We have had around 10 showings so far and this is the first time we got this feedback.
I'm not sure what else can I do. Dog is bathed weekly, furniture covers and crate were washed.
I spend so much time every day keeping this house presentable with two kids and the dog, only to get this feedback. I feel like I can't do it anymore.
No, sending the dog somewhere else isn't an option, neither is moving out before it's sold. We have no support system here at all.
Buyer feedback – strong dog smell. I feel like I'm drowning
byu/No_Cryptographer735 inRealEstate
Posted by No_Cryptographer735
21 Comments
someone who owns a dog will fall in love with your house and buy it. Don’t panic.
Make sure the a/c is running and has been running prior to showing and change the filter. Maybe stick a dryer sheet in with it. Make sure the dog bed is outside or in the garage. Hit the favorite spot in the carpet or couch with some fabreeze. Air circulation is key. Our house reeks of dog (Labrador) when the a/c has been off and we’re pretty tidy also.
Try placing big bowls of baking soda in every room. Buy the HUGE bags at Walmart. It’s supposedly very helpful with absorbing smells.
Wait, the dog is home during showings?
We also added wall plugs and used febreeze throughout the house every time we had a showing. We own 3 large dogs and I have always made sure our house doesn’t smell like dog.
Maybe the dog is peeing somewhere on a carpet or rug you haven’t found? If that is not the case it maybe that the crate is the source of the smell, but u got used to it. I think you gotta put the crate out in the backyard or something before a showing.
Do you ever do fresh air treatment? Even sunday we open every window for 2 hours, keeps house smelling better.
I’ve said it here before, having a dog and or kids in the house is going to cost you $20, $30, $40k in sales price!
This was the first honest feedback you got, the others were too polite to tell you.
If I said move out tomorrow for $20,000 could you make it happen?
Move out, paint, deep clean, stage, curb appeal and you’ll sell quickly and for more.
You have to move out in 30 days anyways!!!
I would also be turned off by dog smells, but there are dog people who are looking for homes.
Odo ban everything. I had to do it myself with 4 dogs.
Take a deep breath 🩷
It was one comment. And I’m sure it was someone who hates dogs, and can you really trust *anyone* that hates dogs? Absolutely not! Dogs are adorable!!
I know not everyone is religious, but when I was selling my home and it was taking forever I had to remind myself that my home was perfect for someone and that it was going to happen when the time was right. I stressed myself out and nitpicked everything- it got me nowhere.
We kept getting negative feedback about the shape of the backyard. The one thing I couldn’t fix lol. And you know what?! The most amazing couple came along and loved our house and loved the backyard.
Don’t let one Negative Nancy stress you out or make you feel like you doing anything wrong. And ignore anyone who wants to be negative on here as well!
((HUGS))
Every surface in your house can and probably has absorbed that odor. Your listing agent should have said something before a buyer had a chance to. A deep, thorough professional cleaning could possibly help, but you may have to do more than that. If there’s any carpet in the house, it’s likely in there. Upholstery, too. Sometimes it’s bad enough that you have to kilz the walls. It’s probably in your ductwork. All clothes and other fabrics.
When was the last time the dog got a trim?
Do you have a backyard?
Buy an ozone generator from Amazon (they aren’t terribly expensive), put everyone in the car, including the dog, and go for a visit to the park while it runs. Your house will smell much better when you return.
Just be sure all life you care about is out of the house. It will kill anything alive (which is a large part of how it reduces odors – by killing bacteria) including pets and plants.
I saw a house before I bought mine and there was a terrible dog smell but they still got multiple offers and sold fast. 10 showings means people are coming. When I sold mine, people criticized a wall I put in. Let those walk away. Hang in there! It is not easy. For the record, I love pets and have a large Persian cat. Don’t internalize negative people’s stuff.
Use an ozonator or hire an odor removal service
Dog needs to go to boarding if you’re serious about selling the house.
We bought a darling cabin that definately had a doggie smell, overlain by suffocating scented candles. Others had passed on it, but we got it because we didnt mind the smell.
I used to have a newfoundland and no matter what the house just smelled like dog. She passed at a ripe old age and the house has smelled better since.
Pet smells are trapped in fabric. Get all curtains, carpet and upholstery steam cleaned. And Odoban is a good friend.
I had the dog smell and I hated it because I try to keep a tidy home. Couldn’t figure out how to fix it. Tried different HVAC filters, air filters, febrezes, sprays, carpet deoderizer, etc. etc. It would work for maybe a week and then it would come back. I finally rented a carpenter cleaner from Home Depot and cleaned every single carpet, rug, runner, stair tread, welcome mat, anything my dog touched and that was cloth based. It worked 100%. The smell went away completely. Give it a try.