Dental Care for Dogs

[Deleted User]

I have a dog with some dental problems such as tartar or plaque build up on the teeth. I admit, I am not one that brushes teeth for the dog, I do however take the dog to a vet for teeth cleaning. Is there a product that anyone uses to maintain the dogs teeth? I see these sprays in pet stores as well as solutions that could be added to the drinking water. I have used some product but does not work, or seem not to work at all. Any help or advice on products would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance,

Halen

Monster Jam

I don't brush my dogs teeth as often as I should either, and he is a little overdue for his dental cleaning as well.

I use a soft bristle finger brush and doggie toothpaste that tastes like "poultry". When I do brush his teeth, its a battle for me to get my fingers into his mouth while he's trying to lick the brush clean of the paste.

ben62670

Dry food, or canned? A good dry food of the right size helps a lot.

F1nut

My vet suggested that I should have my cat's teeth cleaned......I laughed all the way out the door.

superjunior

my wife uses a regular toothbrush and doggie toothpaste

superjunior

on our dog...:D

snow

F1nut wrote: »

My vet suggested that I should have my cat's teeth cleaned......I laughed all the way out the door.

I have heard of dumber things but not recently Sounds like a sure fire way to get a pair of tiny fangs sank into your **** if you ask me.



REGARDS SNOW

Ricardo

I remember when dogs used to live their normal 10-13 years without having anyone cleaning their teeth; yes, maybe they'd lose one or two, or there would be those few cases with complications (really?).
The things they do to take your money.

Give them the right food and use the money for gear.

cfrizz

Snow, I had my cat's teeth cleaned about 3 times during her life. She had a tendency to build up plaque. It has to be done by a vet, not by us. They knock them out so that they can do it.

They only make the recommendation since just like us, over all teeth health can affect the rest of their health. It's not good for us or them to have an abcessed tooth. An infection that close to the brain can travel up & cause even more problems.

For me I think it was worth the expense, since Tami did live to see 20 years of age.

snow wrote: »

I have heard of dumber things but not recently Sounds like a sure fire way to get a pair of tiny fangs sank into your **** if you ask me.



REGARDS SNOW

debussyj

Believe it or not but I trained by dog when he was a puppy to accept the Crest Spinbrush! I brush his teeth once a day (yeah, I don't have kids) and avoid the cleanings from the vet. He doesn't mind it at all!

SolidSqual

My Dog just chews on a Nylon bone. The vet says that's all she needs for clean teeth. Her teeth are very white. Evidently, the saliva from her mouth induced by chewing the bone cleans her teeth.

gdb

If you've ever had a really painful toothache......is that what you want your pet to have too. If so, you shouldn't have "pets"!!!:rolleyes:

bobman1235

Maybe you should go out in the woods and brush the teeth of the squirrels and deer too :rolleyes:

A dog with a healthy normal diet doesn't need his teeth brushed every day. I'm soryr that's just silly.

gdb

I don't brush my dog's teeth, they won't stand for it. I DO have them cleaned under anesthesia every 2-3 years or when needed. The food I feed is very good and fairly expensive too. (dry-$1.00/pound & $2.25/can):eek:

[Deleted User]

I have used the following brands: Iams, Purina, Puupy Chow, and Beneful. I have used a Petkin product for liquid oral care. After using the liquid for about a month, my dog began to scratch insanely. I do not know if it was the liquid that caused the irritation, stopped it, and after another month the dog seems fine now. What brand of food do you recommend? My dog is 9 pounds. I understand the brushing, just wanting to know all the alternatives.

Thanks,
Halen

gdb

My three beasts are all right around 100lbs. each. I feed canned food first then the hard, dry food. If your dog will allow you to brush it's teeth, it certainly can't hurt to do that. I feed Canidae but there are quite a few premium foods you could use. Foods with corn as the primary ingredient are junk, and not worth buying IMO. Good luck !!:)

Eugene_biker

I have had good luck with Science Diet Oral dog food. My dog used to have wicked breath till I started him on Oral. Now his mouth seems nice and clean.

vc69

I always went by this program:
Good dry dogfood.
Plenty of rawhide chew toys and an occasional ham bone.
NO TABLE SCRAPS! EVER! (well... rarely!)

Never had a problem with doggie teeth until she got old and lost a couple.
You must be aware of possible abscess as that is very painful for anyone! I think Cody had one once and the vet treated the infection and pulled the tooth. She was pretty old.
I have had rather large dogs so other size/types of animals may be different.

Willow

Willow had her teeth cleaned (it's an issue with eskies) Since then she's been eating dry food by Medical, dental for dogs. It seems to have made a difference. Rudy, had his teeth cleaned before we adopted him (same time he lost his marbles). He too is eating the same kibs as Willow. We do not brush their teeth. I'd rather give them a big chunck of carrot so they have to chew and bite deep into it, which helps clean the teeth.

F1nut

The things they do to take your money.

Ding, ding, ding.....we have a winner!

shawn474

I paid to have my dogs teeth cleaned ONCE!!!! When I got the bill, I almost crapped my pants. I went on Fosters and Smith and bought the liquid treatment that i try to do at least once or twice a month with brushing and bought the actual scraper tool. My dog (she's a Jack Russell Terrier who is 11 years old) sits on the floor and I scrape the teeth that I can get to. A lot comes off - I am sure there is more in her back teeth, but I am not paying for that again. Now that she's 11 the vet told us it would be $650 to do it because she is considered "senior". So much for a senior citizen discount

Willow

Like Shawn, Willow is 9 or 10(not sure she was a stray) the vet told us it's not worth another cleaning in terms of her going under. They did say, if for some reason she has to go under for say a broken hip then it might be worth it. I'm glad the SPCA did Rudy's teeth. We'll be sure to keep them healthy.

snow

cfrizz wrote: »

Snow, I had my cat's teeth cleaned about 3 times during her life. She had a tendency to build up plaque. It has to be done by a vet, not by us. They knock them out so that they can do it.

They only make the recommendation since just like us, over all teeth health can affect the rest of their health. It's not good for us or them to have an abcessed tooth. An infection that close to the brain can travel up & cause even more problems.

For me I think it was worth the expense, since Tami did live to see 20 years of age.

Well I suppose you need to do whatever you feel is the right thing to do Cathy. I just wonder how animals dogs,cats ferrets etc managed so long without us messing with their teeth. I could be wrong here but I feel with a proper diet most animals do just fine. Im going to side with Ricardo and Jesse on this one it most likely is another way of parting you from your money rather than somthing that is actually needed in most cases.



REGARDS SNOW

Disc Jockey

My dog doesn't get his teeth brushed either. We get pretty good results with dry food, rawhide chews, etc. But when/if he builds up enough tartar on his teeth to cause nasty doggie breath we've gotten great results with Suzies tartar liquid. Once the tartar is gone, it's also pretty easy to keep it gone if you use it on even an irregular basis.

PhantomOG

snow wrote: »

I just wonder how animals dogs,cats ferrets etc managed so long without us messing with their teeth. I could be wrong here but I feel with a proper diet most animals do just fine.

Proper diet being the key words. I'm pretty sure dogs,cats and ferrets that are well cared for pets live much longer than the same animal thrown into the wild. Animals in the wild don't eat lasagna and french fries either. Selective, and sometimes improper, breeding of dogs especially in small breeds also leads to teeth problems.

snow wrote: »

...most likely is another way of parting you from your money rather than somthing that is actually needed in most cases.

"needed" being a very value-laden word. Hell, no one "needs" to take their dog to the vet at all, right? Just run down to the pound and pick up another one after it dies of parvo in the first year, or heartworms in the fifth year, or heart complications developed from gum disease and tooth loss in the tenth year. Right? :rolleyes:

cfrizz

PhantomOG wrote: »

Proper diet being the key words. I'm pretty sure dogs,cats and ferrets that are well cared for pets live much longer than the same animal thrown into the wild. Animals in the wild don't eat lasagna and french fries either. Selective, and sometimes improper, breeding of dogs especially in small breeds also leads to teeth problems.



"needed" being a very value-laden word. Hell, no one "needs" to take their dog to the vet at all, right? Just run down to the pound and pick up another one after it dies of parvo in the first year, or heartworms in the fifth year, or heart complications developed from gum disease and tooth loss in the tenth year. Right? :rolleyes:

You hit this one out of the park Phantom. Hell the next time you get sick don't bother going to the doctor, why would you think YOU need treatment especially considering the cost.

Snow, our pets get ALL the same disieses that we get, have the same medical issues that we have and need treatment for them.

Tami lived to 20 & had to be put down due to kidney disiese which made most of her teeth drop out. Oscar lived to 13 and had to be put down due to cancer he had in his mouth. I wasn't going to let him starve to death.

Good pet owners realizes this & are willing to spend the money to ensure they have long, happy, healthy lives. I certainly did, and was rewarded with loving company for 20 & 13 years respectively.

If people aren't willing to make that financial commitment, then they have no busines getting pets.

F1nut

If people aren't willing to make that financial commitment, then they have no busines getting pets.

Making a financial commitment to the well being of one's pet is one thing. Falling for the teeth cleaning scam.....well, that's just being a victim.

superjunior

<img src="http://i591.photobucket.com/albums/ss352/superjuniordan/IMG_0348.jpg"&gt;
I agree with most posts here, a healthy diet will prevent most teeth issues. however as they get older, a good brushing every few weeks certainly helps. here's my boys pearly whites, Sam was not thrilled with me trying to get this pic..:D

harleysmom

I went on-line to check out where my dog was from and saw a posting that MattN03 had with pictures of a puppy and a lab. I think that I may have his puppy's brother. They look almost the same and were adopted around the same time...is MattN03 still here? does anyone know how to contact him? just curious..

cfrizz

Again what part of pets get ALL the same disieses that we get, have the same medical issues that we have and need treatment for them, do you not understand.

If we don't take care of our teeth we can suffer from:

The Dangers of Dental Disease in people
Your oral health is connected to many other health conditions beyond your mouth. Sometimes the first sign of a disease shows up in your mouth. In other cases, infections in your mouth, such as gum disease, can cause problems in other areas of your body.

Periodontal diseases have been linked to a variety of conditions with systemic implications. Likewise, systemic diseases can have an impact on oral health. Studies have demonstrated an association between periodontal diseases and cardiovascular disease, stroke, respiratory infections, diabetes, osteoporosis, HIV, and adverse pregnancy outcomes

The Dangers of Dental Disease in dogs
Plaque builds up on the teeth and turns into tartar, or calculus. These areas grow bacteria and eat away at the teeth and gums. Halitosis, periodontal disease, oral pain and tooth loss can occur. However, the bacteria not only cause disease in the mouth – they can also affect other parts of the body, like the heart and kidneys.

Gee who would have thought there could be such similarities.

F1nut

Again what part of pets get ALL the same disieses that we get, have the same medical issues that we have and need treatment for them, do you not understand.

So, you've had your distemper shot and heart worm pills?