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Tuesday, 24 January 2012

Does perfume drive dogs mad?

I just wondered if any research has been done into strong perfume and dog behaviour?
I know horses can become unrideable when the rider wears it.
My friends horse was very bad when she wore Charlie.
Does it affect dogs?
I just wondered.
Could dog attacks/bad behaviour be linked to it?
Wendy Woo Hillings, Via Facebook

3 comments:

  1. My dogs go bad If Iv sprayed hairspray and perfume, they run round and rub there faces on the floor, I guess its because they don't like the smell, but they are never aggressive

    Karen :-)

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  2. Apart from the fact that some perfumes can be over-bearing, could it be the association of the particular scent?
    I have known rescue dogs that react badly to the smell of spirits and beer. I can only imagine that the old owner was a drinker and a disciplinarian!
    The worst case was a dog that cowered when he smelled alcohol hand gel. We traced it back to a traumatic event involving the woman who used to clean the house.
    We'll never know but we have to respect just how powerful the dog's cold wet nose is!

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  3. I would say yes, it can be hugely significant. In terms of research we know that a dog's nose is extremely sensitive. It follows that any artificial scent can be very strong to them indeed. Dogs become used to certain smells from people but as a general rule, if we think it smells strong then it must be absolutely overpowering to a dog. Alcohol based smells evaporate rapidly (perfume, solvents/paint, beer and spirits) so it may simply be the strength of the smell rather than the association formed with it.

    It is worth remembering that a strong scent can block them from smelling more subtle scent and this could be distressing for them, especially if the experience is an unfamiliar one. I liken it to a very bright light in our eyes, or a very loud noise. We can only imagine what this must be like for a dog to experience - perhaps like smelling salts used to be used in Victorian times to shock people out of a faint..!

    Dogs learn that certain smells mean certain things so a particular perfume will be significant, but also any underlying smell from the human will also affect this. Often you will see an avoidance response or fear reaction in a dog when they witness something unusual, and this includes unfamiliar smells.

    As we know, search dogs that can detect particular scent from a great distance or in very small quantities, medical detection dogs that can detect variations in blood sugar and even detect cancer. There is no limit to what a dog's nose knows!

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