# What causes bad breath?



## Rowan (May 27, 2011)

From what I know, it's often a sign of periodontal (gum/dental) disease but also can be an indication of other issues, such as GI tract problems, respiratory issues, diabetes, etc. Smaller dogs are more prone to periodontal disease. 

Good, brief explanation: 


> When Is It Time To See The Vet?
> If your dog’s breath suddenly has an unusual smell, please consult your veterinarian. The following cases can signal to medical problems that need immediate treatment.
> 
> -- Unusually sweet or fruity breath could indicate diabetes, particularly if your dog has been drinking and urinating more frequently than usual.
> ...


Source: http://pets.webmd.com/dogs/guide/bad-breath-dogs

My parent's poodle suffered from the third (he had to have his gallbladder removed), and my first senior rescue poodle had the first due to diabetes.


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## littlestitches (Dec 28, 2009)

To clarify, when I said Rufus has the sweetest breath, I did not mean it smells sweet, he has a slight scent to his breath, but it is not offensive at all.

PAula


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## katbrat (May 8, 2011)

Our toy poodle had bad teeth. She would get them cleaned and ended up several times having teeth pulled. With her it was all about bad teeth equaled bad breath.


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## CT Girl (Nov 17, 2010)

I would think the smell is from an overabundance of bacteria in the mouth or some physical problem. Many people do not do anything to take care of their dog's teeth.


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## Olie (Oct 10, 2009)

This is not a scientific answer as I suck at those....

Bad breath can be many things from a bad tummy, food lodged in teeth even small particles, GI issues, bad teeth......

I also think some breeds breath differ. My dogs are raw fed and get smelly breath from time to time. They are all vet checked and healthy. I think its normal to have some smell.....humans do too:2in1:


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## katbrat (May 8, 2011)

Olie said:


> This is not a scientific answer as I suck at those....
> 
> Bad breath can be many things from a bad tummy, food lodged in teeth even small particles, GI issues, bad teeth......
> 
> I also think some breeds breath differ. My dogs are raw fed and get smelly breath from time to time. They are all vet checked and healthy. I think its normal to have some smell.....humans do too:2in1:


Our toy did have some health issues that had to do with GI issues as well as a heart murmur. We had to be very proactive with her teeth, and even then she had problems. It can be like people that sometime heart issues show up in the teeth.


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## buddyrose (Jul 27, 2011)

I bought this green gel for my dog. It says the gel removes tarter. Not sure if it does. It also says it freshens breathe. My dog usually has decent breathe so maybe that does work.


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## poodlemommy1 (Jun 27, 2011)

My Lola, a 10 month old standard, was always having her mouth licked by her mom (both lived with me until recently, when Lola moved to a friend's house). I thought Mom was just unusually attentive but then Lola started having bad breath, and I have never had a Spoo with bad breath. I looked in her mouth one day and saw that her adult lower canine had come in crooked and poked a hole in her upper palate. She was eating and drinking normally, so if not for the fact that Mom was alerting me to something, I might have ignored the bad breath. Now she will have to have some kind of implant or tooth grinding (don't know which one yet) to have the issue fixed. I am currently trying to find info on other owners of dogs that have this issue. My point is that bad breath is usually related to something that, if you don't figure it out, will not get any better. 

All of my dogs have incredibly clean teeth because they eat raw food bones on an almost daily basis. Having something to gnaw seems to be the best retardant on plaque.


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