my friends black cocker

**tikeyas_mom** · 10-24-2003, 02:20 AM

he is 11 years old and he smells SOOOOO bad, like you have no idea how raunchy this dog smells

.. it is sickening. I went to pet him and felt a bunch of really weired scabs all over his body

.. What could be wronge?? His owners dont seem to notice the smell. But I sure did and it stuck to all my clothing.. ugh..

How can I tell her, her dog has somthing wrong with it, without insaulting her

... eep...

**Rio and Me** · 10-24-2003, 05:00 AM

you could pet him and say something like "did u know he has some little scabs here?"

**micki76** · 10-24-2003, 09:11 AM

My SIL's very old poodle smelled like that for about 6 months before they had him PTS. He had cancer and I guess it just had eaten away at his body or something. I don't know what it was, but he reaked and it was sickening. He was bathed every week too, so it wasn't that he was dirty.

**tatsxxx11** · 10-24-2003, 01:06 PM

Sounds like the poor baby might need a good bath and some grooming and to have his coat/skin checked out by a vet.

Cocker's eyes and ears, especially when they get older, are very prone to infection and can develop quite an odor if not cleaned regularly. And just being a very senior pup makes it more difficult to keep them clean smelling. He might also have some other illness that is affecting him, causing an odor. Do you know if they regularly take him to the vet's? Maybe you could very politiely mention that you felt a few scabs on his skin when petting him and perhaps they will explain what might be going on with him. It's so kind of you to care. I hope you can get them to talk about this with you.

**tikeyas_mom** · 10-24-2003, 04:42 PM

maybe it is his eyes.
He was rubbing his face along the carpet for like an hour streight when I was over their... ugh... poor thing..

**dragondawg** · 10-24-2003, 07:58 PM

1. Mites or mange. A Vet would have to take some scraping to confirm. Dogs whose immune systems are compromised or undeveloped (e.g. puppies) can readily get mites.

2. Severe untreated allergy.

In cases 1,2 the smell might be secondary infection of bacteria, yeast, or fungi secondary to the underlying condition.

3. Thyroid disfunction. Older dogs frequently start to have thyroid problems, with the result of dry dandruff like skin, loss of hair, and again secondary infection setting in. A blood panel monitoring for T4 hormone is the only way to tell for sure.

A trip to the Vet needs to be made for diagnosis and treatment.