How to Get Rid of Stinky Dog Breath

Stinky dog breath is gross.

Period.

We can probably all agree on that!

But beyond the yuck factor, stinky dog breath is usually also an indicator of poor oral hygiene in dogs – regardless of whether they’re raw-fed, eat kibble or cooked dog food.

So in this blog entry, we’ll first talk about WHY your dog may have stinky breath.

And then, you’ll learn about how to get rid of stinky dog breath.

Why Does My Dog Have Stinky Breath?

Rule Out Rotten Dog Teeth

My first suggestion is always to take your dog in for a medical exam if you suspect that they may have rotten teeth.

Indicators for rotten dog teeth can be:

• Whining
• Lack of appetite
• Smelly dog breath
• Pawing at the mouth
• Aggression when being petted around the mouth

One of my friends has a toy poodle – Orlando – with terrible teeth. At some point, he refused to eat and so she took him in for a check-up at the vet’s.

And sure enough, Orlando had 2 rotten teeth that were causing him enough pain to not want to eat.

2 pulled teeth later, Orlando was back to being his happy self as well as back to eating.

And by the way, Orlando eats raw dog food, but only the ground kind without any whole raw meaty bones.

Make Sure You Brush Your Dog’s Teeth

Obviously, we want to avoid rotten dog teeth and the vet costs that come with having to deal with them.

That’s actually fairly easy to do, but you’ll have to be consistent.

That said, there’s three ways of how you can “brush” your dog’s teeth to help keep them clean:

1. Manually using a dog toothbrush and brush kit.
2. Offering whole raw meaty bones as part of your dog’s raw dog food. That’s what I personally do as a raw feeder.
3. Treating your dog with edible dog chews like bully sticks.

All three options help prevent tartar from forming on your dog’s teeth and turning into plaque.

That’s the yellow-brownish crusts on dog’s teeth.

It’s what causes stinky dog breath, and plaque can also turn into a host of other dog health problems as bacteria enters the blood stream and travels to dog organs.

Related Reading: Raw Meaty Bones – How to Feed & Where to Buy

Support Your Dog’s Fresh Breath with Whole Food Supplements

Along with keeping your dog’s teeth free from plaque and tartar, you can feed certain supplements that help keep their breath from smelling.

Below, you’ll find a total of 4 ingredients you can turn into dog treats for fresh breath.

2 of them actively help support fresh dog breath.

The other 2 help support easy digestion and contribute to a healthy gut.

That said, you can either turn them into frozen fresh breath dog treats or use them as whole superfood toppers with their meals.

To turn them into dog treats, combine them using a food processor, then fill silicone molds with the concoction.

Use appropriate size silicone molds for your dog’s respective size:

• Small silicone molds
• Medium silicone molds
• Large silicone molds

Freeze for several hours, then offer as daily treats once to twice per day.

Homemade Frozen Fresh Breath Dog Treats with Cow Kefir and Parsley

Ideally, you’ll want to use plain, grass-fed cow kefir and organic parsley.

Cow kefir is fermented cow milk that’s very rich in live probiotics.

As such, it’s a superfood for your dog’s gut!

And since the immune system mostly “lives” in the gut, kefir helps strengthen the dog immune system, too.

Now, you can find cow kefir at most grocery stores in the butter, yogurt and milk section.

You can feed your small dog 1 teaspoon of kefir per day.

For medium dogs, use 1 tablespoon per day, and for large dogs, 2 tablespoons of kefir per day.

Parsley is an herb that’s rich in chlorophyll, vitamins A, C and K, as well as iron.

So that makes it a nutritional superfood for dogs with the added benefits of helping prevent stinky dog breath!

Freeze-dried parsley usually sits in the aisles where there’s spices.

But of course you can also use fresh parsley you grow in your vegetable and herb garden, if you have one.

I started one this year and froze all of the extra parsley I didn’t use right away.

So that’s what I used for this homemade dog treat recipe.

You can feed 1 teaspoon of parsley per 20lbs of dog weight.

Homemade Fresh Breath Dog Treats with Raw Goats Milk (or Yogurt) and Spirulina

If your dog can’t have anything beef including cow milk, raw goat’s milk is the way to go.

That’s because raw goats milk is unpasteurized milk with lots of probiotics that has a much lesser lactose content than cow milk.

And because of this, raw goat’s milk is known as universal milk that’s very easy to digest.

It can even be used as a milk replacer for puppies and also helps prevent inflammation within the body.

Back in the States, I would give my dogs raw goat milk.

But now that we’re in Germany, it’s really hard to find raw goat milk for dogs.

So instead, I use plain goat yogurt since I can find it at most grocery stores.

Raw Paws Pet Food recommends the following amount of their raw goat’s milk for your dog:

• Up to 20 lbs: 1oz
• 20-40 lbs: 2 oz
• 40-60 lbs: 3 oz
• 60-80 lbs: 4 oz
• 80+ lbs: 5 oz

Tip: Save 15% with my affiliate code K9Savings.

Now, for these treats, I combined plain goat yogurt with spirulina.

Spirulina is a freshwater algae that’s very rich in phytonutrients.

That makes it a great antioxidant with anti-inflammatory benefits.

Plus, it helps prevent stinky dog breath along with a smelly dog coat!

You can find organic spirulina powder on Amazon.

Small dogs can have 1/2 teaspoon per day, medium size dogs can have 1 teaspoon per day, and large dogs can have 2 teaspoons per day.

Like I said before, you can either offer the treats in-between meals, or use the ingredients as dog food toppers.

What to do for Stinky Dog Breath: Bottom Line

Ready to improve your dog’s smelly breath?

Stinky dog breath isn’t just unpleasant—it’s often a sign of poor oral hygiene.

Common causes include rotten teeth, which may require a vet visit if your dog shows signs like whining, appetite loss, or mouth sensitivity.

To prevent dental issues in the first place, brush your dog’s teeth regularly using a toothbrush, raw meaty bones, or natural chews like bully sticks.

You can also support fresh dog breath with whole-food supplements such as:

• Parsley & spirulina: Combat bad dog breath and smelly dog coats
• Cow kefir & goat yogurt: Promote gut health with probiotics and anti-inflammatory benefits

Turn these ingredients into frozen treats or use them as meal toppers for healthier teeth and fresher dog breath!

Related Reading:

• Your dog doesn’t eat raw dog food? Try these 9 easy hacks
• What’s so great about fermented dog food?
• How to make refreshing raw goat milk treats
• Olive wood dog chews for puppies
• 20 Easy Valentine’s Day dog treats
• Quick start guide to raw feeding

Barbara Rivers

Barbara Rivers is the founder of K9sOverCoffee and a raw feeding educator with over a decade of hands-on experience.

She has fed raw in the US and Europe since 2015, after her Boxer mix Missy’s cancer diagnosis led her to move away from processed kibble and commit to species-appropriate nutrition.

As a former professional dog walker, she developed deep insight into canine behavior, conditioning, and the essential link between proper exercise and long-term health.

Barbara completed online training with veterinarian Dr. Marion Smart and Labrador breeder Dana Scott and works for one of Germany’s leading raw dog food brands, BARFER’S.

In 2026–2027, she is completing a year-long raw nutrition certification for dogs and cats at THP School, founded by raw feeding pioneer Swanie Simon.

Through her blog and weekly newsletter, she provides clear, experience-based guidance to help dog owners feed raw safely and confidently.