teeth brushing

[Helly]

i read some of the threads on here by doing a search but i'm not totally convinced. i will talk to my vet before i stop doing it. i've seen dogs that come into the salon regularly who's teeth look better after being brushed each time they come in. it also helps seems to help with bad breath by removing what's on the surface of the teeth. we've never been asked to do anything but lightly brush or even just apply the paste with our finger. it's a enzymatic paste so just getting it on the teeth makes it work, even without brushing.

The problem isn't what's on the visible surface of the teeth. It's what's under the gum line. You can't see what's under there. Brushing doesn't help that, even if you're using an enzymatic paste. But brushing can force bacteria into the bloodstream, where it can travel to the heart or kidneys.

There are also things you can't see. I had a dental done on Oli recently. His teeth didn't look all that bad, his gums weren't red or swollen. But I did suspect he had an extra premolar that came in next to another tooth, and if so, I wanted it removed. Sad to say, he did, there was a pocket between those teeth, and the roots were bad on both, so both teeth had to go.

Now, let me tell you, it wasn't obvious that he had that extra tooth. If he hadn't had other extra teeth, ones that are placed in such a way that they aren't causing any problems, I wouldn't have gone looking for more. If it had been on the inside of the normal tooth, instead of the outside, I wouldn't have suspected it was there. I wasn't really sure there was an extra tooth there until we had him anesthetized, had a mouth gag in place, and could really examine his mouth.

And to address a statement made earlier; yes, people with heart or kidney disease don't have to take antibiotics just so they can brush their teeth. But how many of them only brush their teeth once a month? Or less often? What do you think could happen if they did?

Even if your state doesn't specifically address the issue of brushing teeth, if something bad happens, you could be held liable. A judge could interpret a vague law in such a way as to put you in a very uncomfortable position. Is it really worth it?

[Dayna]

I send my vet the medical stuff, including teeth cleaning and they send me the grooming stuff.

My vet called to thank me the other day. A dog kept shaking it's head violently everytime I touched its ear. So I called the owner and had them run the dog to the vet.

The dog had a ROCK in it's ear. Could you imagine the damage I could have done if I had been pokeing around inside there? YIKES.

[furrybestjob]

I don't offer teeth brushing because it gags me.

Now, if thats not an honest answer I don't know what is. LOL Missed this first time around.