Believe it or not, despite the fact that our dog friends tend to sniff and eat things on the ground (grass, cat or rabbit poop, food scraps they find …), it is not common for canids to have bad breath . When this happens, it is normal that it is due to a lack of oral hygiene . Dogs, like people, need to remove the tartar and dental plaque that accumulates in their teeth and that, in most cases, is the cause of dog halitosis. A daily brushing is, therefore, very important to eliminate the problem and reduce the chances that it will get worse and affect the soft tissues, which would cause gingivitis or periodontitis. In this way, when the accumulation of dirt is important and cannot be removed with a simple brushing, we must go to the vet so that it is he who removes the remains of tartar and plaque.
As we say, poor or poor oral hygiene is the main cause of canine halitosis, but there is more that we must bear in mind if our animal continues with bad breath. In some cases, a disease usually hides behind:
- Digestive problems. Gastritis or esophagitis causes regurgitations that cause bad breath.
- Respiratory problems. Rhinitis or sinusitis can also cause halitosis. In this case, the reason is clear: the inability of the animal to breathe through its nose due to mucus forces it to breathe through its mouth, so it secretes more saliva and, consequently, there is a greater risk of the presence of bacteria in the oral cavity.
- Diabetes also affects your pet’s breath. But, as in the case of respiratory diseases, halitosis will be accompanied by other symptoms, such as a significant increase in the desire to drink water and urinate.
Other less frequent cases, but that you should also take into account, are the presence of tumors in the mouth or kidney failure. In any case, if oral hygiene is correct, it will be the veterinarian who determines the cause of halitosis in our dog.
Remember that diet is also related to halitosis . In this way, those dogs that eat wet food or barf diet are more likely to suffer from bad breath, as this type of food adheres more to their teeth and slips through the interdental space, which is more difficult to clean. So if you give your friend a different food than feed, brush his teeth thoroughly to remove these food residues that will later become the breeding ground for bacteria.
How to avoid bad breath
Halitosis is easy to avoid, as long as there is no hidden disease. Just change our friend’s routine:
- Brush his teeththoroughly every day and go for check- ups with the vet so that once a year he can check the state of his teeth.
- Eat a healthy diet. If you give him dry food, opt for a quality dry feed, with a small kibble, because the larger this is, the more chances there are that debris will accumulate between the teeth.
- Giveyour dog healthy snacks . There are bars specially indicated for canine dental health. It is not convenient to abuse them, but we can resort from time to time.
- Give him toys that he canchew on and healthy treats so that when he chews, he removes some plaque.
