stinky dog

Question
I have a 11 year old golden retriever, she stinks! she is prone to stinky ears but now her whole body reaks.she has been to the vet and she takes rimadyl for arthritis. please any suggestions?

Answer
Eileen,
 I can give you a few suggestions and hopefully they will help you.
 First off you need to make sure there isn't something going on in her ears to cause the smell. Sometimes ear infections can cause an awful smell. Clean her ears with a half and half mixture of blue scope mouthwash and an ear cleanser.
Pluck 80% of the hair in the ears before you clean them out.
If you don't feel comfortable doing this without hurting her
then I suggest going to a groomer.
  It might even be much easier to just go to a groomer to start with. If you do then ask them to give your dog a skunk bath to aide in ridding her of the smell.
If a groomer is not an option for you here is my recipe for
a skunk bath.
Mix 16 oz. of peroxide, 1/4 c. of baking soda, and 3 tsp.
of blue dawn dish soap, and 1/4 c. of the strongest shampoo you have hanging around in a 32oz. jug . Fill the rest of the jug with warm water. Use this mixture to give your dog
a bath. Work into a good thick lather and leave on for 3 to
5 mins.  Rinse really well being sure not to leave a soap residue which will cause itchy skin. Then give a second
bath with baby shampoo again rinsing well so as not to leave a residue.
 One quick tip ...make sure you brush out your dog thoroughly before giving the bath or you will create knots in the fur when you dry her off.
 She should be groomed regularly on a 6 to 8 wk basis. If this doesn't help you might want to take her to a vet to do a skin scrape biopsy to test for bacteria or some other type of skin infection that could be causing the smell.
I hope I have been of some help. Good luck and God Bless!
Doreen