Why does my dogs breath smell like feces?

My dogs’ breath has always gotten a bit that way as they have gotten older. not quite so bad as you describe, but somewhat. With the older ones I have had some (limited) success with minty stuff (it settles their stomachs a bit as well as the obvious mint scent thing.) Now there a a bunch of mint chewy things on the market that there weren’t around with my last old dog, maybe trying them would help?
Ask your vet about trying a homemade diet, I’ve heard that can make a difference, as well. Gotta love those smelly old boys!

Yes, it’s an age thing. Spunky, who lived to be approx 12, got that way. Now Sadie, she is probably one or two years old…her breath is fine. There is a spray at Pet’s Mart that stops that stuff….Spunky loved the taste of it. I will get you the name if you want it @Pandora !

Maybe he’s not digesting his food properly, and what you’re smelling is from his stomach.

Good thing that you are getting the vet appointment, as a number of disorders can cause really foul breath- gum disease, as you mention, kidney disease, and quite a few others. Sounds like you are doing what you can to get it checked out!

Gum disease.

I adopted a schnauzer two years ago [my lovely Klaus!], and the family told us he was 4 years old. We took him to the vet, and mentioned to her his awful breath. She examined him, and told us he was in fact 8 years old, and his gum disease was so far advanced we had little hope for causing it to abate. She showed us where he was missing teeth, as well.

Look for black on the gums, or exceptionally dark [not pink] gums. Klaus’ are solid black :(

@squirbel

Just to clarify, black gums isn’t in and of itself a sign of gum disease; many dogs have pigmented gums.

I’m only saying what my vet advised. She said that dogs’ skin matches their gums, so unless your dog’s skin is black, his gums should not be.

@BoBo1946 Yeah, let me know. It will be nice to kill the smell a little till the vet sees him.

It’s storytime! Once we were camping and we’d been drinking shitty beer and eating those Carl Buddig lunchmeats for dinner. Next morning my buddy went and took a big, messy, uber-growler a little ways from our site and kicked some dirt on it. A little while later his dog came happily running up to him and started licking his face. My buddy quickly realized the dog had gone and lapped up some of his Carl Buddig deuce. Oh how we laughed at his face.

@cockswain

Eeeewwww… there’s a reason you’re supposed to bury it!

he was really hungover and a dirtbag

@cockswain – you are such a class act, thank you for sharing such a lovely and intellectually enlightening story

I agree the vet check is a good idea, probably blood work is in order. If all is well and teeth and gums are okay I would consider a change of diet. BARF or Raw are good choices. Raw meaty bones keep the teeth and gums in good condition. I have a pair of 13 year olds, both have bones daily and the akita has excellent teeth and gums and has never had his teeth cleaned. The little terrier type does have some problems despite the bones. Her teeth were last cleaned about 5 years ago and there is some plaque buildup but at 13 I hate to have her put under so I just brush them every couple of days. Both have reasonably sweet breath.

it’s normal, some people have this very same problem.

My female Chihuahua is only a year old her teeth are fine her diet is fine she is strictly an inside dog she does not go out eating weird stuff in the woods lapping up strange piles of anything I know what she gets into what she does not she is a service dog for me so I know what she does at all times. So I’m really not sure what’s going on but I am going to take her to the vet because I’m very interested and concerned about it. I do Brush are teeth that’s how I know her teeth are fine. But I’m wondering if maybe she has a blockage and if that could be causing it?