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Homemade Dog Breath Spray (Best Recipe)

There isn’t much in this world better than cuddling with your dog after a long day. However, when your pooch has breath that can peel paint, the experience can lose some of its luster. Homemade dog breath spray can help soothe your pup’s pants and help with their oral health.

homemade dog breath spray
Home-made dog breath spray [recipe]

What Causes Bad Breath in Dogs

Many factors work together to give your dog horrible breath. Of course, they are the same things that give humans bad breath, but your dog’s all meat diet and lack of brushing amplifies the problem and make it much more noticeable. 

Bacteria 

Bacteria are responsible for most of the bad smells in the world. When it comes to oral health, bacteria forms plaque on your dog’s teeth as it breaks down leftover food bits. The plaque is terrible for your dog’s oral health and can turn their breath putrid. 

If left uncleaned, bacteria can cause many other problems for both you and your dog. It is better to keep the bacteria in check whenever possible through brushing and mouth sprays. 

Tartar  

Tartar is a hard substance that grows on teeth when plaque starts to mineralize. It allows more bacteria to grab on and forms more plaque. It’s a vicious cycle that builds even more tartar. 

Getting rid of tartar will help your dog have a healthier mouth, and it will get rid of places for bacteria to flourish. 

Decomposing Food 

Food can get caught in your dog’s mouth, especially in between the teeth. The pockets of food are breeding grounds for all types of bacteria that release stinky gases as they break down the meat. Removing the food can help ease the smell. 

border collie on a hike sits on the ground
A Border Collie takes a breather while on a hike

Oral Health Issues 

Problems like gum disease or periodontal disease can cause issues for your bad dog breath. When left unchecked, many of these disorders can cause even more problems for your pet down the line, including pain, other infections, and loss of teeth. 

These inflictions tend to increase the amount of bacteria in the mouth, which is the root cause of all bad breath. Periodontal disease is gum disease that can make dogs really sick.

Why Make Breath Spray at Home? 

You have probably seen many dog breath sprays at the store that you can buy and use on your pet. 

You could buy a commercial dog spray and use that when their breath gets bad. However, there are many advantages to making your own fresh breath spray that will help your dog’s breath and health.  

Better Ingredients 

Commercial products find any way they can to save money and maximize profit. To achieve this, they often use lower-quality materials that deliver similar results. They will use synthetic smells and flavors that can add many chemicals to the spray your dog doesn’t need. 

Many of the store sprays use Xylitol to make it taste better for dogs. Studies show Xylitol may be toxic to your pet. In the homemade dog breath spray, you skip possibly harmful ingredients and use natural alternatives. 

More Effective 

The better materials can work better for your dog. Rather than masking the smell, homemade sprays can kill bacteria and give your dog better oral health. Using real herbs and natural oils makes the spray more potent and better at its job. 

Less Expensive

You can find many of the ingredients in a homemade dog breath spray in your kitchen and garden. There is a minimal upfront cost to making the basic spray. Even if you do have to buy the ingredients separately, you’re not looking at breaking the bank on the process. 

Making the spray is also easy and won’t take you all day. You can do the simple procedure in under 20 minutes once you get used to it. 

curly tailed basenji
Curly tailed Basenji

It’s Not Just For Smell, Benefits of Breath Spray

Dog breath spray doesn’t just make your dog’s breath smell better, though that is a significant benefit. It can also help your dog have better overall oral health. It can help the dog, especially when paired with the rest of an oral hygiene program for your dog

Helps Clean Their Teeth 

Using the spray can help soften tartar build-ups, which can cause them to come off. It can also remove the unwanted film from the teeth, which could have caused other issues for your dog. 

Some owners use the spray in place of brushing the dog’s teeth, and they get fairly good results. It will be up to you to do both or let the spray replace the more complex task of brushing. 

Removes Plaque 

Plaque is one of the quickest things to start building up on your dog’s teeth. If you use the spray regularly, it can keep plaque at a minimum. If the plaque isn’t allowed to grow on your dog’s teeth, you can avoid tartar buildup and many other problems. 

Kills Bacteria 

The herbs and essential oils in the mouth spray help kill bacteria and stop its growth and spread. You can also add vinegar and other bacteria-destroying elements to the spray.  

Killing the bacteria stops the foul smell, but it also eliminates many chemicals that can break down teeth and cause other oral diseases. By getting rid of the source of the problem, you can cut down on many other dangerous side effects, the least of which is bad breath. 

wavy coat double doodle
A wavy coat Double Doodle

Recipe for Basic Spray

There are a lot of different recipes for homemade dog breath spray. However, many of them use the same basic ingredients and only add a few extra features that your dog may like. In addition, you can customize the sprays using the flavors and smells you enjoy. 

Remember to keep some kind of antibacterial agent in the spray. That way, you aren’t just masking the smell, but you are also getting rid of the underlying problem. In addition, it makes the spray work better and last longer. 

Here is one of the most basic recipes for a good mouth spray. You can substitute cinnamon, spearmint, or your favorite good-smelling herb for the mint in this recipe. 

Ingredients 

  • One cup water 
  • Five sprigs of parsley 
  • Mint leaves 
  • ¼ teaspoon apple cider vinegar  

Process 

  1. Put the parsley in the water and bring it to a boil
  2. Turn off the heat and add in mint and apple cider vinegar as it cools 
  3. Allow time for the mixture to fully cool 
  4. Strain leaves 
  5. Add to spray bottle 

Use 

The homemade dog breath spray is entirely safe for your pet, so you can use it as often as you want. A few squirts in your dog’s mouth should be enough for you to start noticing the effects. You can do more than a few squirts if your dog’s breath is particularly bad. 

Essential Oil Spray 

tea tree oil for dogs
Safety for dogs and tea tree oil is a priority.

The nice part about this recipe is that all of your oils are already made. It adds convenience because you don’t have to boil anything yourself. All you have to do is mix the ingredients. This recipe requires less prep time, but it does require more ingredients. 

You can replace many of the oils in this recipe with the flavors you like the most. You want to make sure they still make an excellent antibacterial remedy, but the smell can be unique for you and your dog. 

When picking essential oils for this recipe, get food-grade options. Also, if you want to change the smell, make sure you choose an oil that is safe to use for your dog. Some can be unhealthy for your dog to ingest. DON’T USE ANYTHING THAT IS POISONOUS.

For this spray, you may need to use an eyedropper because the mix is more viscous. It won’t work in a spray bottle as well. 

Ingredients 

  • 1.6 oz. vegetable glycerin
  • .2 oz. liquid grapefruit seed or grape seed extract
  • .2 oz. Refined coconut oil, melted
  • Six drops 100% pure neem oil
  • One drop of rosemary oil
  • Two drops of spearmint oil

Process 

To get the right mixture of materials, you will want to use a kitchen scale. 

  1. Pour the oils into an eyedropper bottle using a funnel
  2. For the drops, if you add one or two more, it won’t be bad for the dog
  3. Before using the mixture, make sure to shake it up. 

Use 

This dog breath oil doesn’t work as well as a spray, so you will have to put a few drops into your dog’s mouth. If you want, you can use your finger to spread it around the mouth to get into all the crevices, but that isn’t necessary. 

You can use as much of this oil as you need to help make your dog’s mouth smell better. It is safe for your dog, and dogs should enjoy the taste due to the glycerin and coconut oil. 

three leg dog name irish
A three leg Clover brings good luck (best 3 legged dog names)

Final Thoughts 

Stinky dog breath can be hard to handle. Making and keeping these easy homemade dog breath spray options around can help. You can use these sprays as often as you like, but making them part of their daily routine might make them easier to use on your dog. 

After using these sprays for a while, you should start to notice your dog’s breath getting better and staying better, but don’t stop using them when they start working. Keeping up with the spray will keep your dog’s breath fresh and help them maintain better oral health as long as you use it.