We have been excitedly encouraging folks to brush their pet's teeth, and use the tartar control treats and chew sticks.
Why? you may ask?
Not too long ago, it was unusual for grandparents to have all of their natural teeth. My own maternal grandparents did not have their own teeth, and my children's maternal grandparents did not either (my wife's parents).
Yet today, it is very common for folks in their 60's and 70's to still have all of their natural teeth. My mom does, and when my dad died 11 years ago, he also had all his natural teeth.
So what changed, and how can we apply the same techniques to our dogs?
A couple of factors and we will address how we can help with our pets:
* flouride in the water
* brushing and flossing teeth
* professional teeth 'prophy' cleanings done regularly before a lot of tartar builds up.
So how can we do these same things with our pets?
* Flouride in the water.
-- This is easy to continue unless your pet has problems with minerals in the urine. Make sure you use city water to get the trace amounts of floride.
* Brushing and flossing teeth
-- This is something that can be done for dogs and cats. It is not as easy to do if the pets have not been taught at an early age to sit while you brush their teeth. And even if you can not do this every day, every little bit does help reduce the plaque and tartar.
-- Tartar control treats. There are many treats down the isles that claim to reduce tartar on your pets teeth, but the question is, do they help? The veterinary association created a Veterinary Oral Health Council, which is like the American Dental society seal we see on tooth paste. This council investigates all products - water additives, foods and treats to see which ones actually do reduce plaque.
Their web site above has the list, and we keep the t/d food and CET chews here at our office.
*Professional cleaning
-- Getting your pet's teeth professionally cleaned at our clinic. We use an ultrasonic scaler to remove the tartar and plaque. Then the teeth are examined, probed, and the teeth are then polished with a polishing compound. After the polishing, the teeth are rinsed and reexamined. Then if all the teeth are cleaned, we apply a fluoride treatment directly to the teeth.
We take before and after pictures so you can see what an improvement the teeth have made.
And we can help your pet keep all of it's natural teeth, and in the process help your pet live one day longer to forever with you.
