Bad Breath from Canidae?

[bulldoggin30]

My friend just started her cock-a-poo on Canidae but says he now has bad breath. Has this happened to anyone else?

[gmacleod]

Does she brush his teeth regularly? Or give him raw bones to chew on? No kibble will keep teeth/gums clean and in good order, so one or both of the above are a necessity.

Bad breath can also be a sign of impending health troubles, so if it's not the teeth, it probably wouldn't hurt to see a vet about it. One last possibility though, is anal glands - if they're impacted and the dog is licking frequently, well, you're going to get some pretty nasty breath as a result ;)

[bulldoggin30]

I know she does brush his teeth regularly. She said she noticed the difference as soon as she switched food. I'm worried because I want to switch Dutchie to Canidae.

[gmacleod]

Well, I can't say it isn't possible that it is the food causing some problem - the food that suits every single dog is yet to be invented, irrespective of quality. I can say though, that that is not a common complaint with Canidae and it's one of the best foods on the market. That still doesn't guarantee it will suit your individual dog ;) but there's really only one way to find that out.

As for your friend's dog - I'd still be looking out for other possible causes. Health issues and anal glands being top of that list. Even if the bad breath has coincided with a change of food, a kibble change very rarely causes bad breath, especially instantly. Rather, that is usually a sign of teeth/gum problems (which do not occur overnight), anal gland licking, or some other underlying health problem. Health check-ups generally don't hurt! And it's usually better to err on the side of caution - better to make an un-needed vet visit and look paranoid than to let a potentially serious condition go undetected. If she doesn't want to do that though, then I'd suggest changing food straight away and seeing if the bad breath disappears.

[bulldoggin30]

Thanks for the info- I will pass it to her. I'm going to switch anyway because I haven't heard anyone else complain of bad breath yet. Hopefully he will do as well or even better than he is on ProPlan.

[gmacleod]

He should do much better on it than on Proplan ;) Especially in the long term. The "you are what you eat" principle applies every bit as much to dogs as to people and the ingredients used in Canidae are far superior to those in Proplan (which is filled with by-prodcuts and other waste products).

But if Canidae doesn't turn out to be well suited to your pup, there are plenty of other premium foods to try instead :) It's just a matter of matching the food to the dog.

[bulldoggin30]

yes, I picked ProPlan since chicken was the first ingredient but then I found out more about the other ingredients so as soon as this bag is gone, I'm switching. I'll feel better about the ingredients. You are what you eat!