Smells that Dogs Really Don’t Like

Dogs are notorious for finding the smelliest things to roll in with some dogs regularly perfuming themselves with scents that drive their owners to distraction. Hounds will track a scent for miles if they are allowed to and if a terrier gets a whiff of something, they rarely give up until they find what's at the end of it.

If you own a dog that boasts a terrific sense of smell which most of our canine friends do, the chances are they will do their utmost to find what's left a scent behind long after the animal has gone, even if this means trashing your beautiful flower beds in the process. A few dogs will happily dig their way out of a garden if they are committed to chasing down a scent and this can become a real issue and quite dangerous if you happen to live near a main road. With this said, there are a few things that dogs definitely don't like the smell of and if used intelligently and kindly, will stop a dog from messing things up when they get a whiff of something they like!

Anything Citrus: Lemon and Limes

Dogs really don’t like anything that smells of citrus and this includes fruits like grapefruit, oranges, lemons and limes. If you find your dog likes to chew on a chair leg or two, spray a little citrus water on the legs and it will soon put them off gnawing at your expensive furniture. It's also great when you mix some citrus peel with ground coffee that's left over in your coffee pot and use the mixture to fertilise plants and flowers in your garden borders. It serves two purposes which is to keep your dog from digging up your flowers while at the same time feeding your plants valuable nutrients which makes them grow bigger and stronger.

Vinegar: A Real Doggy Turn-off

Unless you love vinegar on your fish and chips, spraying a little around the house to stop your dog from doing things you don't particularly want them to do, can in itself be a bit smelly. However, a little vinegar strategically sprayed on a chair leg or where a dog might have had a pee, will certainly put them off from doing it again. With this said, when used outside, vinegar can be a great deterrent if you want to stop your pooch from cocking their leg on your back door, but if you get any on your flower bed or plants, it won't do them much good so be warned!

Chilli Powder or Black Pepper: Stops Scratching at the Door

If you share your home with an impatient character who scratches at the door as soon as they hear you coming home from work and they find it hard to control themselves so they end up damaging the door, a little chilli powder or black pepper strategically placed at the base of the doorway might stop them from doing this every time you come home.

You don't need to put much on the ground, just a little is enough to put your pooch off and as a bonus, and it will save your carpet from getting beaten up by your dog’s paws! It's the capsaicin in chilli powder that dogs don't like and which is often used in commercially produced dog repellents. With this said, if you have any young children in the house, you need to be very careful they don't put their hands on the chilli powder and then touch their eyes or faces! You could also use a little cayenne pepper in the doorway as well as sprinkling a little on your lawn which works well at keeping dogs off the grass while at the same time acting as a terrific natural pesticide that keeps all sorts of bugs and insects at bay.

Conclusion

If you need to find a safe deterrent to use around the home or in the garden to stop your dog from gnawing on the furniture or scratching at the door, there are certain smells that our canine friends really don’t like - in fact they positively hate them. A little vinegar or a few pieces of citrus peel as well as a touch of chilli powder when strategically placed in an area or on things that you don't want your pooch to touch, will do a great job of keeping them away from them. The good news is that none of these things will hurt your pet they will just put them off doing things making them great natural yet safe deterrents you can safely use when you share your home with a dog.