# help with dental care



## vicky2200 (Feb 14, 2012)

My Daisy was just diagnosed with grade 2 dental disease and she is only 3. It is time to crack down on dental care for all of the dogs. I have brushed in the past but it became an ordeal so I stopped for over a year. I have been brushing every other day for a few weeks with water and today I got toothpaste and a doggie toothbrush. Here are the problems I am having.
1. Brushing the outside of their teeth is doable, buttheydont want me to do the inner surface. They all turn their head and pull away or squirm too much.
2. They lick the entire time, making it hard to brush.
3. Weegee is so small it is just difficult to get the insides.

Tips?
I watched the video on here about tooth rushing. I wish my dogs were that still. Will it get better in time? Also, what about a dog who has very bad teeth and drools a lot? Do you think brushing will help? (Professional cleaning not an option for health reasons)


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## TrinaBoo (Apr 3, 2012)

Trina's teeth had that plaque build up and horrible breath. For the past few months I have been feeding raw and it is completely gone and she is a 7 year old toy. Nice pink gums, white teeth, and no smell. The poodle rescue actually cleaned her teeth before I brought her home and they didn't even look as good as they do now. Maybe every week or every couple weeks you could toss the dogs a turkey neck, sit back and relax and let them do the work. They really do work wonders! I don't know if you feed raw or kibble but if raw isn't the way for you then hopefully someone can give brushing advice. Good luck : )


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## vicky2200 (Feb 14, 2012)

Raw is definitely not for me. I bought some dental chews that don't work. I give them to weegee because he can chew them the longer before they are gone but I think he eats them too quick too. Thanks for your input.


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## star (Feb 20, 2011)

You only need to brush the outside of the teeth, the tongue takes care of the insides of the teeth according to my vet. My Lola licks I just let her and I take my time until I finish her teeth. I know you can get tiny brushes for different breeds, maybe a baby tooth brush would work better for Weegee.


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## Indiana (Sep 11, 2011)

Those enzyme type of toothpastes work really well; after a couple of weeks of brushing, you'll notice the tartar start to disappear and become soft, and you can remove it easily with a fingernail. Just keep at it, they'll get used to it. Also, some toothpastes appeal more to some dogs. My dogs are food maniacs so they sit like little statues for toothbrushing and fight each other for turns, ha,ha. Peanut butter flavour is their favorite.


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## liljaker (Aug 6, 2011)

Sorry to hear about the dental issues. Virbac was suggested by a past member -- and I use for Sunny. They make chews specifically for dental hygiene, their poultry toothpaste Sunny tolerates well, and as I mentioned on another thread, Lyba III is a great dental/gum spray for tartar, etc. and it worked great on Sunny. Good luck.


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## Ms Stella (Aug 16, 2010)

I feed beef tendon straps for chewing...it works like a charm! Check out "The Claw" you can google it and the words dog chew...I have gotten them from this place..
Clean Run: Beef Strap Tendons (The Claw)
There is a thread where many people tried them and found them helpful and dogs love them. I also have used an electric tooth brush..that works well too..chews are more fun though


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## msminnamouse (Nov 4, 2010)

Get a soft, regular one sided toothbrush and a yummy toothpaste. Something that they're most likely to accept in their mouths. Keep super high value treats handy. 

Do it in baby steps. Touch the teeth with the brush, then praise and reward and stop. Practice just that. Gradually raise the bar and do more brushing. Practice in very short sessions but very frequently. 

The brushing, if not enjoyed, has to be rewarded enough so that they tolerate it. Don't get frustrated and don't let them get fed up. Don't take it to that point. 

Once you get their tolerance, it's time for some better stuff.

I like the Petosan Silentpower toothbrush (you'll have to condition this most likely since it vibrates) and Four Pets Dental Gel or Virbac Tartar Control toothpaste in various flavors. Or use both, interchangeably. 

Get into the habit of brushing every single day. I do it every single night at bedtime. I don't brush my own teeth unless the dog's are brushed. That'll get you into the habit really fast!

You can also use dental spray. This is great while you're beginning until their gums get used to all the attention. It can help sooth soreness and cleanse any bleeding. I use the Four Paws dental spray. NOT the breath spray. The dental spray is blue while the breath spray is yellow.

To take it up a notch, you can also put something in the water for additional tartar control.

If they'll let you, you can scrape some plaque and tartar. I like Dr's Foster and Smith's scraper. Do NOT do more than one tooth every few days because you'll be releasing bacteria that will get ingested. You don't want to overwhelm their systems. 

Try giving some dental toys for additional cleaning. You can put less expensive, but yummy toothpaste or other additives for dental cleaning, or just use plan and the bumps and ridges will abrade the tooth's surface. 

I don't advocate bones. Cooked or raw. Both are dangerous, in my opinion. If you want websites for the x-rays of internal injuries from raw bones, pictures of raw bones splintering, impactions of raw bone shards, etc., let me know. Also, I used to work at a busy kennel. Most of the dogs that came in with real bones had broken canines. 

People can do what they want but you asked for advice and this is my advice and what I go by. People will argue that raw bones are impervious to splintering, etc., and they give their dogs raw bones with no problems and yes, that usually is the case until the dog's luck runs out. WILD animals consume whole body prey, which includes hair/fur and the bones are wrapped in hair and fur. Also, wild animals who are injured from bones and die don't receive necropsies. No one knows their cause of death. It's part of being a wild animal.


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## HerdingStdPoodle (Oct 17, 2012)

*Dental Issues*

Hi,

My vet recommended bully sticks for my first poodle, Louie. bestbullysticks.com
is a company that I use. They have great coupons and discounts, via email. I get the odor-free super jumbo 12 inch for Louie. But the vet told me to take the bully stick away as soon as he eats it down to three inches or so. 

Louie's teeth are beautiful, and I wish that I would have know about bully sticks decades ago. 

HerdingStdPoodle


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