We have to brush our teeth twice a day or they rot, shower or we smell like shit, wash our face or we get blackheads etc.
In: Biology
People have generally covered things well, but another part to this is that many animals do wash themselves more dramatically than we realize.
Cats are probably the most famous example, but birds are perhaps even more reliant on remaining constantly clean than humans are. Their feathers not only need to be constantly cleared of dirt, but the fibrous parts need to be re-connected or the feather needs to be removed so a new one can replace it. Some birds will even bother ants on purpose so the ants will spray them with formic acid that the birds then rub around with their beak to clean their feathers. Birds will also dust bathe, not in the way a pig or elephant will roll in mud, but to use the particles as an abrasive to remove parasites and dead skin.
Lizards can develop oil buildup in their glands just like humans, and if those glands become compacted with dirt they can even become swollen or infected. I’ve seen some lizards that had to have limbs amputated because the swollen glands got so bad the buildup expanded all the way down to the bone.
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