Why is Dental Health Important for Your Dog?
A DOG’S teeth are vital for its overall health – as any dog lover knows all too well, dogs use their mouths for pretty much everything from eating to playing.
So, your furry friend has bad teeth it will not be living its life to the maximum – but it is quite straightforward to help your canine companion have top-quality teeth.
Most dogs have some form of dental problems, with research indicating as many as eight in 10 dogs having a dental disease by the age of three.
Also known as periodontal disease, this condition affects not just the teeth themselves, but also the sums and support structures in place in a dog’s jaw.
Just as in humans, the disease begins with the build-up of plaque on the tooth enamel, which then traps food particles and bacteria.
Once the plaque hardens into tartar, it can be easily seen where it is above the gum line of your pet – and can be cleaned off by your vet without any real problems, but when tartar forms beneath the gum line there can be serious dental health consequences for your dog.
Sub-gum line tartar causes inflammation which in turn causes damage to the dog’s dental support and leads to infection, causing your pet pain and serious future dental issues, such as broken or loose teeth, bad breath, excessive drooling, bleeding from the mouth, and rejecting food.
Since teeth are vital to a dog’s whole life, tooth loss will have a detrimental effect on their quality of life – so helping maintain a healthy jaw is giving your pooch the best you can.
A warning sign it might be a good time for a dental check-up is the classic smell of bad dog breath – healthy dogs will have less stinky breath when they administer their kisses of affection.
And by having a regular dental cleaning, you will be preventing your furry friend from suffering unnecessary pain caused by dental disease, as well as protecting them from potential organ damage which can result from the plaque bacteria entering the bloodstream and spreading to vital organs.
A good regimen to follow to help your dog enjoy disease-free gums is to have a yearly professional clean with a vet. Your vet will need to use a general anesthetic to carry out the procedure to clean thoroughly above and below the gum lines.
But dental care should not stop there – you can also practice good home dental hygiene – after all, we do not rely solely on the dentist to keep our own teeth healthy, we brush and floss daily.
The same should be true for your dog – brushing their teeth regularly with a toothpaste formulated for dogs is a good habit, but if your dog is reluctant to cooperate, try dental treats and snacks created to help maintain good teeth by being chewed. The same applies to dental toys – turn tooth care into playtime for your dog with durable chew toys designed to clean their teeth without them ever realizing.
