Well the good news is after making a career change a few years ago and doing contract work I finally landed a permanent job as an Animal Care Technician. It is with a large university medical research center in the greater Boston area. Some of my responsibilities are caring for laboratory mice which include feeding, performing health checks and weaning pups. The facility's main focus is as a breeding colony. And that's where the bad news about aftershave comes into play. We are required not to wear aftershave etc because it may hinder the mice from breeding. In other words, the smell of my aftershave may confuse the mice and they may not want to breed. With that in mind I will be using non-scented witch hazel after my work day shaves. Granted I like witch hazel but I'm already missing the scent of Old Spice, Topaz, Clubman, Bay Rum, the Veg etc. on my face.
Good News Bad News about Job and Aftershave
- Thread starter David in Boston
- Start date
Good to hear about the job. Congrats.
My workplace has a fragrance free policy (which I largely ignore).
Look at the bright side, when you apply those fragrances after work they will smell that much better.
My workplace has a fragrance free policy (which I largely ignore).
Look at the bright side, when you apply those fragrances after work they will smell that much better.
LOL I hope it is not a allergy clinic or something. But for real I did LOL
I work at a College. You can't do anything these days without making someone upset.
Especially at a College or University.
Anyone working in such a place should watch the movie PCU for a good laugh.
Especially at a College or University.
Anyone working in such a place should watch the movie PCU for a good laugh.
That's a tough sacrifice to make, maybe you could switch to shaving at night so it wears off by morning. A BBS the night before is almost always good enough for work the next day.
I wouldn't sweat it. If the mice are no longer attracted to you, save the AS for when you go out on the town and hit the bars 
- Thread starter
- #8
Thanks for the reply.
Just to make things clear the ban is not a PC issue but an animal care concern.
The staff and myself have duties and responsibilities for the care and welfare of the animals.
Which by the way we take very seriously.
- Thread starter
- #9
Thanks for the suggestion. I've tried night shaving but I just love the feel of a good clean shave in the morning. It is like having another cup of coffee for me.
Dr harris pink has almost 0 alcohol and 0 scent for sure...might wanna try that..another option as an AS is Jergens Ultra Healing lotion..no scent
I use Thayers unscented and I don't mind it is unscented because it does such a wonderful job. I have a little concoction of Thayer's unscented, Thayers "aftershave" and menthol crystals. The scent of menthol disappears in a couple of minutes but the blast of cold lasts much longer.
When you get home in the afternoon, rinse your face and apply the aftershave of your choice. I do this when I've had a bit of irritation in the morning's shave.
First of all: congratulations on the new job!
Second: am I the only one who envisions a crowd of laboratory mice pining for your attention if they catch a whiff of your aftershave? At times like this, I am especially disappointed that Gary Larson retired from drawing The Far Side.
Theres many products that are unscented I use that work very well for me and might work well for you.One is Using an alum block in place of a alcohol based scented aftershave that gives the same pore closing astringent effect ,and unscented witch hazel,EMJ unscented post shave balm,although pricey Cliniques Post Shave Healer (contains witch hazel,and a bit of alcohol for that tingle)A soap with a very low scent like VDH Deluxe.Niveas Sensitive Balms scent is very faint and what scent it has fades away to a almost undetectable.
There is potentially the option of using something that is incredibly short lived, like Florida Water, or Barbasol Pacific Rush. The scent of both should be undetectable by the time you get to work.
Does the ban apply to all scented products? No deodorant either?
Does the ban apply to all scented products? No deodorant either?
I have used Vodka as an after shave when traveling light.
It gives the same "burn" as an after shave but leaves no scent. Even witch hazel has a faint scent and to animals it may be an over powering scent.
If you miss the burn part you may want to run the "scentless Vodka" option past those who are worried about scent.
Do they also have restrictions about deodorant/antiperspirant? Are scented soaps and shampoos verboten also? Almost every grooming and bathing product is scented.
You might want to look into unscented soaps, shampoos, and deodorants targeted to hunters. These unscented specialty products might be what you need to be using.
You also might want to look into unscented laundry detergent
It gives the same "burn" as an after shave but leaves no scent. Even witch hazel has a faint scent and to animals it may be an over powering scent.
If you miss the burn part you may want to run the "scentless Vodka" option past those who are worried about scent.
Do they also have restrictions about deodorant/antiperspirant? Are scented soaps and shampoos verboten also? Almost every grooming and bathing product is scented.
You might want to look into unscented soaps, shampoos, and deodorants targeted to hunters. These unscented specialty products might be what you need to be using.
You also might want to look into unscented laundry detergent
I wouldn't sweat it. If the mice are no longer attracted to you, save the AS for when you go out on the town and hit the bars
LMAO Twice
This seems like a policy I would not mess with. As David said, it's an animal issue. Even the faintest scent could affect their normal behavior and skew the results.
Particularly if you are a Lilac Vegetal guy, I can see how the smell of cat pee might put mice off their breeding habits!
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