Very dirty sphynx

[spikesmom]

Velvet, my 8 month old girl, is very very dirty. Her tail, the top surface, always appears brown no matter how much I wash it. She has a constant poop ring on her back door, and she gets brown stripes on her back legs the day after bath. I have no idea how to control her grease. I don't bathe her more than once a week because I read it is bad for her skin. I use johnson & johnson baby shampoo (I have used that with my other sphynx, Spike with no issues. he only needs a bath once every 2-3 weeks). He has learned to clearn his back door too. What is up with the crusty girl? oh how I love her so, but geez, she is one dirty girl! Any advice on keeping the brown grease at bay? Interesting note - Velvet smells like mushrooms at times, and Spike smells like cheese occasionally, so when they lay together all sweaty like, they smell like pizza! LOL! Did I mention how much I love these weird little creatures? they are my soul! but seriously, any help is appreciated!

 

[zoinks]

LOL! Pizza, that is too funny. My boys smell like mushroom too, looks like I should get a cheesy sphynx next

As for the dirtiness, I had similar issue with Dippy. I switched to pure pet d-grease shampoo and had really good results. It helped make his skin less oily and was better at taking the dirt off. If he is particularly bad soon after bath day I give him a quick wipe down between baths, in the bad areas.

I don't think there is a miracle fix unfortunately (I would buy it in a heartbeat!!) just some sphynx are prone to being pretty dirty, others like your Spike are less so.

With the poop ring, I found that poop ring was more manageable when I got their poop to firm up, but til then I would just catch it after they get out litter box / when I got home and give it a wipe. I think they got the idea and started cleaning it themselves

 

[ZiggyStardust]

Pizza smell! LOL, that is funny! I agree with zoinks, some are more greasy than others. Toothy will leave brown stains in a heartbeat, but it takes a while for Giz. (Though they're the opposites with their ears.) I just started using the D'Grease shampoo and it's help Toothy a lot.

 

[NinaGato]

She is young and sometimes I notice that they kittens don't groom as much as they should until they grow up a bit. Also, if you don't use an exfoliation bath glove with her I would give it a try. All five nakeds I have had have very different skin. She might need a different wash or more often.

 

[Catzzzmeow]

I love mushroom pizza! I have had great success with the D'grease shampoo too.

Patti

 

[Calicocious]

Same here. Mine smell like mushrooms soon after bath day too. I use the d grease shampoo too that helps. Doesn't strip the oils as much. I use earth bath pet wipes after a couple days to keep the brown tinge under control. At night I put pjs on them to help absorb the oils since they sweat under the covers. Maybe check how much dust there is in your litter? It sticks to the oils on their skin making it dirtier faster. I'm hoping they get less dirty the older they get. Mine are dirty girls too

 

[assibassi]

omg i laughed so much at Your post, "backdoor" and Pizza !!!! I had seriously tears in my eyes from laughing.
Hairy used to be always so dirty, we bathed once a week and then we got "d'greaser" from kv pet online . Amazon has it too , but i think its a bit more at amazon. The small tub is like 15 dollars , but you need very little and we bathe Hairy now every 2 weeks and a few days sometimes added ..

 

[Rwalkerg]

I, too, have had good results with the D'Greaser shampoo. Pricey, but you dont use a lot and I now dont have to bath her as often. In between, I use a cotton ball or pad and use Witch Hazel for a complete all body wipe down. Witch Hazel is a "natural" astringent and helps control skin issues. I find it gets dirts off better than baby wipes and controls oil better in the long term.

 

[andreanar]

Haha about the pizza smell. Mine smell like mushrooms. Jinx is a filthy thing. Archie is clean and only needs a bath every 2 weeks. I think its because Archie has more hair-he is like a chamois cloth and Jinx is totally naked. I use Earth bath shampoo and exfoliating gloves but she is still dirty a day after her bath. I have just given up and live with it. I used Worlds Best cat litter for awhile and that helped keep the litter dust down. As for her "backdoor" (hehe), I would just wipe it for her and smear some baby food on it so she will learn to lick it herself!