Written on October 14, 2009 – 4:14 am | by maxine |

Probably one of the most aggravating things we hear is, “If you have cats or dogs, your house ALWAYS stinks!”  Talk about stereotyping a visible minority.  Sheeash!!  There outta be a law against such slander.

Odours (if you are Canadian), or odors (if you are American), come from far more than your pets. Just smell the sneakers by the front door.  Which, by the way, is often a place where shoes are parked – ready to assault the discerning nostrils. Carpets and floor mats pick up the oils from people feet and hang onto them tightly until they gas off over time – resembling closely the smell of odoriferous footwear! Or how about the fish or liver and onions that was cooked for supper?  The garbage can contains the packaging from the meat and whew, after a day even we livestock won’t go near it! Even the smell of a homemade batch of pickles or chilli or salsa sauce can smell heavenly on the cooking day, and really stale the next day. Coats hanging in the front or back closet can harbour profound body odour caused by outdoor activities where the wearer worked up a sweat, or when they were standing in a long line at the check-out counter and their deodorant failed miserably. Hey, think about it. When’s the last time you washed all the coats in the closet? Then there are the dirty laundry smells coming up through the air vent, along with often musty odour from the basement. Some homes even have mould growing in spots and mould can be smelly business! Have you ever sniffed the dish cloth that has been used more than a day in hot weather, or the wash cloth after some people have used them? On top of all that, upholstered furniture can exude the body odours of those who have sat or reclined on it for years and years – all without thought of in-depth regular cleaning. Some people are always spraying smelly stuff on themselves. He uses a musky scent, she a flowery or herbal fragrance. Then add to the mix smelly hair sprays, bath oils, essential oils, bath powder, perfumes, fragrant soaps for body and clothing, clothes dryer sheets, air fresheners, cleaning products, smelly creams for sore muscles . . . and guess what, you end up with a BIG STINKY MESS of competing and lingering odours!

And guess what again, you don’t even have to have a cat or a dog in the house to get that BIG STINKY mess! Why do you think certain companies are making millions on fragrance plug-ins, spray cans of fragrance, odor eaters for inside shoes, baking soda, those little hanging air fresheners for using in the vehicle and other places, powders to sprinkle on carpets, essential oils, scented candles . . . ? Guess what folks, not everybody has a cat or a dog but they do have people and, from our perspective, lots of people and their environment truly stink!! So, they keep an industry alive by adding yet another fragrance into the mix to mask the odour and, once it dissipates, they are back to odor.  As we say, it is NOT all our fault!

But, you say, what about those pet accidents that happen? Yes, they do happen. And yes, litter boxes or toileting stations as we call them around here, if left un-cleaned can add to the odour problem and we do feel badly about the small contribution that can make to the air quality in a home. Oh, and while we are on that topic – urine smells to be specific – it is not always us! Did you know that tiny bacteria live in the latex backing of carpets? The butyric acid they produce during their lifetime has a smell of urine odour that most disinfectants won’t even touch.  Just this past summer, Mrs. Noah and Andrea helped remove a carpet  that had been down for about 15 years in a bedroom. That family has no cats or dogs, nor have they had for well over thirty-five years. The foam backing crumbled and smelled decidedly of urine and smelly feet and that was in a home where the people practice excellent personal hygiene and vacuum regularly.

Mrs. Noah and Andrea used to clean houses professionally and they noticed that not all men are accurate in their aim, if you get the flow of where this thought is taking us! And sometimes drops of you-know-what flow right under the edge of the toilet or settle into the carpet or floor mat. Now, just think about that one for a moment!

In our family home, our people use a wonderful product called “Odor Xit” and its companion product, “Odor Magic.” If you haven’t used these wonderful products, you really should. They actually eliminate malodours and don’t just mask them.

So, if you have been one of those “if you have a pet you have odours” people, or you hear someone slandering cats or dogs, just let them know of the many ways odours invade a home and that they can get rid of them with Odor Xit and Odor Magic! And remember, it is NOT always US!

Until next time, enjoy breathing fresh air!

By we Dogs and Cats with definite viewpoints at www.dogandcatviews.com