A lot of you know my background, my culture and my relationship with my dogs. I grew up learning that dogs are dirty in the sense that I need to wash my clothes after they touch me or wash my hands if I pet them. And when I first got Smokey I was very OCD about it. I had 'Smokey clothes' which were basically a long sleeved and pants layer I wore on top of my everyday clothes to prevent my every day clothes from getting 'dirty'. I washed my hands after playing with him, petting him, giving him food water or any kind of interaction with him. If I hugged him my husband would make me shower (still asks me to but I don't) mostly because my husband has allergies and if the doggies get in my hair it induces a an allergic reaction...

Dogs do roll around in a mess of things worst case being poo. They catch a lot of dirt in their fur and their paws leave piddle paddle everywhere. Just the other day Zeeva steeped in her own poo and brought it onto the porch stairs. They don't wipe their private parts after doing their business and then lie on the couch. Does that upset people? It doesn't upset me any more....Plus their fur gets everywhere. Mine at least don't get regular hose downs unless it's warm outside. They've gotten a grooming a couple times. But come home to roll around in dirt immediately after...

I hope this isn't disconcerting to some of you but I share everything so here goes. When Zeeva was a puppy she lived inside with us as we were afraid Smokey would harm her and she wouldn't be able to hold her own. Every time she went outside to go poo or pee, after she was done I would hose her privates to get any left over 'stuff' off. She actually had a command that she knew she had to come to the hose to have herself washed 'there'..It's actually a cultural thing. We wash our privates with water after using the restroom too. So ladies if you've ever seen a girl fill a water bottle in the restroom and then carry it into the stall, you know why now It's very cleanly and I highly recommend it even though most of you are probably thinking I'm weird by now. It prevents UTI and other nasty issues down there :c Sowy...I HAVE to share EVERYTHING...if you are angered or upset by this, try thinking of it as educational and honesty. Don't be upset :::whimpers:::

But anyway do you consider dogs dirty? Do you wash your hands after petting them? Do you wash your hand before you eat if you've pet them or can you pet and eat with the same hand? Do you feel that extra cleanliness precautions should be taken when you own an animal? For example: a pregnant lady should be cleaning cat litter due to Toxoplasma? Do you feel like you have to shower more often because of your pets? How about do the laundry more often? I certainly still feel the lingerings of my cultural upbringing but I notice that I'm letting things slide now...Is this ok?

For me, dirty depends on the dog. I don't worry about washing up after I've played with Kenzi. She's an inside dog that gets baths and brushed. I don't hose her off after she does her business but then I also don't pet her lady parts so that's never been a concern for me. I do wash clothes a lot but to keep up with her hair because it's everywhere and makes us sneeze, not because it's particularly dirty. Now, my old dog is an outside dog and I do wash up after I play with him. He hasn't had a bath in 6 years unless you count getting rained on and he has rolled in everything from cow crap to dead deer (farm dog). I see it as, do you wash your hands after you shake someone's hand? Maybe after you shake the hand of the homeless guy on the subway, but possibly not after shaking hands with the boss of a big company. For me, the same goes with dogs.

To me if a dog has a smell and *feels* dirty, then I will wash my hands after every interaction. My husband's mom has dogs that go outside and just reek a lot even after baths. I will wash my hands immediately after petting any of them.

Now with my own dog Mishka, I do not wash my hands after every interaction. I will wash my hands if he drools on me though (yuck) and I will wash my hands before handling food and cooking. Now I will pet his head while I'm cooking but if I actually have to handle anything I tend to wash my hands. Fur gets all over the place and he's an inside dog with no smell so I don't feel as if he's "dirty".

As far as letting things slide as you get more comfortable, I see no problem with that. Some people may think the extent to which I let things slide is too much (people that are more germophobes and or have OCD), but I don't think it's a big deal.

What an interesting thread! I'm fascinated to learn how other cultures view and live with their animals, so no judgement coming from me. I'll share how I feel about the things you mentioned.

I usually end up giving Dizzy a bath, in our bathtub, about once a week. I think compared to most people that's quite often, but living in the city means he gets filthy very quickly, and I scrub the tub when we're done. I can't stand to pet/cuddle with a dog and then have that film on my hands afterward or smell and I can't stand to come home from work and walk into an apartment that smells like animals. Also, Dizzy doesn't really roll in dirt/poop often, but on our daily trips to the park, his lower legs/belly will get dirty. In an effort to keep our tiny apartment clean, I will often rinse his legs off in the tub when we come in from outside. I have an attachment that hooks up to the bathtub spout that I use just for him. Plus, being an adolescent intact male, he marks outside on our walks and frequently pees on himself (belly area right in front of his privates). I definitely clean that area daily either with grooming wipes, or a quick rinse when doing his feet. He also cleans himself. He's only rarely on the bed or couch and generally as a treat. We have cats too, and a sheet to cover our bed during the day to keep the cat hair off. If I let Diz on the bed, the sheet has to be down. I'm less worried about the couch, but I don't let him up there if we've just come in from outside because of drips.

As far as my clothes go, I do have a specific pair of jeans and sweatshirt I normally wear for walks, mostly because I only have a couple nice pairs of jeans that are work appropriate, and I like to keep them clean and I never know what may happen on a walk. Along with that I carry treats on walks and they often have a strong smell that I don't like following me around all day lol. Plus, since Dizzy is a puppy, he used to jump up to play and bite/grab my clothes and caused a couple of rips. I definitely do laundry more often, partly because my clothes get dirty faster from being outside so often, and partly because I'm so much more active. I don't shower after hugging/playing with him unless he had really dirty paws, but I do wash my hands before eating/cooking. Since I keep him really clean with the weekly baths, I don't feel too icky after petting/playing with him, so I don't normally wash my hands unless I'm going to eat something. If he lived outside, it might be a different story. I am a once a day shower person, unless it's hot and I feel like I need to freshen up in the evenings.

For the personal hygine thing, I carry around kleenex cottonelle fresh wipes. The water bottle is a great idea, I had never thought of that. I definitely think cleanliness precautions should be taken, but with anything, there is a range of how far you want to take it. I don't think I would ever shower just because I played with, hugged, or fed my dog, but I would wash my hands before eating. I would pet and eat with the same hand, but try to make a habit of hand washing before eating. When pregnant, I wouldn't do the catbox, that will be hubby's job.

Overall, I don't think of my dog as 'dirty' in a cultural way, but the reality is that he goes outside and runs around on the sidewalks and streets of an extremely dirty city. Plus since getting a dog, I have realized that the streets/sidewalks of NYC are just a giant dog toilet, no joke. If I just was able to keep him in my own yard, it would be a different story, but here, the extra precautions are a necessity. I clean the apartment more often and more thoroughly. I might be a little overly cautious, my mom worked at a lab in an animal hospital, so its what I'm comfortable with.

I honestly think its fine to let things slide. Even with my normal routines I let things slide from time to time, and I let my dog lick my face. I try to avoid letting him lick my lips, I try and shoot for the chin/cheek area, but every now and then he surprises me and gets me. I hug him, roll around on the floor with him and let him sleep on the bed when my hubby travels. I think you should just do what you're comfortable with, it certainly won't hurt you or your dogs. Thanks for sharing!

I agree with what everyone else is saying.

I don't wash my hands after interacting with Juneau because she is an inside dog and gets regular baths.  I DO wash my hands if she gets slobber on me or if I'm handling food. She gets bathed about once every 2 months. If I take her to the park a lot, I'll bathe more often.

I wash my hands if a dog feels or smells dirty.  Like if I pet a dog and can smell the stink on my hand, then I definitely wash my hands.  I even wash the dog if applicable.  It's pretty common with fosters.  I also try to shampoo our carpet about once a month.  Can't wait for hardwood floors.  I weekly clean the house as well to keep furballs to a minimum.

I grew up on a farm, every one is dirty haha
Dogs were dirty, parents were dirty, grandparents were dirty, but especially kids were dirty! Kids didn't wear shoes, I still hate wearing shoes. We weren't allowed to be inside and watch tv. Our fun was running through the fields after it rained and swimming in the "ponds" that were created, or building forts in the long grass with all the bugs. I was hardly ever sick as a kid.

We don't have the problem with the dogs tracking poop all around because we pick up after the dogs.

It's already been addressed in several research articles that their is a correlation between the number of dogs in a household and children developing allergies, the correlation being more dogs in a household = less allergies in the children, obviously this isn't true when it's a household that isn't kept up with. The microbes that dogs can track around from walking, but not all microbes are bad. We need good bacteria to thrive.

I've always had animals though, but I can't say I do anything differently than I would if I didn't have them. I certainly don't wear my best outfit and then go run around in the yard with the dogs, but that's more for getting ripped since "nice" clothes tend to be a lto more fragile. I also don't normally wash my hands before I eat, unless I'm at work, since I clean airplanes, but that's more for the harshness of the chemicals we use than anything else. I don't shower more often from being around my animals, but I will if we do something that makes me sweaty. And I normally don't do laundry until I'm out of clean cloths, which is normally at least a week or two. I'm not paranoid about getting sick from my animals, I never have been.

What a fascinating topic, I had never actually thought about cultural views on pets before. Just out of curiosity what is your cultural background? I'm not judging or anything I was just wondering

I was raised always having pets and both my parents are from farming backgrounds so animals have always been a constant in my life. I was always taught that cleanliness is an important part of having pets.

Orion is an inside and outside dog - he is outside during the day when I am at work but inside/wherever I am when I am home. I give him a bath maybe once a month and he is groomed every few days. If he has been out digging or making a mess I will hose him down and towel dry him before letting him in the house. As a little puppy I used to wipe him sometimes after peeing because he had those longer hairs on his boy parts that would get saturated in pee and the only time I have ever hosed him down after toileting is when he had the runs. I vacumn every day and shampoo the carpets every few months (I also have a bissell little green that I spot clean the carpets and couches with) and I use a de-odourising foam on the carpets every week - I am kind of paranoid about having a "doggy" smelling house! Orion is not really allowed on the furniture except as a real treat and we have the hallway to the bedrooms baby gated off so he cannot get to them. I have home clothes which I am happy to wear round Orion but I try not to wear my work or good clothes round him (part of that is because he is still young and can jump and nip) and I always separate my laundry.

I am aware of the use of water for cleansing in feminine hygiene, it is something that is accommodated for at my workplace although it is not part of the kiwi culture and not something I personally practice. I tend to be a two shower a day person, mainly because I take Orion for two good hour long walks a day lol. I don't wash my hands after every time I touch Orion but I do if I am going to eat or prep food, Orion is not allowed in the kitchen if I am cooking - neither is the cat for that matter.

I don't really think of Orion as a dirty dog, although I think a lot of that is to do with the way his coat feels. Because huskies don't have an oily coat they don't get that icky greasy feeling to them, my mothers dog on the other hand is a Briard and and a long coated breed he definitely does get the greasy feeling even though he gets bathed every week - I adore him to pieces but I always wash my hands after touching him.

I honestly think it is fine if you are letting things slide a little as long as you are comfortable and happy with how things are that's the main thing.

I work in a segment of the service industry and personally consider human beings far more dirty than dogs. We are a disgusting species, especially children. No offense, but seriously from a biological perspective with germs and dirt and sanity, the fact that children are allowed in places where dogs are not is astounding.

This is a great thread by the way. Thank you.

Totally agree Jeff. The fact children always seem to be sticky scares me...

Working in the medical field I agree we humans are far more dirty than my dogs have ever been, even after rolling in poo- Now I do the common sense things like washing my hands after scooping or picking up (bag) dog poop, but I don't overly fret about the everyday normal stuff- I've personally seen how sick people can get by going too far over the clean freak side of things.

I have never thought of dogs as inherently dirty. I agree with others about washing hands during cooking if you pet them or deal with something nasty, but that's about it.

Anthony's aunt had a baby a couple years ago and his uncle (aunts brother) has a dog that would come to Christmas and stuff when everyone was together. The Aunt wouldn't let the baby anywhere near the dog and if someone even just petted the dog briefly she wouldn't let them come near the baby until they washed. Nothing wrong with the baby either like a weak immune system. I just found the whole thing to be utterly overkill, but I know that some people just think that way. I was raised with dogs and have pictures of our family dog growing up standing over my crib, cuddling, etc...so I've always had very close interactions and thought nothing of it.

I agree people and especially kids can be dirtier than dogs...

I'm actually muslim...

I guess I wanted to ask another question along the same lines

With whichever pets you have and however many you have, how clean are you able to keep your house? Do you clean every day? What do you do to keep it clean?

If you're interested here's my answer:
I'd say our house is medium clean. It's difficult to keep it spotless with so many critters. I'd also say that although it is medium clean, it is also very messy (I perceive dirty and messy as two different things). I vacuum and wet swiffer the areas where the dogs run around (kitchen and nook) a couple times a week. I probably vacuum and dust the living room once a week. Our room doesn't get much organizing so it looks messy but I do wash the sheets and do the laundry every week. I don't put away laundry and that's probably why it looks so messy.

Dogs and kids are dirty, but I'm okay with that. I moved a few months ago, and an old friend I hadn't seen in years came over. She said, "You haven't changed. You still keep your home uncluttered and picked-up but miss the random tumbleweeds of dog hair here and there."  I would say she nailed it.  

I have several Muslim students, and we recently had an interesting conversation about dogs. One has three dogs, but she only tolerates them because her husband likes them. None of the others have dogs because they are 'unclean', but one is in to horses (her father breeds them), which are far filthier, imo.

The different cultural perceptions of animals has always fascinated me.

Currently we have three dogs, three cats, and three rats. In order to stay clean I clean the rat cage and cat boxes every two or three days, while we try to sweep and vacuum once a week. I'm not a neat person, clutter bothers me but I always find ways to get distracted instead of organize. I will, however, go out of my way to clean up after the animals. That way no one can complain about my animals

I am grateful to learn of different cultural perceptions as well.

My experience with Muslim women and my dog are on city buses or on sidewalks. The Muslim women will go to great lengths to avoid any closeness to Link whatsoever, and even carefully pull up any clothing or bag from the ground so that he can't touch it.

After doing research onto why this is and understanding it, I have since made it a concerted point to respect their space and their belongings and try my best to keep him as far as I can, which is sometimes tough on the bus. I am all for shared uses of public space by people of various cultural practices, but sometimes you just gotta rub elbows, as it were. That's the give and take of public space in a multicultural society.

I just wish more people understood these things and made some effort to coexist more peacefully. Muslim men and women have such notoriety these days, and for all the wrong reasons.

My dogs hardly ever get baths, and I've never washed my hands after petting them, but they never feel 'dirty' to me. As far as cleanliness in general goes with me the dishes can wait a couple days in the sink, I really don't worry about vacuuming every day, and it doesn't bother me to wear a pair of pants I've already worn earlier in the week. I can be covered in dog hair and I really don't care, but I would say I'm in the minority xD

Thank you for making this thread, I always love to learn about how other cultures view things.

My dogs never seem dirty to me, not even after rolling around in poop lol. They always smell nice and feel nice so i don't wash my hands after petting them. But the goldens i pet-sit have a smell to them that gets on my hands when i pet them. So i always have to wash my hands after petting them. xD

I grew up with three dogs and pretty much ate my food in their dish (I didn't actually eat out of the dish but I sat in the crate with them while eating my pb&J sandwiches)

I would have to agree with Jeff, I see humans as dirtier then dogs. I say this because I have not been near a dog that has produced an odor foul enough to make me thrown up where a human has before *shudder*

My house is kept pretty clean I vacuum once a week it gets bumped up to twice on coat blowing season. I also mop/steam the floors afterwards. We own a cat and Husky and I would say the house is pretty clean, we usually dirty it more then they do. The only time Thane will take a bath is when he smells like dirty meat because he eats his bones in his crate and his blankets sometimes pick up the scent and it rubs off on him. But other then that all is good I wash my hands after poop pickup or meaty bone pickup and no kisses if he cleaned his bum recently.

My house is dirty and my dogs are dirty. I use to be ocd but not so much now. I live with 3 dogs, 2 cats, a teenager, and a construction worker. The construction worker is by far the dirtiest. My dogs get baths once a month, I whip them down if they get dirty, and I brush my animals a few times a week. I vacuum a few times a week and mop my floors once a week. I could keep my house as clean as my brother who is ocd like I use to but I would rather just live my life and if a little dirt is included so be it. I have pets. If you do not want some hair on you when you cone, then do not come over.

I work in a vet's office, so no I don't see dogs as dirty. Cats, on the other hand, ugh. Nasty. I don't wash my hands after petting my dogs, especially my husky. I haven't bathed her in over 6 months, because she hasn't needed it. She doesn't smell, and the dirt just falls right off. A dog's mouth is actually cleaner than a human's mouth. Now, if its a cat, I have to wash, as I'm allergic to them. The only time I wash my hands between dogs at the clinic is if the dog had an infectious disease that could be passed to the other pets.

Our house is medium clean, we are probably messier than the dogs are, although the lab's crate needs to be wiped out once a week and she gets a bath once a week. She's definitely dirtier than the husky. I'm always interested in learning about other cultures!

That is funny. I find my cats cleaner then my dogs. Though my cats are indoor only and have shorter hair that I brush regularly. I also keep their boxes very clean. I do not bath my cats as they clean themselves a lot. My dogs start to feel oily though if I do not bath them plus they get muddy at times playing outside.

Maybe types of cats and dogs matter. I notice Loki's hair is more self cleaning. So is my bengal cat. However my lab gets pretty oily over time.

I'm very weird when it comes to dogs and who and what I consider is dirty. If I don't know the dog and haven't seen it raised since it was a puppy, I always wash my hands after, unless its like another husky that looks well kept, don't ask me why I'm just weird that way. My dogs or my brothers dogs get to kiss me, or I always hug them and cuddle with them. I never wash my hands after playing with them unless its actually necessary and I can feel like my hands are dirty.

I clean my house whenever I feel like cleaning my house. No matter how many times a day I were to vacuum there is always going to be hair. So I've just accepted it and I probably clean twice a week and my car very rarely because its just going to get ruined after one ride anyway. Everyone at work thinks my clothes are disgusting when I come in with some hair on it, but I don't care. I have a lint roller and whatever I don't get off, just stays there. Doesn't bother me anymore, and its a part of having the dogs!

I also always clean my hands after golden retrievers or like go out of my way not to touch them. Hopefully that doesn't offend anyone but that's my major breed no no. They just always smell to me, and leave that oily feeling on your hand. But thats what I love about the husky breed too, they are just always clean and never really smell!

Now after typing out this post, I feel as if I'm the one who should be considered dirty! Haha.

Cats are greasy but that's not the reason I wash after touching them. I'm allergic and break out in hives and my eye swells shut if I don't lol. And we have cats at the vet's office that sleep in their litterboxes, it's weird!!

I think the type of dog would also negate whether you need to wash your hands after touching them. I don't find huskies to be very dirty, Karli's hair isn't very greasy.

Yuck. Ok, if my cats slept in their litterbox, I would be disgusted.