the cartoon Peanuts - a little dust cloud follows her where ever she goes whenever she first comes inside :rolleyes:. That said, I do think she must clean herself when I'm not around or at night because she couldn't possibly smell as good as she does if she didn't give herself a bath. She does keep her private bits clean though - right after her business is done and throughout the day - I do see her do that. I just don't see her do the full on bath that I see Ruby & Brando do.
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Is there a "trick" to get him to lick/clean more often? Perhaps some oil or something tasty I can rub into his coat so he gets into the habit of cleaning?
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Nerdy it is unusual for Gizmo to smell even if he doesn't clean himself as i understand Basenji's don't have a Doggy smell at all. Malaika does clean herself a bit but not excessively, she only occassionaly has a dirty behind if her stools are a bit loose, she will generaly clean herself. Are his poops generaly ok?
Could the smell be coming from his ears perhaps ? are they ok?
I can't understand why his coat would feel sticky? -
Sticky was a bad word, maybe I should say rough?
His ears are fine, no the smell is coming from his coat. Often I will see dirt spot on his leg, and it will be there for days until I rub him down.
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I know Gizmo is young, but are Gizmo's teeth and gums okay? If there is a tartar build up, it can be the reason for smelly breath in general. Even a little licking can make for a pretty funky smell. I am wondering if it would be worth to strip test Gizmo's pee. I may be way off here (and please tell me if I am) but diabetics (people and animals) can have an off odor and poor skin.
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A rough coat can be part of diet issues. Also, if you have a smell on your pants after holding the dog, it could be anal glands..also IMO diet issues.
What are you feeding your b? -
A rough coat can be part of diet issues. Also, if you have a smell on your pants after holding the dog, it could be anal glands..also IMO diet issues.
What are you feeding your b?x2 a lot of doggie smell can be eliminated through diet, you could try switching foods (main protein sources or a higher quality food)
Anal glands would smell super bad if it was them. Does he smell yeasty at all? -
Thabo cleans himself many times a day.
Zuri not so often and only her feet/legs and privates. But she NEVER smells
She has the same "nothing" on her coat as Thabo. It's a fine coat and always clean - even, when she got durty in rain.Give it a try and change his diet, when his teeth are okay.
My Bs are very different in cleaning, but the result is nearly the same.
Only their anal glands smell strange every few weeks - but they regularly clean this area then and after 2 days or so it's gone.
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A rough coat can be part of diet issues. Also, if you have a smell on your pants after holding the dog, it could be anal glands..also IMO diet issues.
What are you feeding your b?It's not his anal glads.
People seem to be miss-reading what I am saying.
His coat is fine, his diet is fine (firm stool), etc etc.
The thing is he does not CLEAN himself. The result of not cleaning is naturally turning his coat rough/sticky and develops a smell….as everything does when you don't clean something.
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It's not his anal glads.
People seem to be miss-reading what I am saying.
His coat is fine, his diet is fine (firm stool), etc etc.
The thing is he does not CLEAN himself. The result of not cleaning is naturally turning his coat rough/sticky and develops a smell….as everything does when you don't clean something.
Honestly, my girls do not groom themselves very much and they never have an odor?
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Tillo only cleans his feet when they're wet. And of course his privates..
He doesn't really take care of the rest of his coat and I don't do it either.. but no smelly dog here. I do smell 'something' when he has been out in the rain and his feet smell funny when he sleeps/wakes up, but that's not a typical dog odor 
You could try changing his food, just to see if it changes anything about how he smells.
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Well, seems that Gizmo is not the only "dirty" dog here. That's good to hear.
It's not an aggressive and dominating smell that is infesting my appartment. More like, if you go up to him and take a whiff, then you will get a "dog smell".
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Other than the typical "corn chip" feet smell, Kananga never has an odor. He only grooms himself in the usual parts, but every now and then he'll get bored and do a complete grooming.
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It's not his anal glads.
People seem to be miss-reading what I am saying.
His coat is fine, his diet is fine (firm stool), etc etc.
The thing is he does not CLEAN himself. The result of not cleaning is naturally turning his coat rough/sticky and develops a smell….as everything does when you don't clean something.
I know bs can have the tendency to clean themselves but not cleaning himself shouldnt lead to a rough sticky smelly coat. My bulldog does not groom himself (cept for the usual bits) and he is super soft, not sticky or smelly.
What are you feeding him? Just because he has firm stools does not mean it isnt his diet. -
So we understood you right
But as we said: Not cleaning doesn't mean, that they smell or have a sticky coat.
They don't clean their hole bodies - or better "can not". But those parts are fine, too.We are used to meet some friends regularly at race-track.
They have a sweet girly-B.
After touching Thabo the daughter told her mother, that his coat is much softer than the one of her bitch.
It can have many reasons, but most often it's the kind of food
