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Last Updated on June 26, 2023 by Thee Puppypreneur
WHY DOES MY DOG HAVE BAD BREATH?
There are several reasons that your furbaby could have bad dog breath which is called halitosis. If your pooch has bad dog breath your furbaby’s body is trying to tell you something is off.
I don’t ignore these signs as I smell my furbabies breath all the time. In my book your dog’s breath should never smell. If it smells there is something wrong somewhere maybe diet, medical condition or hygiene. My dog’s breath does NOT smell at all anymore and let me tell you why.
There have been a couple instances where I have smelled her breath and something was off. I immediately jumped into action and addressed the issue and corrected the problem and viola no more bad breath. More on that in detail down below.
Now bad breath is different from puppy breath. Bad breath can mean many different things to different people. Keep in mind that maybe what you perceive to be sweet smelling might actually be metallic smelling to someone else. The only for sure way to know is to take your dog to a veterinarian and run diagnostic testing.
GENERAL BAD DOG BREATH
For example, if you have a dog that has tons of plaque and tartar build up and red lines right above their teeth on their gumline then this is an overaccumulation of bacteria that has built up and caused periodontal disease and gingivitis this problem is solved with brushing your dog’s teeth daily or by visiting a veterinarian to have their teeth cleaned.
Check out my other article for more information on;
HOW TO BRUSH DOG TEETH A HELPFUL STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE
SWEET SMELLING BAD DOG BREATH
Does your dog’s breath smell sweet? Maybe they have a condition called diabetes; this condition also causes the urine to have a sweet smell which is another way I check by smelling the urine I collect and running urine test strips on her and also checking the glucose on the urine test strips.
The reason for this sweet or fruity smell is because there is a large amount of sugar in the urine and because your dog’s body is breaking down the fats instead of sugar.
I noticed this one time as I was giving her
which I use for urinary infections but it went away after I stopped using the product because D-Mannose is a type of sugar.
I also use about 4 to 6 different urine test strips both for humans and pets to tests her urine periodically and I use that many just to make sure they are maintaining accuracy between them all and they range from 10 to 14 parameter test strips like this one
METALLIC AMONIA SMELLING BAD DOG BREATH
Does your dog’s breath smell like metal or ammonia? Is there a chemical smell? This could be a sign that your dog’s kidneys are not functioning properly. The reason for this smell is that your dog’s kidneys are not able to properly eliminate the waste from their kidneys and urea builds up and in turn that is what you are smelling coming from the body.
COPPER BLOOD SMELL BAD DOG BREATH
Another reason your dog’s breath could smell metallic could be the smell of blood. This could be from maybe bleeding gums or from a growth such as a tumor in the mouth. Maybe your dog has developed an abscess in their mouth and as it’s growing in size it is now bleeding.
This happened to my fur kid and I had to check her toys to see if there are any spots of dried blood on them as this is an indicator. Also, I had her lay down so she was relaxed and grabbed a headlamp and looked inside of her mouth to check for any abnormal growths and there was one which has since been removed surgically.
ROTTING SMELL BAD DOG BREATH
If your dog’s breath smells very bad like something is rotting then it could be due to something they ate. Again, this could be something toxic or it could be something such as dietary indiscretion.
I know for me whenever I used to feed her something new as I was constantly switching commercial dog food brands, that her breath wouldn’t smell. Then a couple weeks later there was an awful smell in her breath. Eventually we opted for home cooked meals. Whatever was in the “kibble” didn’t agree with her digestive tract and her breath was my clue.
Once we made the switch to home-cooked food I still actually had to test different proteins as well as other foods (sigh) out to figure out where the allergy was.
The reality is the bad breath (in her case) was related to many different food allergens and the amount of that allergen in each specific meal she was being fed. Her body was telling me “this isn’t right and it’s not working for me.”
Now her breath has zero smell not even a hint of anything until I brush her teeth at night and then she is so fresh, minty and clean or sweet potato and cinnamon clean depending on the flavor of toothpaste we use that night.
EARLY INTERVENTION IS KEY TO BAD DOG BREATH
Whatever the smell is you should inspect your dog’s mouth and then follow up with your veterinarian as early intervention might have serious benefits.
From saving your dog’s teeth, to fixing your dog’s diet before gastrointestinal problems become more severe. To catching diabetes before even more severe issues can occur, to saving your furbaby’s life, to removing oral tumors that can cause teeth crowding or infection, as well as whole host of other issues if left untreated.
Early intervention is key. There are other reasons not listed here that could be the cause of your fur kid having bad dog breath.
Having your annual CBC, Serum Chemistry Profile and Urinalysis will give you an overall better picture of how your dog is functioning internally.
