What to do if your cat’s breath stinks of fish or rotten meat?

Various reasons why a kitten or adult cat stinks
Sexual activity as a reason
Why does the house smell like a cat?

If the pet is absolutely healthy and has been recently washed, then there should be no foreign odors. In addition, cats by their nature are considered very clean. In this regard, people often wonder why a cat stinks if it receives proper care. It is worth taking into account that an unpleasant odor can arise not only due to the fact that the animal was not washed well enough. If you smell a very specific and unpleasant odor, then it is most likely the result of many possible diseases.

Causes of odor

Why does my cat's breath stink and stink? Why does my cat’s breath smell unpleasantly like fish or rotten meat?

We will answer: because in his mouth, like in your mouth, bacteria multiply that help with digestion. It is bacteria that “kill” harmful elements, they favor the flora of the body. But if there are too many of them, an unpleasant odor from the mouth begins.

The following factors may also be problematic:

oral diseases;
diseases of the gastrointestinal tract;
bad teeth.

Incorrectly selected diet

Improper nutrition provokes many diseases, affects the functioning of the body as a whole and often leads to the appearance of an unpleasant odor. With natural feeding, this can happen if protein (meat) or carbohydrates (porridge) greatly predominate. And when feeding ready-made diets, incorrect selection of food can provoke a similar problem (for example, if the pets are intolerant to any ingredients). To correct the situation, it is better to contact a veterinary nutritionist.

Dental problems

Why can cats develop oral diseases? It is necessary to carefully care for your pet's mouth and brush the cat's teeth: according to veterinarians, about 10% of cat owners do this procedure. Below we will teach you how to carry out this procedure. Let's say that Persians and cats that are already 10 years old are very susceptible to oral ailments.

How do you know if an animal has dental problems?

In this case, the cat will eat very carefully and carefully, trying not to bite on its teeth.
The kitty will rub the sore side of its muzzle against pieces of furniture and chew on only one side.
Well, if the animal is in very severe pain, then it will not allow itself to be stroked on the head, will drool, cry out sharply and walk with its mouth open.

Those who have adopted a cat often forget that in nature a cat eats completely differently. For example, wild cats tear their prey with their teeth and swallow small pieces: they are not afraid of hard food.

Pets usually eat soft food: we offer them either liquid food in bags, or minced meat, or boiled, soft fish.

These foods can cause plaque to form on your gums, causing pieces of food to get stuck in your teeth, which are not designed for chewing soft foods. What remains in the teeth rots, and, as a result, harmful microorganisms appear in the oral cavity. Bacteria destroy the teeth, and the enamel of the incisors begins to rot. As a result, diseases such as caries, periodontitis, gingivitis and stomatitis appear: that’s why your breath begins to smell.

You may think: I’ll just feed my cat dry food and solve the problem! No, this will not prevent trouble. Food pellets, of course, can remove some plaque from the teeth, but the pieces will still remain in the incisors and will rot in the same way as other food. Therefore, to avoid bad breath, you need to brush your cat’s teeth at least once a day.

Various reasons why a kitten or adult cat stinks

Before looking for symptoms of disease, you should first monitor the quality of care for your pet. You need to make sure that the tray and bowls are clean, as well as personal hygiene. Since nutrition directly affects the cat’s body and health, you should wash the food bowls with soda and wash the floor where they are located. Don't forget that odor varies in nature and can be caused by both internal and external factors.

The following odors may occur:

Bad breath.
Bad smell from ears.
Wool that gives off a bad odor

Smell from the mouth. This is based primarily on the cleaning mechanisms given to these animals by nature. The homemade diet of pets is very different from the natural diet. Therefore, sometimes saliva stops fighting bacteria as actively due to an imbalance in the salivary glands. To reduce the risk of such a problem, you need to carefully monitor your oral hygiene for prevention. This includes regular scaling as needed and the use of dental sticks.

If, despite taking all measures, the unpleasant odor still persists, you should contact a specialist. It is not recommended to resort to self-medication, as this may lead to more serious consequences. In addition, bad breath may occur due to problems of the genitourinary system or stomach. The main thing is not to delay going to the hospital so as not to develop the disease.

Bad smell from the ears. In most cases, this is a sure sign of one of the ear diseases common to cats. Professionals prohibit trying to treat them at home, as this may even lead to deafness in your pet. If your cat shakes his head and scratches his ears more often than usual, and the presence of wax is visible, then this is a serious reason to contact a veterinarian. The occurrence of odor is also possible due to dermatitis or eczema. In this regard, liquid begins to accumulate in the auricle, which can be cleaned with a stick previously soaked in peroxide.

A very common problem is the smell emanating from pet fur. Of course, first of all, this depends on hygiene, but skin and fur are also a direct indicator of the health of the animal. You can judge not only by smell, but also by the cleanliness of the skin, the thickness and condition of the coat and timely shedding.

There is a high probability that the unpleasant odor appeared due to the development of demodicosis in the cat - the appearance of mites that infect the skin. When visiting a veterinary clinic, before prescribing treatment, doctors must take tests to identify the presence of mites on the skin and in the blood.

Cleaning the cat's teeth

In order to properly clean your cat's mouth, you will need to visit a veterinarian. By the way, you can ask your doctor to teach you how to properly clean an animal’s fangs yourself. You can even train your cat not to resist when you put a toothbrush in his mouth. Of course, it is better to teach this procedure to young kittens.

Here are some tips to help you properly clean your animal's fangs and get rid of unpleasant odor if the cause lies in oral problems:

Let your veterinarian show you how to properly clean the fangs;
Buy a special brush. How many animals you have, so many brushes will be needed;
Buy a special flavored teeth cleaner that smells like chicken or fish;
Carry out the procedure strictly according to the clock: in the same period of time;
Use toothbrushes carefully because your cat may bite them.

You need to gradually teach your cat to brush his fangs to get rid of the smell from his mouth.

To do this, you should first take a little tasty paste on your finger and let the kitty lick it off. Continue this way for a couple of days. When cleaning, place the animal with its back to you, because it will try to escape.

If the kitty pushes with its paws, ask your relatives to hold them. Slowly and gradually touch the cat's fangs with a toothbrush and encourage him. When the procedure is completed, reward the cat with something tasty. If the cat accepts the process of starting brushing well, then you can continue, starting to brush more confidently. In this way, you can teach your cat to brush his fangs, his mouth cavity will be healthy and the unpleasant odor from the mouth will disappear.

Prevention of diseases leading to bad breath

It is much easier to keep your pet healthy than to treat it. Therefore, prevention should be a mandatory part of caring for an animal.

Make it a rule to periodically examine the oral cavity and treat it with antibacterial agents (for example, miramistin). To do this, you can wrap a bandage around your finger, moisten it with the product, and treat the oral cavity.

Attention! Your cat won't enjoy this procedure very much, so don't use cotton wool or a cotton pad to clean the mouth. Breaking free, your pet may simply swallow them.

Periodically buy your cat dry food or special sticks that help cleanse the teeth of stones that form with age in the animal.
Sometimes brush your cat's teeth with a regular baby brush with soft bristles, without toothpaste.
Be sure to give your pet anti-intestinal parasite medications at least once every six months.
Do not buy low quality food, do not feed your pets from your table.
Monitor your cat's weight and activity status.
Visit your veterinarian periodically, even if there is no apparent cause for concern.

If not teeth, then...

If your cat has a problem other than his teeth and still has bad breath, he may have an oral ulcer or tumor. By the way, if the virus gets on the mucous membrane, it can ulcerate it, destroy the enamel and cause the gum tissue to grow. Such diseases can even lead to the death of a pet. Therefore, in order to identify the disease in advance, it is necessary to look into the pet’s mouth from time to time.
You should also monitor the food you give your cat: you need to feed it correctly, consulting a veterinarian. There is a lot of literature on how to feed cats so that they don’t get sick. If finances allow, you can go to the veterinarian and use an ultrasound to remove plaque from the cat’s fangs.
If your pet has toothache, then you can’t do without a veterinarian.
The doctor will remove caries from the fangs and treat the oral cavity with anti-inflammatory drugs. Well, if the inflammation is severe, the animal will be prescribed antibiotics and immunostimulants. If the animal suffers from diseases of the internal organs, it will not be possible to do without surgery.

Detect and neutralize

Furry pets love to mark their territory. Think great leather boots are yours? Not at all, your cat thinks completely differently. So don't be surprised if one morning you find an unpleasant surprise in your shoes. Cats can mark absolutely any part of the territory: carpets, sofas, chairs, floors, clothes, shoes, toys and other things of the owners.

Following cat psychology, not a single pet will make its surprises in front of its owner. After all, the cat understands that this will be followed by a very severe punishment. Therefore, very often the owners catch the “aroma”, but do not know how to discover the place of the “surprise”. If your sense of smell did not allow you to find the “marked” area in the apartment, use a black light lamp. Turn off all the lights in the apartment and turn on the lamp, first pointing it at possible affected areas. Traces of cat urine will appear as yellow spots in the dark.

Lack of hygiene

Of course, kittens do not brush their teeth, and if they are fed properly and kept in clean conditions, this is not required. All you need is a preventive examination by a veterinarian from time to time. So that if a disease appears, it can be cured at the initial stage. It’s bad when the disease is in development.

If an animal has an abnormal bite since birth and eats soft food, then it is recommended to brush its teeth.

What to do if your cat smells bad

First of all, rule out natural causes of unpleasant odors on cat fur. Wash the animal, change its collar or even

take it off. Examine the oral cavity; sometimes tartar is very difficult to detect. If you do not see outward signs of dental damage, contact your veterinarian.

You should also consult a doctor if you notice the smell of acetone or ammonia. At the clinic, the animal will be tested and diagnosed. In some cases, this may include cytology or biopsy. You should not self-medicate, as this can significantly shorten the life of your pet. For the same reason, try to pay attention to the appearance of foreign odors in a timely manner, because it may indicate a serious illness.

Salivary glands

In the mouth, saliva constantly coats the mucous membrane, thereby protecting it from damage. During the eating period, more saliva is produced in order to safely swallow food. If there is little saliva, then injuries may occur when eating.

If there is little saliva, then dry food will injure the gums and tongue, which will lead to inflammation. If, on the contrary, there is an excess of saliva, the chin will begin to become inflamed in those places where saliva will constantly flow from the baby’s mouth. All this will lead to the development of microorganisms and the kitten’s breath may stink.