My young dog has bad, sour breath. Is it kidney disease or coprophagia?

An infection or ulcers or bad kidneys can cause changes in the breathe. An infection can be under the gums line affecting the tooth root that will not be able to be seen unless there are xrays taken. I would have him seen by your vet to see if this is the case and a simple blood panel can check his kidney values for you

If Tehya's teeth are fine, I would recommend getting blood work on her to make sure her kidneys are ok. Sometimes with kidney disease they can have a bad smell from their mouth. I would also discuss with your vet about potentially performing a dental procedure with x-rays to confirm there is no abscess we can see. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

I am sorry to hear about Chico's current condition. Based on the clinical signs you have described, two top differentials come to mind. The first one is dental disease. This causes a wretched odor to emanate from the mouth and when bad enough, will make a dog not want to eat anything at all. The pain can be quite severe in some cases. The inability to defecate may actually be a indication that Chico hasn't been eating and doesn't have to go. The other differential that comes to mind is kidney disease. When kidney disease becomes severe, dogs can develop something known as a uremic scent from their mouth. It also causes anorexia, and subsequently, lack of defecation. I would definitely have Chico taken to the vet sometime soon for both an oral exam and some blood work. Best of luck with him!

Hi there. Often, pups this age may have bad breath because they are in the process of teething - so there are traces of blood on their gums, and some inflammation due to eruption of the adult teeth. If this is the problem, it should improve on its own over the next month or two once all of the adult teeth are in. A pup this age should not have any significant tartar or periodontal disease, so this is unlikely to be the cause of the bad breath. :) You can try other types of treats designed to help with stinky breath such as Greenies or VeggieDent chews, to see if these may work better in the meantime. If the problem continues, I would recommend having him examined by a vet to make sure there is no other reason for his breath to be unusually bad, such as a GI problem or a wound or foreign body in his mouth.

Hello. You are probably right that the bad breath is not entirely from the teeth or oral cavity. Certainly other health conditions can contribute to Mitch's halitosis including gastrointestinal disease & renal disease. I would recommend an x-ray or his upper GI, including the esophagus to rule out a condition called megaesophagus, & then, of course, a CBC, serum chemistry, urinalysis & thyroid evaluation. This way, if something is found, proper treatment can be initiated immediately. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

I would bring him in for an exam. There are related organ changes that can produce bad breath. Organ changes Ike be best evaluated with blood work and a good physical exam. Your dog is young so it limits my differential list. It makes me think more of something congenital or a basic nutritional deficiency

It's odd that it improved when the [Giardia](https://www.petcoach.co/dog/condition/giardia/) was treated. My first suspicion for the ongoing odor is that she may be licking at her anal glands or eating her own (or someone else's) poop. Ideally, have her examined by a veterinarian just to make sure there are no wounds, irritation, etc in her mouth or throat that maybe contributing. You r vet can also check her anal glands to see if they seem full or irritated which could lead t her having a tendency to lick at them a lot. If her anal glands are fine, and her mouth is fine, use a daily product for dental health. [CET products](https://us.virbac.com/cet-veggiedent-fr3sh-dental-chew-for-dogs) contain chlorhexadine which kills bad breath causing bacteria. [Water additives](https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/zymox-oratene-water-additive) are great too. I hope thats helpful for you. Thanks for asking PetCoach! Good luck!