Fido's Bite (breath): Is it worse than his bark?

Health conscious pet owners are significantly extending the length of their pet's lives. By starting young animals on a comprehensive early vaccination schedule, early spaying and neutering, and following with annual checkups and vaccinations, most serious diseases can be prevented or picked up early and treated. As pets reach their senior years, the most common serious ailment then becomes dental or periodontal disease. Long-standing gum and tooth infections are as significant to your pet's health as they are to your health–and you brush regularly!

The health of your pet's mouth affects his heart, kidneys and liver, not to mention his overall feeling of well-being. Ideally, a preventive maintenance program, started as early as 8 weeks of age, will keep your pet from ever developing dental abscesses, periodontal disease and tooth loss.

On your puppy's or kitten's first veterinary visit, your veterinarian checks to be certain there are no detectable early problems, such as jaws that are out of alignment or cleft palates. If problems are seen, you will be advised what to do or watch for. As the young pets mature, they loose their "baby teeth" and have all permanent teeth in by 6 months of age. At this time most pets are usually spayed or neutered. If a permanent tooth has come in and the baby tooth has not been lost, the baby tooth can easily be extracted during the spaying or neutering procedure. Two teeth cannot occupy the same spot, or both will develop gum disease and be lost.

It is by this age that you can become comfortable (or not) with brushing your pet's teeth. Many techniques exist and most veterinarians can give you guidelines for getting started. All techniques involve letting your pet enjoy the experience. Associating it with rewards of affection and playtime, along with a pleasant tasting dentifrice (toothpaste) are key to success. Realistically, many people have difficulty training themselves and their pet to enjoy this good habit. Cats can be particularly crafty at training you to avoid the encounter. For these pets, annual exams will allow your veterinarian to assess your pet's oral health and advise you on any problems developing.

Feeding hard foods can help somewhat in preventing tartar buildup, as can specially designed chew-toy treats. An exciting development in this area is the introduction of a tartar control diet that is being made available through veterinarians only. These products will not correct or reverse any existing disease, however. If your pet has these problems, he will not chew the food or treats with the affected teeth. These problems need to be resolved before a maintenance program will be useful.

When your veterinarian recommends a teeth cleaning, it will involve general anesthesia to produce the optimum results. This allows excellent visualization of all surfaces of each tooth, thorough cleaning above and below the gums, identification of periodontal problems and oral tumors plus an opportunity to remove or repair broken teeth, locate cavities and to polish and apply fluoride. Most pets can be anesthetized very safely with human gas anesthetics. Middle-aged to elderly pets are those in most need of dental care as a rule, and their overall health should be evaluated first via a thorough physical exam, blood panels or chest radiographs.

With all that you do to insure your pet's good health, care for the teeth will insure a more comfortable mouth in the senior years. He will be better able to eat and keep himself fit if attention to his dental health has not been neglected.