I Will Just Brush My Dogs Teeth!

Can’t I Just Start Brushing My Pet’s Teeth and 

Skip theDentistry?

You certainly can always start brushing your pet’s teeth, but the problem in this is if they already have dental disease. Brushing alone at that time will not remove the calculus already adhered to your pet’s teeth. So, professional cleaning is needed to remove this to have a clean starting point. If your pet does not have a large buildup of tarter, then tooth

brushing alone can help. Tooth brushing is the best way to keep your pet’s mouth healthy. There are all kinds of other items advertised to keep your pet’s teeth clean: hard chew toys, bones, kibbled diets, sprays, and treats. Be sure to discuss the pros and cons of each of these with your veterinarian before starting any of these as some can result in broken teeth, toxicity or gastrointestinal foreign bodies.

Tips for Tooth Brushing or How to Brush My Pet’s Teeth:

1)      First purchase a tooth brush or finger brush to use at your local pet store. Finger brushed defiantly work well on smaller pets (whom don’t bite).

2)      Second, ONLY use a pet tooth paste. Human products contain fluoride and pets do not know to spit this out.

3)      Start with using a piece of gauze or just your finger and massage your pet’s gums. Your pet may not be used to this, so doing just one or teeth at a time at first is great. Reward your pet after with play or a treat. Each time lengthen the amount of time you spend in your pet’s mouth.

4)      Once your pet is comfortable with your finger, you can introduce toothpaste onto your finger. They sell minty flavored varieties. Honestly this is for human enjoyment as most pets don’t like the mint taste. Poultry or Beef flavored tooth paste is more enjoyable to pets (make sure they don’t have an allergy to these flavorings).

5)      Next, start introducing the brush of your choice. Start again slowly.

6)      It is best to start as a puppy or kitten, but it is never too late to start.

7)      Brushing daily is best but if that cannot be done, then as frequently as possible is recommended. Brushing teeth every 3 days is adequate to maintain a healthy mouth and teeth. Brushing daily is needed to control already established gingivitis.

Other oral conditions:

1)      Persistent baby (deciduous) teeth: These are baby teeth that are never lost. These cause problems by changing the position of the adult tooth coming in which can lead to wounds in the mouth or by trapping food particles between the baby tooth and other teeth in the mouth. This trapped food can lead to periodontal disease. It is recommended to have these teeth extracted (preferably if possible at the time or your pet’s spay or neuter). Small breed dogs (Poodles, Maltese, Pomeranians, Chihuahuas, etc) are more likely to have persistent baby teeth.

2)      Feline oral resorption lesions (FORL): These are areas of the tooth which is being eaten away by the cat’s own immune system. Any tooth can be effected, but mostly molars and premolars are affected. Signs include red spots on the tooth usually near the gum line, painful chewing or vocalizing while eating, bleeding teeth, teeth appearing to be disappearing or being worn down, partial teeth, or tooth loss.

3)      Oral masses: All pets can get masses in their mouth. These can be signs of infection, foreign bodies, or cancer. Many oral masses can be found on the gum line or under the tongue. It is recommended that your pet be placed under anesthesia to have these masses assessed better, and then either biopsied or surgically removed.

4)      Foreign bodies: Foreign bodies found often in the mouth are bits and pieces of toys, sticks, rocks, and foxtails.

5)      Stomatitis: Cats can often get severe cases of stomatitis (infection of the mouth). Signs include severely inflamed gums, reddened gums, bleeding and painful gums, difficulty eating or reluctance to eat hard foods, not eating, weight loss. Causes of stomatitis include FELV/FIV infections, kidney disease, or in some cases autoimmune disease. For these cats, it is recommended to have an FELV/FIV test performed first, followed by bloodwork then a dental cleaning. Maintenance of this condition depends on the cause and may consist of dental extractions or injections of a steroid.

Dental Month is just around the courner

February is National Dental Month

 What Can I Do to Help Keep My Pet’s Mouth Healthy:

First and foremost, have your pet’s mouth evaluated with your veterinarian to determine what stage (how bad) your pet’s mouth is. Your pet’s mouth and teeth will be graded from 0-4. Zero is perfect while four is the most severe (dirtiest mouth). This is an important step, because it will help you determine how to best treat your pet.

Once your pet’s mouth is evaluated you know if a professional, veterinary supervised dental cleaning is needed or if only home care is needed.

If a dental cleaning is needed, it is recommended not only by us but by the California Veterinary Medical Association to have your pet placed under a general anesthesia and have his or her teeth cleaned and polished and sealed under VETERINARY supervision. We know that some groomers “clean your pets teeth” but most of the time this is just a tooth brushing. If it entails more (scraping the teeth, polishing the teeth, extracting the teeth) then it is illegal for them to do as this is considered practicing veterinary medicine and worse, they could damage your pet’s gums or teeth.

What about anesthesia free dentistry? Well quite frankly, this too is not sufficient. Most of you hopefully have gone to your dentist before. Imagine your dentist trying to clean your teeth while you move your head from side to side. A good teeth cleaning would not be obtained.

Here at Smith Veterinary Hospitalwe recommend a pre-anesthetic blood profile prior to all anesthesias and require it for pets over the age of five along with an examination to determine the best and safest anesthesia for your pet. This allows us to use an ultrasonic scaler to clean all the calculus (tartar) off the crown of the tooth and under the gums along the roots of the teeth. This is followed by polishing to remove all microscopic scratches along the tooth made by dental instruments scratching the tooth and this reduces the amount of bacteria that stick to the tooth. Then we highly recommend sealing the tooth to help reduce tartar buildup in the future. Extractions of teeth irreversibly damaged are performed only if that tooth if deemed unable to save. Root canals are available for pets, but most need to be performed by a board certified veterinary dentist. Fortunately, most pets do well with extractions even if a lot of teeth are extracted. Most animals requiring multiple extractions are older whom have never had any sort of dental care. Smaller dogs are more likely to have teeth extracted as they tend to have over crowded mouths. 

Does Your Pet have a Great Smile? Or Rather a Dirty Mouth

Dirty Mouth?

Did you know that February is Pet Dental Awareness month! Did you also know that 85% of both cats and dogs have tooth or gum related disease called periodontal disease by the age of three years. The reason for this is that pets cannot brush or floss their teeth like we do daily. The same bacteria that we brush away every day, which causes damage to our teeth and gums, cause similar problems in pets.

What happens in Periodontal Disease?

Bacteria begins to accumulate on the tooth crown (outside of tooth) and under the gum line of your pet’s tooth. The mixture of this bacteria and saliva mineralize to create tartar (calculus) on your pet’s tooth if not brushed away. This tartar prevents oxygen from getting to the tooth and allows more potent or dangerous bacteria to live on your pet’s tooth. This bacteria can start to eat away at your pet’s tooth or the bone attached to your pet’s tooth. This can lead to tooth pain, tooth loss, possible breaks in the jaw bone, or infections to organs in the body due to bacteria getting into the blood stream of your pet.  

Signs of periodontal disease include:

1)      Bad breath or odor from mouth (halitosis)

2)      Reddened gums or gingiva (gingivitis)

3)      Chip, cracked, worn, or broken teeth

4)      Pain while eating (dropping kibbles, chewing on one side of the mouth, not wanting to eat harder foods)

5)      Swelling of mouth or under the eye

6)      Discharge under the eye or from the mouth

7)      Pawing at the mouth

8)      Excessive drooling

9)      Yellowing or brown staining or accumulation on teeth (Tartar)

10)  Masses or growths in the mouth

11)  Missing, loose, or extra teeth

12)  Bleeding gums

http://mypetsmiles.com/

Top Owner concerns about Spay and neutering..

1. My pet should have a heat cycle first By spaying before the first heat, you will reduce the chance of mammary (breast) cancer in your pet by as much as 97% over their lifetime. The chance of other reproductive cancers (uterine, ovarian, mammary) and a life-threatening uterine infection appearing are eliminated in spayed animals. Even after the first heat, spaying will be beneficial, so whatever your pet's age, it is important to spay to prevent unplanned litters and health problems. 2. My pet should have a litter first - so the kids can see "the miracle of birth" This is a self-centered approach, as the "other side" to this story is the loss of millions of unwanted animals to euthanasia each year in the United states alone. Even when pet owners find homes for the puppies and kittens, one has to ask: are they lifetime homes with good care? would those homes have saved an animal doomed to euthanasia in a shelter somewhere? 3. I am worried that my pet will become fat and lazy While neutering a pet (this includes spaying and castration) will alter hormone levels, it does not mean that your pet is doomed to obesity. Calorie-rich foods and snacks, coupled with too little exercise are the principle factors of obesity in pets, just like humans. It is important to establish daily exercise routines (walking, playing fetch, etc.) in order to keep your pet at an optimal weight. Discuss the best food for your pet with your veterinarian. 4. My dog won't be as good of a protector of my home if neutered Most dogs are naturally protective and aware of their family and territory. While intact pets are usually more "territorial", this is usually in terms of urine marking and agression (to other pets and to humans). Neutering reduces the urge to roam and fight. Providing a loving environment for your pet, proper health care, and proper training will be the most influential benefit to maintaining a happy pet that fits into your family who will alert family members of danger. 5. Spaying are neutering are too expensive - I don't have any options First, speak with your veterinarian. Some practices offer spay/neuter packages as part of a new pet vaccination package, have a "spay day" (reduced price spays on a certain day), or a reduced spay fee for those who demonstrate need. Many shelters and humane organizations work with veterinarians to provide spay vouchers and other funding to those who are unable to afford spaying. The associated costs of pregnancy, illness, or injury related to not being neutered are much greater.

The Importance of Spay and Neutering

The Return !!

Dr Shelley Flynn Returning From Maternity.

Smith Veterinary Hospital is pleased to announce Dr Shelley Flynn will be returning to work 

mid January. She looks forward to seeing all her clients and patients and getting back to work. 

Although we know it will be hard to not be with Baby Emelia. The entire staff at

 Smith Veterinary Hospital is counting the days till she returns. 

We would like to Thank the clients and the relief doctors for helping us while Dr Shelley was taking some much needed time off to being her parenting journey.