An unpleasant and unusual odor from a dog’s feces (this must be why you type “my dog’s poop smells really bad”) can indicate that something is wrong with its digestive health. However, there are various causes and conditions that can lead to this situation.
In general, a particularly unpleasant and unusual odor indicates a digestive problem that can be due to a variety of causes. It may happen that the dog smells bad, either for physiological reasons or because it suffers from some pathology.
Let’s see if all this can be an indicator that something is wrong. Providing your dog with quality food, deworming, vaccinations, and regular veterinary check-ups helps to avoid many problems related to bad-smelling feces.
The strong odor of feces may be related to the presence of worms and also to the involvement of intestinal diseases. Some animals may have a deficiency in the production of pancreatic enzymes that act directly on the digestibility of food, also presenting feces with the most foul-smelling odor.
When we can’t diagnose the presence of any of the above problems, we should start to worry about the quality of the feed. In this article, we will answer the questions related to why does my dog’s poop smell so bad?
The variation of the ingredients of a ration can cause variation in the odor of the feces.
Nowadays, there are already rations manufactured in order to reduce this odor. They are known as “indoor” rations. They usually have Phyto extracts and other ingredients that can work by reducing the odor of feces. This type of food, as its name suggests, is indicated mainly for those dogs that live indoors.
Problems With Feeding: Did You Not Know This?
Regardless of the chosen diet, the key is that it meets the quality criteria and adapts to the life stage and characteristics of each dog. In this way, we not only cover your nutritional needs but facilitate the use of ingredients and good digestion.
So, in addition to a healthy dog, with a shiny coat, we will notice the quality of its feces. With good food, they will be smaller, more consistent, and have a less pronounced odor. Therefore, we can point to diet as a very common cause of a strong smell in the dog’s feces. Some folks even point out that it smells of carrion in some situations.
A poor diet produces bulky stools, which are softer in consistency and are normally eliminated more often. For this reason:
How to fix the strong smells in dogs? – sometimes the problem can be solved with a simple change in their diet or, if this diet is good, with the elimination of human foods that some caregivers give and may not be recommended for dogs.
If you have questions about the best food for your dog, contact a veterinarian. In addition to the quality of the food, there are other issues to consider in our dog’s diet:
- Sudden changes may be behind rapid digestive transit that affects stool. That is why it is always advisable that any modification be introduced gradually and over several days of transition, precisely to avoid digestive changes.
- Food intolerance to meats, fish, eggs, cereals, etc., also triggers rapid transit. A food that very commonly affects intestinal transit is milk. Puppies that are no longer puppies lack the enzyme needed to digest lactose and this is precisely what can cause digestive upset.
- Sometimes stools have a rancid or foul odor that can be associated with problems with digestion and fermentation processes. Badly digestible ingredients that require a greater effort from the digestive system and spend more time in it, can lead to bad digestion with fermentation, noise, flatulence, and foul-smelling stools.
- In addition, bacterial overgrowths can occur. In these cases, in addition to having to modify the diet in terms of quality and standard of administration, it is also possible that you need pharmacological treatment prescribed by the veterinarian.
Regarding the bad smell in the feces of the puppies, it is also important to note that the smell of food or curdled milk can be explained by excessive feeding. In such cases, the stool is also abundant and formless. This should be resolved by simply adjusting the kibble to the manufacturer’s recommendations and you can avoid the strong smell in the dog’s feces.
