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Dental care tips
 Here are some handy hints on how to keep your pooch’s teeth in tip top condition:
- Brushing your dog’s teeth once a week is important to promote healthy teeth and gums as well as fresher breath
- In the long-run, tartar and plaque can build up if teeth are not cleaned and this will cause sore and inflamed gums
- Making the effort to cleaning your dog’s teeth - ideally everyday, but at least once a week - will help avoid expensive vet bills as tartar build up can only be removed by a vet
- It only takes a few minutes a day and don’t be tempted to use human toothpaste – this foams too much and can cause stomach irritation for animals
- To help keep teeth in good condition, natural chews and specially designed dental chew toys can be bought. They don’t always clean to the gumline where most dental problems begin so this is why regular cleaning with a toothbrush and special dog toothpaste is important
- Good dental hygiene can't start too young. If you begin tooth care in puppyhood, you can greatly reduce the chance of your dog developing periodontal disease. To brush a dog's teeth, use a small, soft toothbrush or finger brush with toothpaste or tooth-cleaning solution formulated for pets.
There are many products available to help in keeping your dog’s teeth and gums healthy and odour free.
Vetbasix Freshabreathe is a chlorophyll based liquid added to your dog’s drinking water, helping to reduce odour; alternatively the addition of charcoal tablets to your dogs diet may help to neutralize bad bacteria in the digestive tract.
Remember smelly breath can be an underlying symptom of periodontal disease so make sure you get your pets teeth checked out by your vet if your notice any persistent odours.
A good product is Greenies - a great way in helping to keep your pets teeth healthy, once again a chlorophyll based product designed to help remove soft plaque from your pet’s teeth, they are highly palatable and even the most stubborn dogs seem to accept greenies readily. Make sure you purchase the right size for your pet and they should like any treat be chewed with supervision.
www.greenies.com.au is a useful site to visit if you would like to learn more.
The Iams company, producer of Iams and Eukanuba pet foods, adds Denta Defense into their foods, small crystals are added and sit on the pets gum line and prevent the build up of soft plaque which leads to tartar, as we all know can only be removed by a veterinarian. Hills makers of Science Diet have an Oral Care formulation also designed to help prevent the build up of soft plaque, so if you have a pet that refuses to have its teeth brushed, consider your pets’ nutrition and make the change to a product including some type of dental care. |
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