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By Andrew Montague M.V.B. Cert. Small Animal Medicine
Home Page: Dogs: Mouth: Teeth
Keep your pet's teeth and gums healthy
Posted 26th July, 2000
Rotten teeth, infected gums and bad breath are all too common in cats and dogs but there are ways to reduce these problems.
Have you considered brushing your pet's teeth? If not, you should. This is probably the most effective way to keep your pet's mouth healthy. Obviously brushing teeth is not for aggressive animals or pets that you don't trust.
Get your pet used to teeth brushing at a young age. You can buy a variety of flavoured toothpastes from your vet such as chicken toothpaste or malt toothpaste.
"Most cats and dogs over three years old have gum disease..."
Introduce your pet gradually to brushing their teeth. For a few days encourage them to lick the toothpaste off your finger so that they get used to the taste. Then use your finger to rub some toothpaste on their teeth. Start with just the front teeth until your pet is comfortable with the procedure. Eventually you can introduce a soft toothbrush. Your vet will give you a demonstration.
How often should you brush? Once daily. If you brush less often than this your pet will loose most of the benefits of having their teeth cleaned.
There are other ways to keep your pet's mouth in good health. Pets enjoy good chewing toys and these should be encouraged. Hard biscuits are also useful. In Australia many vets recommend feeding raw meat and raw chicken wings to pets. These tough meats can help keep your pet's teeth clean. It's important to give only raw chicken wings, as the bones in cooked chicken wings are dangerous for pets.
Most cats and dogs over three years old have gum disease, so you should get your pet's teeth checked every year by a vet. Your vet may recommend performing a dental. This involves giving your pet a general anaesthetic to allow the vet to properly examine and treat the teeth and gums. Usually the teeth will be scaled, polished and any unhealthy teeth will either be treated or removed.
Infected gums and teeth can spread bacteria from the mouth to other parts of the body causing serious disease. So keeping your pet's teeth in good condition can help to avoid serious illness as well as avoiding teeth loss, bad breath and painful rotten teeth. Make sure that looking after your pet's teeth becomes part of the routine care for your pet.