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Dental Health for Dogs; A guide to cleaning your dog's teeth! 

1/15/2013

19 Comments

 
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Dental health has a major impact on a dog's over all physical well-being and poor oral condition can lead to many different kinds of medical conditions and diseases. With veterinarians pushing their dental chews, dental kibble and expensive surgical dental cleanings, it is hard for pet owners to decipher the best way to promote oral health in their pets.

Good oral health will help your dog live longer, and will make it more pleasant to receive their loving doggy kisses! There are several steps you can take to maintain good dental health with your dog and there are many all natural options for cleaning!

Diet is a major contributor to dental health in dogs. Feeding your dog a species appropriate raw food diet is the very best option for creating good dental health. Dogs who are fed raw food have visibly whiter, cleaner teeth and fresher breath. The reason is that the dog's teeth are being manually cleaned by the act of chewing and crushing bone. The action of chewing scrapes the teeth and stimulates the gums. On top of that, raw food doesn't leave any 'left-over' food in the mouth the way kibble does. Due to the texture and composition of commercial kibbles, the kibble crumbles and sticks to the teeth and all of the areas in between. Many chemicals and oils in the kibble will help the food particles bind to the teeth and promote the build-up of tartar which inevitably leads to oral disease.

"Dental kibble" formulas provided by your veterinarian will not help clean your dog's teeth. Regardless of the marketing behind these expensive vet formulas, kibble will still crumble and turn to mush in your dog's mouth. That mush becomes the debris that clings to your pet's teeth and turns into tartar and plaque. Think about when you eat crackers and you feel mushy left overs sticking to all your teeth; The same thing is happening with kibble plus the added issue of the oils that make it even more sticky.

Giving your dog things to chew on is the best way to start cleaning the teeth and keep them clean! Consider healthy chews like bully sticks, beef tendons, dried knuckle bones, raw knuckle bones and elk antlers. When a dog chews and gnaws on these items, they scrape the teeth clean and assist in breaking up any residue to be swallowed instead of hanging around in the mouth.

There are many toys that act as great chews to promote oral health by also cleaning the teeth. I really like Nylabone products for the added benefit of the flavour infused in the material, which encourages dogs to chew on them. Nylabone breaks off in tiny shavings making it safe to pass through the digestive system without causing any issues. Flossy chews are rope toys that also help clean the teeth as the dog chews and plays with them.

Brushing your dog's teeth is the next best option. All you need is a soft toothbrush or a finger brush designed for pets and some sort of toothpaste. It is important to never use human toothpaste, as there are ingredients in those products that can make your dog very ill. The Triple Pet EZDOG Toothpaste is the most popular one due to being more of an all natural product. I personally like to use extra virgin, unrefined coconut oil as a toothpaste because of all the amazing benefits of this oil. Learn more about the benefits of coconut oil here!
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If your dog's teeth are in exceptionally bad condition, there are several all natural products you can incorporate with the above suggestions to avoid needing expensive dental cleanings with your veterinarian. In my years of working in a pet health food store, there are a couple of products I have personally seen work wonders for many pet owners. One of those products is called PetzLife Oral Care Gel, which you can purchase on Amazon.com or find in most pet stores. You apply a pea sized amount to your finger and rub the gel on your dog's teeth. Your dog's saliva will help distribute the gel throughout the mouth as he or she licks. This gel will help break down built up tartar and plaque and reduce staining, but you need to use this in conjunction with a toothbrush or things to chew on to help scrape the loosened debris off the teeth. Another product I have seen work very well is the Tropiclean Fresh Breath Additive, which when added to your pet's water bowl again helps to loosen tartar build up and freshen your dog's breath. Out of all of the products on the market, those two are the ones I have seen the most success with. I have personally used the PetzLife Oral Care Gel on my elderly cat and saw a 50% improvement, so I can attest to the quality! Check out reviews of these products to determine which is best for your pet.

If your dog is suffering from poor oral health try these NATURAL, non-invasive do-it-yourself methods before you turn to expensive veterinarian cleanings - avoid the anesthetic, the cost and the drugs by cleaning your dog's teeth the safely and naturally.


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Angel Leandres

K9 Instinct
www.k9instinct.com

19 Comments
Twyla
3/19/2013 09:04:52 am

The flossy chews/rope toys are great for cleaning the teeth and tug play, but not everyone is aware of the precautions to be taken with them as well. The knots can be chewed off, swallowed and cause a blockage. Monitor the pup/dog with this toy and put away instead of leaving out for them to pick up at random.

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Christine
4/6/2013 03:38:47 am

A friend had told me to use rawhide chews to help with the dental build up. But.....I will NEVER give them to my jack Russell's again! My female was so happy to see me come home one night, and had a piece of one in her mouth, and in her excitement to see me swallowed it hole and lodged in her throat. After $2000.00 plus in vet bills, a scope of her throat, and surgery to remove it...I now know that these are dangerous! Only the compressed raw hide chews are safe and I am not even taking a chance with those. If I would not have known she sucked it down into her trachea and she had done t while I was at work, she would have suffocated to death as her trachea swelled and closed up around the raw hide. I only give them the bully sticks, nylabones, and homemade treats that are shown here. Thank you for posting all the awesome treats we can make for our dogs that are safe!

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Leanne
5/21/2013 01:14:34 am

I was looking into the reviews on Amazon about the petzlife oral gel and saw reviews stating it increases the liver enzymes in dogs. My 3 year old GSD has recently been diagnosed with pannus. I still don't completely understand if that means she has a compromised immune system, but was wondering if in her case using the gel would be risky?

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Lisa
6/8/2013 02:46:01 am

I love the tropiclean mint gel myself and does wonders! I have an 11 yr old who has great clean teeth and no pricey cleanings here! Also have been gently scaling her and my younger dogs teeth.. Just started raw diet 8 months ago and doing great but only buy the ground up whole carcass patties etc or ground bone meal or air dried raw or dehydrated or freeze dried food.. Don't trust any chews or bones anymore.. Really liked the dried bison trachea chews but seems to chip their teeth and had maybe once or twice a week.. Seniors one we are putting mint gel on it to keep from getting infected and may heal on its own and noticed exactly same tooth on 5 yr old a bit chipped but will be ok I think... :(

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Deb
6/8/2013 03:16:32 am

Good article with the exception of the hard nylabone recommendation. A vet tooth specialist we know sees a multitude of chipped teeth from these bones, many requiring root canals!!!

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6/25/2013 04:59:50 pm

You are absolutely right; this is perfect information about teeth. You always share informative part of topic. I hope you will be sharing this type of topic soon.

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Lindsay
7/5/2013 06:15:06 am

Yes a good article, but I agree with Deb Nylabones are def not a good product! By last shepherd had perfect teeth, and she chewed on bones all the time, Nylabones happened to be one of them. She happened to break 3 of her back molars while chewing on a Nylabone, and required surgery to remove them. This was on two different occasions, the dental surgeon told us the most dental surgeries he did for cracked teeth that year were from Nylabones! When I got my new puppy I bought the Nylabone puppy bone thinking it was soft and it couldn't hurt because she was teething. Thankfully I was watching closely and bought the giant size for her at 8 weeks, she broke off a piece big enough to choke on. Called the company and they said that shouldn't happen and it was defective, they sent me 3 more for free, all 3 did the same! I will never buy there products again! There is a great rawhide chew from the vet made in the USA (not china) that is soft and easy to digest so it can't hurt a dog, and it has toothpaste in it. I highly recommend it, and my vet doesn't push it. I ask them to order it in! There called Tartar Shield Soft Rawhide Chews. I also love the elk antlers my dog goes nuts over them!

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Angie
7/5/2013 11:27:50 pm

Thanks for this information! My vet is telling me that I need to have my Lhasa Apso's teeth cleaned again. We did it once a couple years ago and I do not want to have him anesthetized again. The last time they pulled several of his teeth also because they were too crowded which I guess is not uncommon with the Brachycephalic breeds. I will try these other options now

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Jen
9/25/2016 04:05:57 pm

Try Coconut oil. It works wonders. Also, smash some flaxseed and put it in the food.

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Kosongz
9/1/2013 12:47:24 am

I tried to brush my GSDs teeth once. Every time the toothbrush went near their mouth, they tried to bite the brush. Any suggestions?

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Max
9/1/2013 01:24:33 am

I use virgin olive oil on my teeth and those of my dogs. They love the taste. I've also tried coconut oil, since it is an anti-bacterial and anti-viral substance. We like it even better than olive oil, and it seems to whiten the teeth. As for myself, I sometimes vary the routine by using Hydrogen Peroxide instead of the oil.

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Happy to find this info.

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9/27/2021 03:42:53 pm

I like how you said to use a soft bristle for brushing your dog's teeth. My husband and I wanted to learn some dental tips for our dog after getting him a dental cleaning. We'll make sure to keep these tips in mind once our dog gets dental cleaning.

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