My Yorkie has terrible breath even with dental care. What should I do?

The foul odor is most likely related to dental disease and infection. It is likely that Lila has dental disease as this is very common in Yorkies. You should have her examined by your veterinarian so a dental procedure can be scheduled. Many times this dental infection requires the extraction of teeth to fully resolve the issue. Dental infection is painful and can lead to other systemic issues so I'd recommend having Lila checked out soon. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

I'm wondering if Max has dental disease causing his bad breath. Even young dogs can develop dental problems, and Yorkies in particular are known for being prone to dental disease. I'd recommend making an appointment with your vet so they can examine Max's mouth.

I certainly understand how difficult it can be to manage bad breath. I am attaching a handout below on halitosis which will give you more information. http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=129 Unfortunately, halitosis is most commonly due to dental disease that can only be treated by performing a dental cleaning under anesthesia to remove all the tartar and bacteria under the gum line. After a dental cleaning, continuing to brush is very important. I recently started using PetSmile since a veterinary dentist recommended it to me and have been very pleased at the improvement in halitosis in my dogs. https://petsmileusa.com/ Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach

Actually bad breath in dogs is likely related to dental problems. Tanner is an older dog, and if he's had no dental care in his life, then he could be suffering from severe gingivitis and dental disease. Give his vet a call in the morning to make him an appointment for a dental cleaning, scaling, and polishing. Best of luck, I hope this helps!

It’s time for Nena to have her teeth professionally cleaned by her veterinarian. That is very heavy tartar on her teeth and over time, she will start to get a separation of her gums from the teeth. This will lead to infections, loose teeth, dental pain and can lead to endocarditis, kidney and liver problems. She also had a retained puppy tooth that needs to be extracted as it is causing problems and stretching the socket (there should only be one tooth there). Small breed dogs tend to be prone to dental disease. They need the teeth cleaned at least once a year by the veterinarian in order to maintain good oral health. At home, brushing the teeth with dog tooth paste every day can help. Special dog foods, treats and toys can help but they don’t help clean the front of the mouth as pets don’t use that to chew. Even with this action, she will still need her teeth professionally cleaned. Better to get this taken care of soon. Once the damage is done to the teeth, it’s permanent. I hope this is helpful and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Yes dogs do need teeth cleaning! You can brush Layla's teeth with a specific dog toothbrush and paste you get from a pet store. Do NOT use human toothpaste. Denta sticks are fine. She also needs an exam from a vet. The bad breath could be due to severe gingivitis, tooth root abscess, or a broken tooth. That requires a dental cleaning, scaling, and polishing, it cannot be treated at home. Like humans, dogs need a dental cleaning yearly. Contact her vet on Monday to make her an appointment. I hope this helps!

I am sorry it is really hard to tell by the pictures what is going on with the teeth. Small and medium size dogs are affected with dental disease more often than large breed dogs. I would recommend taking Genesis to a vet for a good oral exam. It is important that Genesis needs a dental cleaning (like people) to remove all the dental tartar and bacteria from the teeth. The odor is caused by the tartar and bacteria in the mouth and will resolve with a cleaning. Once the teeth are cleaned I would recommend brushing the teeth daily with dog tooth paste to prevent slower build up of tartar in the future. Hope that helps