Are Homes With Dogs Dirtier? – Phoenix Dog Training – Dog Trainer – Behaviorist
Call Today!
Sam Basso
PHOENIX , AZ AREA: (602) 708-4531
OR, if you are out of this area, inquire about a telephone or e-Lesson
Email: [email protected]
Are homes with dogs dirtier? Yes
If you have a home without a dog, and you introduce a dog, the dog will bring in more dirt and make the home messier than it was before. The same is true if you have a child, but that’s not today’s topic…
Play: Dogs play in the home. They will run around the home, and they will leave their toys all over the place. Some toys will get destroyed, and the remnants of those toys will need to be picked up and discarded. Dogs will also sometimes destroy or wear out your furniture, clothes, shoes and possessions. That also can mess up a house.
Eating: Dogs eat and drink in the home. They will drop crumbs on the floor, and they will sometimes slosh water on the floor. Some breeds also drool a lot, especially when eating. When drooling dogs eat, they will sometimes shake their heads, and “slingers”… long slimy glops of saliva and food… will be flung about the room, onto your walls, furniture, and clothing. Dogs will also sometime regurgitate their food, vomiting it up onto a carpet and then, usually, eating it again. Some dogs will also consume feces… cat or dog… and sometimes they will vomit that up, too.
Outside Dirt: Dogs will walk dirt into your home. Dogs don’t wear shoes. Dogs will bring in mud. Their coats will get dirty, too. Leaves, sticks, thorns and burrs will be strewn about the place.
Oily Skin: Dogs need baths occasionally. After a while, dust, dander and body oils combine to make the dog stink. Every home with a dog eventually smells like a dog.
Urine and Feces: Untrained dogs will urinate and defecate in your home. We all understand that.
Sickness and Injury: Dogs can get sick or injured. I’ve walked into a room with blood all over the floor. I’ve stepped in warm, gushy poop on my bedroom carpet. I’ve had dogs cough in my face, have drippy eyes from an infection, stinky ears from mites, and a crusty sore from an allergy. Dogs can also get parasites such as fleas, ticks and worms. Some diseases and parasites can even infect humans.
Seasons: Female dogs go into heat a couple times a year. For a couple of weeks you’ll have blood spots on the floor.
So, yes, houses with dogs are dirtier. But, the benefits of having a dog outweigh all of this. We all know about the companionship, protection and such that dogs provide. We even bring dogs into hospitals, so they can’t be all that dirty.
And some of that “dirt” is actually good for us. Children exposed to dogs early in life tend to be healthier as adults, including having fewer allergies.
I had a student that was from India. He really didn’t like dogs, but his family wanted one. So, he used logic to overcome his aversion to the dirt. He was a gastroenterologist. He saw the studies that showed that the extra dirt that dogs bring into a home mildly challenge our immune systems, causing us to be healthier. This was his field of expertise. He told me he decided it would be good for his family to be dirtier, so he agreed to get a dog!
If all this grosses you out, then don’t get a dog. For me, it’s really no big deal. No different than having a child in the home. I love kids, so why wouldn’t I love dogs?
