If you were wondering why American Bullies smell so bad, then this is the place to find your answers!
Even though it is a low-maintenance breed, the changes in its organism show much easier through dog odors, so when the dog smells bad, there are a number of things that should be a good idea to take a close look at to stop it and help your dog be healthy and smell good.
An unpleasant smell comes when pet owners stop taking care of their hygiene and overall grooming.
Health conditions such as dental infections, urinary tract infections, skin conditions, and infections of the anal sacs are the basic causes of your American Bully having bad body odors.
Diagnosing health conditions that are causing an unpleasant odor is imperative for treating and preventing problems in the first place. In this article, I am going to show you the possible causes of bad smells and how to deal with them.
Let’s check them out together!
Health Problems That Cause Bad Smells
Your dog can smell bad coming from their adventures rolling around in mud and similar places. But sometimes these smells can warn of problems of a much more serious nature. There are several problems that can cause bad odors to happen.
Let’s see the most common medical problems that can cause these foul odors.
Dog Allergies That Manifest On Skin
If a dog is scratching himself ceaselessly, this might result from the dog’s dry skin, which turns into skin irritation. If this continues to get worse, open wounds start forming that get infected.
These open wounds are where smelly secretion is going to start pouring.
Because of this scenario, skin irritation can also lead to other common problems and infections that could be much worse for this canine patient.
Bacterial infections and yeast infections are detrimental to the health of the dog as well as its odor intensity.
If the problem continues from this spot, the veterinarian will have to give allergy treatment and antibiotics.
When the infection stops, you will have to find the cause of the allergy with your vet and find a way to stop your Bully from being in contact with it.
There is a wide range of possible causes for allergies, from food allergies to external environment allergies.
If the cause is something unavoidable, the dog will have to get regular vet appointments and medications to combat this threat.
Although you can try treating your Bully’s skin problems yourself, it is best to consult with your veterinarian on this matter.
Skin Fold Pyoderma
Talking about skin infections, we have to mention the most common one for Bullies, as well as other pit bull breeds, skin fold Pyoderma. Other dog breeds can have this problem, too, but it is most common in breeds that have looser skin and folds.
This kind of infection occurs under the folds of the skin of a dog. The infection starts with bacteria that naturally live on the skin.
The presence of these bacteria normally is not a threat.
The problem starts when moisture and humidity start becoming a perfect ground for these bacteria to reproduce in huge numbers and cause skin issues.
The increase of these bacteria in the skin’s natural oils causes a foul odor that can be noticed right away. On a positive note, this can be solved with a special cleansing dog shampoo.
Unfortunately, in some cases, this can get worse to the point where surgery is required to remove infected skin to prevent blood and internal organs infection.
Make sure to check your dog’s skin when grooming them regularly.
Sarcoptic Mange
Similar to the problems mentioned before, Sarcoptic Mange is also a skin disease that is caused by parasitic mites.
Sarcoptic mites dig into skin tissue, and their presence under the skin causes severe itching.
And like in the examples above, scratching the sore skin damaged by the mites causes open wounds.
You can notice this by the crusting of the points on the skin, which is a smelly puss that hardens coming out of the wounds.
Bacteria Ear Infections
If the dog starts acting moody with constant scratching of the ears, it is most likely that your Bully has some kind of ear infection.
The causes of these infections can be nasty things such as bacteria, fungi, mites, tumors, and polyps. All this can be a valid cause of the infection if the dog has bad hygiene.
The presence of these factors can make your dog smell awful, but don’t worry because there is a cure!
Antibiotics and medications that will prevent itchiness are prescribed by doctors to control and destroy the culprits of the disease.
Dental Problems
The causes of dental problems for humans are mutual for dogs, too. Yes, we are talking about poor dental hygiene.
Food that stays on teeth forms plaque on teeth. If this is not removed often, the build-up turns into gum infection that causes bad breath.
Because of this mutual problem, it is very easy for owners to come to a conclusion about what causes bad breath.
The only difference is that dogs have a much higher pain tolerance than us humans, so they will not complain about toothache like we do so make sure to check those teeth. So, prevention is the key.
Brush the dogs’ teeth just like you would for yourself. Use dog toothpaste or dental treats because dogs are not really keen on the flavored paste that we use. Nor should they be consuming it.
Also, do not forget that the most important prevention tool is making sure that the dog has proper nutrition.
It might be a good idea to consult with the American Bully feeding chart.
Impacted Anal Glands
Impacted anal glands are uncomfortable and very smelly issues that can cause a horrible smell following your dog. What are these anal glands/anal sacs?
These glands are located around the dog’s anus, and they produce a smelly secretion in the form of liquid or a paste.
When a dog is pushing fecal matter, they squeeze secretion out of these glands, too. But if bowel movement is rare because of some other issues or if a dog has chronic diarrhea, glands do not get squeezed, and secretion starts building up.
The result is the dog having impacted anal glands that cause a foul smell. If you don’t notice this happening in time, the glands are going to burst with contents spilling out and cause even worse and more pungent smells.
To prevent this from happening, your vet will often check if the glands are being emptied regularly. If the vet notices that glands have become impacted, they will manually squeeze the glands and extract all of the secretions that caused a build-up.
Also, you can ask your veterinarian if they would be willing to teach you how to check for these impacted anal glands yourself.
They can show you the technique on how to manually empty them and relieve the pressure that the dog feels.
Even though it is a gross thing for some owners to do by themselves, it will decrease the number of unnecessary visits to the vet just to do this.
Infected Anal Glands
As if the issues with anal glands could not get more gross, another problem that can happen to the anal glands is also infection.
Regardless of the impact of the glands, the infection can also happen and cause a bad odor to follow your dog’s trail behind.
When anal glands become impacted, the worst-case scenario is that infection comes from constipation of these glands.
But don’t worry; your veterinarian can combat this with a prescription of antibiotics that will solve the problem in no time.
Gassiness
The way we all notice bad odor in dogs is flatulence.
Yes, even though farts are natural, and even often for some breeds, if the gasses start being foul-smelling beyond tolerance levels, your dog may be suffering from some medical issues.
So let’s see what are the causes of the foul farts:
Switch To Another Food
If a change of diet was done recently, the different contents or the formula of new food could cause irregularities in the dog’s stomach, leading to farts that smell worse than usual.
This can be accompanied by diarrhea and vomiting. That said, it is a good idea to keep an eye on your farty Bully.
Food Allergies
Food allergies in American Bullies can disrupt the natural balance of their skin, leading to yeast or bacterial overgrowths.
These overgrowths produce an unpleasant odor as they proliferate on the skin’s surface.
Additionally, allergies can cause excessive licking and scratching, further irritating the skin and contributing to a foul smell.
Though not directly related to the skin, food allergies can cause gastrointestinal symptoms, including gas and poor digestion, which may contribute to an overall unpleasant smell from the dog.
Spoiled Food
Well, this one is on you, really.
Giving dogs unchecked food with expired dates can cause dogs to get more flatulence, diarrhea, vomiting or even nausea.
In severe cases, spoiled food can lead to your Bully dying (severe bacterial infections).
How Can You Maintain Your American Bully Smelling Nice
Keeping your Bully smelling nice is a blend of routine care and attentive love. I mean, a clean, odor-free dog is a walking proof of diligent care and attention to detail.
And, who doesn’t love a nice-smelling puppy?
Here are some ways you can help your doggo to stay smelling and feeling fresh as ever:
- Make sure to bathe your American Bully at least once a month
- Dental care is imperative for the Bully’s health – brush those pearly whites and check them regularly.
- Cut out grains in their food and try introducing more of the raw food.
- Proper grooming of the fur every day keeps ticks away! Not only that, it removes dead skin and debris.
- Check regularly for skin infections, ear infections, skin lesions, gastrointestinal problems.
- Clean your Bully’s toys regularly. Maintain all the usual places where they play and sleep tidy.
- Regularly check your dog for possible UTIs.
- Regular veterinary visits for more info and health monitoring are a must.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, your American Bully smelling badly could be a sign of several medical issues.
Prevention and seeing problems as soon as they arrive is the key to having a healthy and strong American Bully.
With regular grooming and vet visits, you can rest assured that your Bully lives long and stays a loyal companion through your and your family’s adventures.
I hope this list was helpful to you and that these lessons have made you more observant of your dog’s needs.
Perhaps we can all agree that the goal in the end is to pay as much attention to your dog, so we can get twice as much love in return. Am I right?
Meet Iram, a devoted veterinarian, passionate dog lover, and current Ph.D. candidate at Utrecht University in the Netherlands. Seamlessly blending her roles as a vet and content writer, Iram channels her love for dogs into heartfelt narratives.
Since childhood, Iram nurtured a dream of becoming a vet, a passion that runs deep in her family. Having now fulfilled that dream, she’s eager to share her acquired knowledge. In her writing, Iram not only explores the emotional bond between humans and their canine friends but also integrates her veterinary expertise, offering readers a holistic understanding of their beloved pets.