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Message: <blockquote data-quote="PitRottMommy" data-source="post: 3422" data-attributes="member: 147">If she were a bit older, I'd warn you about organ function. Alot of time liver and kidney disorders can cause bad breath, not to mention dental disease (which is quite common in cats).The first recommendation is to check her mouth and make sure she's not retaining food in any portion of it. Sometimes food particles get stuck in their mouth (alot like our own, but our tongue is more prehensile) and can collect bacteria and begin to stink. With the on-again/off-again motion that she's going through, I would suspect this. At her age, breath alone is likely caused by either captured food or an overgrowth of bacteria. As Ilovemysphynx mentioned, dental treats can help to cut down on odor caused by bacteria secondary to dental complications but they won't do much if there's a place in the mouth that the food is hiding (it can actually exascerbate the problem because alot of treats are soft). Try a few dental treats (greenies are a good brand, look for something with Chlorihexidine in it--it's an antibacterial) or even look into water additives like CET Aquadent that have chemicals that help to break up bacteria and inhibit its growth after the mouth is emptied. Dental health is a big issue among pets, starting now will ensure fewer problems in the future. I would recommend looking in to chicken or turkey necks/backs that can be consumed by your feline on a regular basis. It encourages chewing (not just breaking up kibble or lapping down canned food) and ultimately uses the back teeth (not just the front or middle) to really grind down on the bones, which help to remove tartar and buildup from teeth which further prevent decay and bacterial growth. Brushing of the teeth can be a useful tool but alot of owners find it cumbersome and difficult to fit into a daily routine. Thus, other methods are usually considered more useful.If the problem continues to go unresolved despite trial with conventional methods, she needs to have an exam done by your veterinarian. There are a few complications that cats can have, such as calici virus, that leave oral ulcerations that can gather food and erode gingiva. If a problem like this goes on long enough, removal of teeth and ablation of tissue may be required. For a sphynx, this is usually a minimized risk because alot of breeders have closed catteries and usually few problems esp with transmissible diseases. However, they're finding more information now that there is more than 1 type of Calici virus. The "easy" one is more common amongst young kittens and isn't nearly as severe, the "hard" one is usually found in young adults to middle aged cats and doesn't necessarily require cat-t0-cat contact and the symptoms are usually more severe than just oral ulcerations but it's worth mentioning.</blockquote>

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