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Dog Dental Care

How to Keep Your Dog's Teeth Healthy and Why It's Important...

After my Basset Hound, Hunter, turned four years old, I noticed that some of his back teeth had turned black. At his yearly health checkup, my veterinarian performed an oral exam. She then informed me that Hunter needed a dental cleaning and possible tooth extraction.

A dental cleaning is performed with the dog sedated under general anesthesia and it's a costly procedure - $268 for me.

As it turned out, Hunter came through the procedure with all of his teeth intact. Surprisingly, he was diagnosed with moderate dental tartar (I expected it to be much worse) and I was instructed to brush his teeth daily to prevent a recurrence of dental problems.

From this experience I learned that neglecting dog dental care may lead to oral disease, a common health problem in pets, and costly veterinarian bills.

Brush Your Dog's Teeth

It's important to brush your dog's teeth. Ideally, veterinarians recommend daily brushing with a toothpaste specifically designed for dogs. While cavities usually are not a problem in dogs, plaque build up is.

Plaque develops as food particles and bacteria form along the gum line. It's easily removed by brushing. If plaque is not removed, it calcifies within a few days and becomes tartar. Tartar can not be removed by brushing but instead, requires a dental cleaning by a vet.

If tarter is not removed, it may lead to periodontal disease which is a serious condition causing irreversible damage to the teeth. Left untreated, the disease may also lead to other serious health problems.

Don't let your dog's teeth deteriorate! Brush frequently, just like you do yours.

Eliminate Bad Breath

Bad breath is a common complaint among pet owners and it's important to determine the root cause of the odor.

In most cases, a lingering odor is caused by some sort of dental problem such as plaque, gingivitis, or periodontal disease. But, other health problems including but not limited to diabetes, respiratory disease, and gastrointestinal disease may also cause bad breath.

If your dog suffers from persistent bad breath, then have a veterinarian check him to determine the root cause.

How to Clean Your Dog's Teeth

Here is an excellent video demonstrating how to clean your dog's teeth from Drs. Foster & Smith:

 

When cleaning your dog's teeth, use dental care products specifically designed for dogs. Don't use toothpaste for humans on your dog's teeth.

Dog Dental Care for Healthy Teeth and Gums

Many owners overlook the importance of routine dog dental care, as I did. To prevent serious health problems and costly veterinarian bills:

  • Brush your dog's teeth daily.
  • Visit your vet at recommended intervals for a checkup which includes an oral exam.
  • Get a dental cleaning as recommended by your vet to remove tartar buildup.

If you're unable to brush daily, then at a minimum do it as often as you can. If you only get to it three times per week, then that's better than nothing at all. Frequent brushing along with regular checkups is the best way to prevent serious dental problems that are costly to treat.

 

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