Why does my senior dog have strange bad breath not from his teeth?

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.

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!

You may want to have Rudy Sue examined by your vet - sometimes food or debris can accumulate near an extraction site or the sutures can break down. It’s also possible hat the bad breath is not a dental problem - dogs with chronic gastrointestinal issues can have halitosis. I have never heard reports of lung cancer causing halitosis and I think this would be much less likely.

This is a serious concern. Sonny likely also has lots of tartar on his teeth. The tartar as well as the area below the gum line is full of bacteria which are causing the severe gingivitis and the bad smell. The inflamed tissue will also facilitate that bacteria enter the blood stream and so can travel to the heart, causing heart disease, and to the kidneys causing kidney disease. This is also a highly painful process. The only way to remedy this is to have his teeth cleaned under anesthesia, removal of the tartar, cleaning below the gum line and removing any teeth that may be loose, infected or damaged. I suggest you schedule an appointment with your vet to assess the condition.

He may have eaten something bad or sometimes they can have stick stuck in between there teeth or on the top of their mouth. There may be an infection or an ulcer from eating something and getting a wound at some point. Kidney disease can be secondary from a infection such lepto or a toxin. However, they often feel bad. They can drink more than normal, vomit and have a poor appetite to go along with it. I would have your vet check the blood work or urine sample and examine the mouth for any wounds or infection to see if antibiotics are needed.

Halitosis is the word we use for bad breath. It is most commonly caused by dental disease. I am attaching a handout below with more information on halitosis. http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=129 Since Luckyboy appears to have some pain in his mouth, I would definitely recommend having him evaluated by your veterinarian. In order to determine the severity of his dental disease, they will need to perform a dental under anesthesia so they can fully evaluate each tooth under the gumline. If they find a broken, painful or infected tooth, they will be able to remove that tooth and resolve Luckyboy's pain. I am attaching a handout below that discusses periodontal disease. http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=222 Good luck! I hope that was helpful and that Luckyboy will feel better soon. Thanks for using PetCoach.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Tex! How old is Tex? The most common reason for bad breath is dental disease. Dental disease is the number one disease in cats and dogs. I am assuming the green thing is severe bacterial infected tartar on a tooth. Other causes for bad breath are metabolic conditions like kidney failure or diabetes. I recommend having Tex examined and his mouth checked by your Vet. If they recommend a dental they will also want to do pre-anesthetic blood work before hand. I hope this helps and I wish Tex the very best!