Foul odor

[Furbabies mom]

The last time we were at the vets, less than 6 months ago, Violet's teeth were fine. Lately I've noticed an odor from her mouth. I looked and it looks like a tooth on the side of her mouth is dark. She isn't three yet. Do you think this is decay of an adult tooth or a retained baby tooth that never came out? I have an appointment on Monday. I do brush their teeth with a piece of gauze and pet toothpaste, I just noticed this recently.

[hoaloha]

awww... poor Violet Do you think it could be Pulpitis from accidental injury for either playing too hard with the other dogs or chewing on hard toys? I would think of pulpitis over a decayed tooth at this age but I'm glad you'll be taking her to the vet soon. I hope it's not causing any pain. A more specialized vet dentist may be helpful too if the regular vet isn't sure.

[Crystal&Zoe]

Marissa, wouldn't you think if it was pulpitis (dead root possibly from trauma) that was severe enough it was causing a foul odor that there would be a gum boil or swelling? Just a thought.

Deborah, do you know what periodontal disease smells like? Does it smell like that? Sadly a 2 year old Malt can have Perio but I find it hard to imagine it would be bad enough that it's causing an odor if she had a dental only 6 months ago.

It could be simply a build up of plaque/tarter causing bad breath. It could also be from an upset tummy. As for the darkened tooth...I really doubt this is the case but with my Zoe, before I knew better, I was using a topical solution that had Tylan in it for tear stains. And it caused her upper anterior adult teeth to darken. I'm trying to remember...it has been almost 9 years ago...if her permanent teeth had erupted yet. I'm thinking they had not.

[wkomorow]

A darken tooth could be the result of injury that has killed the tooth. Hopefully, the odor is from something else like an upset digestive system. Often dead teeth are not removed, but left to fall out. Sorry, Deb.

[SammieMom]

Deb-I've known people with younger dogs that had to have teeth pulled due to decay. Some are more prone to it. I have no idea what can cause a darkened tooth. I'm pretty clueless about teeth. I just try to clean them as best I can. Its not easy for me. Vet told me home cleaning does help--but he still sees lots dogs come in with decay, even when owner cleaned teeth daily. I guess alot this might depend on genetics. hoping it's something simple.
xxx

[Furbabies mom]

I don't think an injury is the case with Violet, she is the calm one that doesn't rough house and she was never a chewer on anything other than a bully. I don't see any swelling or a gum boil either.

[hoaloha]

Originally Posted by Crystal&Zoe

Marissa, wouldn't you think if it was pulpitis (dead root possibly from trauma) that was severe enough it was causing a foul odor that there would be a gum boil or swelling? Just a thought.

Deborah, do you know what periodontal disease smells like? Does it smell like that? Sadly a 2 year old Malt can have Perio but I find it hard to imagine it would be bad enough that it's causing an odor if she had a dental only 6 months ago.

It could be simply a build up of plaque/tarter causing bad breath. It could also be from an upset tummy. As for the darkened tooth...I really doubt this is the case but with my Zoe, before I knew better, I was using a topical solution that had Tylan in it for tear stains. And it caused her upper anterior adult teeth to darken. I'm trying to remember...it has been almost 9 years ago...if her permanent teeth had erupted yet. I'm thinking they had not.

Hmmmm... I think pulpitis is classically thought of as painful (at least in humans) & is the most common cause of acute tooth darkening in dogs. You can have foul odor as an early sign of infection and certainly in later stages if the gums become affected too. I don't know if the foul odor is directly related to the darkened tooth- there could be something else going on causing the foul odor. I would imagine if there is a plaque/tartar issue, it wouldn't just concentrate on one tooth. Keep us posted on Violet! I hope it's not anything serious and that the vet can find the cause Maybe you can call the vet and run it by him/her to see if its something she should be seen sooner than Monday?

[Crystal&Zoe]

Originally Posted by hoaloha

Hmmmm... I think pulpitis is classically thought of as painful (at least in humans) & is the most common cause of acute tooth darkening in dogs. You can have foul odor as an early sign of infection and certainly in later stages if the gums become affected too. I don't know if the foul odor is directly related to the darkened tooth- there could be something else going on causing the foul odor. I would imagine if there is a plaque/tartar issue, it wouldn't just concentrate on one tooth. Keep us posted on Violet! I hope it's not anything serious and that the vet can find the cause Maybe you can call the vet and run it by him/her to see if its something she should be seen sooner than Monday?

idk...I know when I managed my brothers dental practice we had adults and kids coming in with a dead (dark) tooth and they never knew it was happening until they saw the dark tooth. Other times we would have people coming in with a terrible amount of pain because the tooth was in the process of dying. Once the tooth is dead, there is no more pain unless there is an abscess. And usually when there was an abscess, that was when there was a terrible odor. Could be totally different in dogs though.

Deborah, does it seem painful to Violet if you touch the tooth? If it hurts to touch the tooth I would probably call the vet and ask if she should be seen sooner too. I know of many dogs who have cracked and even damaged the root to a tooth from biting down hard on Flossies and bully sticks. That's why I don't give them to mine anymore. They chew on Bravo Trachea's which are softer and then big joint bones that they can only gnaw on, so that they can't bite down with enough pressure to injure a tooth. No scientific evidence on this though. Just my own reasoning which is probably flawed.

[Furbabies mom]

She doesn't seem to be in pain, still eats Kibble without any problems.

[Crystal&Zoe]

Just checking what you found out from the vet.


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