Last week, Annabelle and Lily went to the vet to have their teeth cleaned. This week, James had his done. It’s a bit tough on the dogs because they are put under anesthesia while the teeth are being thoroughly scaled. Fortunately, none of them had to have any teeth extracted, making their discomfort more acute. All three of the dogs now have shiny white teeth – and I’m glad that’s behind us. They don’t need to go through this procedure too often. They have it done when needed, but that’s only once every four years or so.
Dental health is very important to a dog’s overall health. I follow a regular teeth brushing routine with all of our dogs. Each dog has his or her own personal (child’s) toothbrush. Using special toothpaste for dogs (don’t use human toothpaste), I brush all the dogs’ teeth at least three times a week. This is done in conjunction with regular grooming of their coats, ear cleaning, and toenail clipping.
Some dogs just simply have white teeth. I envy my friends who have dogs with pure white teeth and tell me that they never brush their dogs’ teeth or do anything else especially for their dogs’ teeth. Violet, our young Berkshire Hills Australian Labradoodle, has pearly white teeth (at 1 1/2 years of age, she didn’t need any scaling done). Being a different breed, she may retain very white teeth. All of our English Setters have tended toward gradual tartar build-up even with regular brushings.
Violet is the type of dog that loves to chew on toys constantly. The Setters don’t. I’m hoping Violet’s penchant for chewing will naturally aid in keeping her teeth white. All of the dogs love chewing for hours on fresh marrow bones which I supervise carefully and remove when the bones start to get brittle. The key with marrow bones is to choose those that are cut about 6″ in length, that are perfectly cylindrical and about 3/8″ thick. These don’t break-off. Replace the bones with fresh ones about every three weeks. This keeps the dogs really interested and actively chewing. The combination of regular brushing and fresh marrow bones seems to keep tartar and plague build-up at bay. And, from a financial standpoint, it’s far less expensive than having the vet professionally clean their teeth!