Easy Pet Dental Care Tips for Everyone
How often do you brush your pet’s teeth? Whether it’s weekly, monthly or never — it’s no time to start feeling guilty, but it is time to become informed. The truth is, most people don’t realize how important it is to maintain good dental hygiene for their pet. February is National Pet Dental Month, so it’s the perfect time for all of us to learn more about dental care for our pets.
In a perfect world, we would all take 10 minutes a day to scrub our cats’ and dogs’ teeth clean. But never fear — even if your world is less than perfect and committing to 10 minutes a day doesn’t seem possible now, there are many other ways to help keep your pet’s teeth healthy. In fact, Sergeant’s has developed a wide variety of products to help. And in addition to products, there are other tips and tricks to keeping on top of pet dental health. We’ll be sharing a lot of these throughout February!
We’ll be featuring a series of posts from Dr. Rod Van Horn and other Pet Health Central bloggers who will share their strong knowledge and experience in pet dental care. We’ll also introduce you to some very effective, easy-to-use products that can change the way you feel about dental care for your pets. For example, the SENTRY Petrodex Filled Dental Bones for Dogs are a great way to reduce tartar and plaque by gently scraping the teeth clean. They also leave a nice minty scent and reduce bad breath. For cats, SENTRY Petrodex Cat Chew Twists are a great way to help support oral health. They freshen breath and cleans teeth. How easy is that?
We believe that every pet can have a healthy, happy smile. It just takes some education on the topic, a few easy-to-use products and some time-saving tips. The good news: we’re going to help you with all three!
Need help cleaning my dogs teeth and gums.
Thank you!!!
I would be happy to help with any questions you have. What can I help you with? ~Nichole
My chiwauwa is adament about. Not opening his mouth. Should I wrap him in a blanket before I try to brush his teeth?
You could try this, yes, if you think it will help. I would try and get your dog comfortable with the toothpaste. It tastes great (to dogs) and if he thinks it’s a treat, he will be more inclined to open his mouth. Put a little bit on the end of the toothbrush and let him lick it off a few days in a row. See what you dog thinks and then start slowly brushing. Let me know if this works. Please feel free to comment back with any more questions or concerns. Thanks! ~Nichole
My yorkie gags and squirms when I try to brush her teeth with a small brush and “natural” toothpaste. Any suggestions for better tolerance and cooperation?
You might want to try a different kind of toothpaste, one that she gets excited about. http://www.sentrypetcare.com/products/ProductCatalog.asp?one=1&two=171&three=681&pr=12043 ~Nichole
I have 5 miniature dachshunds and all but the 2 year old have had bad to horrendous teeth. I feed them dry dog food and, for a few, have their teeth cleaned 4 times a year. They really could use it every month. Their teeth are awful. I have diligently tried to brush their teeth and they fight me and bite me until I am scared to try it again. I’ve used greenies and other bones for them but even the vet doesn’t know why their teeth are awful. Ideas?
My dog hates the tooth brush and tries to swallow the small dental bones whole is there something else I can use like a spray she’s 4 and hates hard food my other dog’s teeth get brushed once a week and eat lot’s of hard food and milk bone bones yo help keep.their teeth clean and strong
This is very common, Tammy. We have a few products that would work! http://www.sentrypetcare.com/products/ProductCatalog.asp?one=1&two=171&three=698&pr=12128 or http://www.sentrypetcare.com/products/ProductCatalog.asp?one=1&two=171&three=698&pr=18367. You can purchase these at Petco or PetSmart (and other fine retailers). Good luck. ~Nichole
I am also on a very tight budget
Tammy – We are running our Pet Dental contest #PetrodexSmiles. If you win, I can almost guarantee one of those products will be in the prize package! Enter today! https://www.facebook.com/phcfans/app_1433805503523359
Just want to learn
The drama of having to take your pet to the vet for a dental cleaning! Its so important though and so far teeth are beautiful!
I have a cat who adoted me, I can not afford to have vet teeth cleaning. How do I brush his teeth?
I have a 6 year old bichon poo, her teeth are good and we’ve had her teeth cleaned yearly. I’ve heard it’s dangerous for older dogs to go under anesthesia , is there an alternate method of cleaning her teeth? Thanks Dianna
Dianna, It is great that you are having your dog’s cleaned on an annual basis. There are always some risks associated with anesthesia even in younger dogs. While these risks can’t be eliminated completely, with newer anesthetics, better monitoring devices, and pre-health evaluations the risks are greatly reduced. If your dog is healthy and needs to have oral care in the way of a cleaning the benefits, long term, far outweigh the risks. Anesthesia is not cumulative. Therefore successive anesthetic procedures don’t increase risk. Consult with your veterinarian each year and evaluate benefits vs. risks base on that years health assessment. Unfortunately the only way to truly be able to both properly evaluate and perform a thorough cleaning is with general anesthesia. Thanks for your question.
My Chihuahua absolutely HATES for anything to be put near her mouth. She has had her teeth professionally cleaned twice, but I’m not putting her through that again, it’s too taxing on her and it’s also too expensive. I’ve been using a gel cleaner on her teeth, but I get my fingers constantly bit. Any advice? She REALLY hates it…
Hi there! We have a lot of dental care products that you could try. First of all, there is the SENTRY Petrodex dental water additive. There is also the dental spray. But if your goal is to brush your Chihuahua’s teeth, my recommendation is to get her to fall in love with the toothpaste. Give is to her on the end of the brush as a treat for several days (maybe even longer). She will start to lick it off. They you can slowly put the brush in her mouth, move it around, and so on. Brush only a few teeth the first time. Make this process gradual. It can take some work, yes, but it has a lot of rewards in the end. Now – if this doesn’t work please come back and tell us. We are willing to help think of other ideas. Another thing to note: on the back of each toothpaste box there are clear instructions for how to introduce your pet to brushing her teeth! Thanks! ~Nichole
I need help getting my puppies breath fresher please!
Hi Linda! Thank you for asking us for help. We have a lot of dental care products that you could try. There is the SENTRY Petrodex dental water additive. There is also the dental spray. You can achieve fresh breath with many of our products, which you can find more information about here: http://www.sentrypetcare.com/products/ProductCatalog.asp?one=1&two=171. Please let me know if you have any questions at all. ~Nichole
My dogs like getting their teeth brushed too much! Every time I try to brush their teeth, their tongues come out and they start living before I can get any brushing done! They are bulldogs so they are very jowl-y, with lots of slobber, and all this combined makes it very difficult to ever actually make contact between their teeth and the toothbrush. I have even tried the fingertip brushes, and my boy nearly swallowed it right off my finger! Any hints to make the process a little more efficient and less….drooly?
LOL! I wish I knew the answer to the drool. I will ask Dr. Rod, he’s a dental expert. BTW, we love bulldogs around here. They are such a blessing. Talk to you soon. ~Nichole
Yes Bulldogs can get both excited and produce a lot of drool. Unfortunately can’t stop the salivation. Glad it is “happy” salivation. You should start out slowly with short sessions with toothpaste only. Graduate to brush, or even use a gauze cloth with toothpaste on it to rub the teeth and gums. The Sentry Petrodex dental water additive is another option to help reduce plaque and tartar and you won’t have to take a saliva bath yourself. Bulldogs also have a tendency to develop what is called gingival hyperplasia and makes it hard to make good contact with the tooth itself. Glad you are working on home dental care. Keep smiling!
Last year I had my pug scheduled for a spay and dental cleaning… While she was under, she started having labored heart rate and was not dining well so the vet chose to stop the sx. She will not be a candidate for general anesthesia . What should I do as her breath is horrendous and there is tarter build up.
*living = licking
Where can I buy a toothbrush like the one in the picture?
Great post! Been reading a lot about different ideas on this. Thanks for the info!
Help have 4 babies.
[…] Care: The teeth in your head are tiny and yet they get to visit the dentist every six months to stay shiny, white and healthy. Pretend your dog or cat is made up of tiny teeth […]
i would love to know how to take care of my Yorkies teeth.