My Rat Terrier (aka Smooth Coat Fox Terrier) gets his teeth, cleaned, at the vet's, every three months. Unfortunately, I didn't start this until he had lost a few teeth! Start it now and keep up the schedule! The little guys need this care and, unfortunately, there is no substitute.
Agree with a few other posters in that the first intense cleaning should be done by your vet, and also agree that bones aren't the way to go for maintenance. Too many minor ( and not-so-minor) digestive tract problems can result.
Our dogs ( past and present) never had dental problems on our vet's recommendation of four things: a better-quality dry food ( hard kibble helps scrape tartar, soft food coats the teeth and lies there); plenty of water; letting the dog chew on ice cubes ( great for hydration, especially in summer, teething pups, bored adult dogs and a no-calorie way to satisfy chewing and scrape the teeth at the same time).
Finally, rather than using bones (our current dog pulverizes everything she touches) use bully sticks (also called beef pizzles-- basically, the dried "man muscle" of a bull!) These are also low-fat, stand up to chewing and help scrape tartar while being digestible.
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Request: Cleaning Your Dog's Teeth (07/14/2009)
We are the happy owners of a lovely female Fox Terrier Dog which we got from a dear friend who passed away suddenly. Penny is 3 yrs. old. I was checking her teeth and noticed that they could use a cleaning. Has anyone ever done this themselves, or do you have to have a Vet do it by putting the dog to sleep?
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Request: Cleaning Your Dog's Teeth
Archived on 07/14/2009
We are the happy owners of a lovely female Fox Terrier Dog which we got from a dear friend who passed away suddenly. Penny is 3 yrs. old. I was checking her teeth and noticed that they could use a cleaning. Has anyone ever done this themselves, or do you have to have a Vet do it by putting the dog to sleep? I heard it is quite costly at the Vet do it. We give her hard dog biscuits to chew on for tartar removal, but it is not doing the job. Thanks for any help readers may be able to give me.
Rosalie from San Diego
Feedback:
RE: Cleaning Your Dogs Teeth
Vets offer this service, with general anesthesia for about $100. They also can sell you a doggie toothpaste and "brush" you can use to maintain clean teeth and gums. (08/21/2004)
By Linda
RE: Cleaning Your Dogs Teeth
If she has a bad case of tartar buildup, looks kinda like orangie-yellowish stuff on the surface of her teeth, I once had a vet show me to take a nickle (the coin) and use the edge of the coin and press down from the top edge of the buildup and literally chip the buildup off the tooth. Yes, if you are not comfortable doing this yourself you can get the vet to do it too. Good luck! (08/21/2004)
I always keep a tooth brush at the place where I bathe my dog and brush his teeth when I finish bathing him. Your dog may resist you at first, but after awhile he will get use to it. I haven't used tooth paste on the brush (just the plain brush with water), but they have flavored tooth paste that you could by if you feel your dog would like the taste. Hope this works for you. Barbara (08/22/2004)
I had the same problem with my rat terrier. She had her teeth cleaned by the vet twice in 1 year. The dental chews and other dental toys didn't help. I started giving her a bone a day from our dinner scraps. Steak, pork chop, rib, lamb chop, anything but chicken and fish. Her vet was amazed at the improvement and insisted on keeping it up. She hasn't needed a cleaning since the bone treats started. If I miss a week, no biggie, the next couple of bones will do the job. Also, it has helped regulate her bathroom habits. (08/22/2004)
Our eight year old Rottweiler/Sheppard's teeth had a lot of tartar build-up. I started to give her raw beef bones to chew. I read that raw bones are safer than cooked because cooked ones will splinter. She has been chewing them all summer. I happened to check her teeth and they are now clean. I didn't change anything else in her diet and no one has cleaned her teeth. So I could only guess that it was the raw beef bones. When it gets hot outside and she is done chewing her bone, I put the bone in a dog dish and cover the bone in water. This way no insects will get to it. When she wants to chew it again, she dunks for it. I hope this helps. (08/23/2004)
By Mike
RE: Cleaning Your Dog's Teeth
Please do not give your dog a bone. My husband gave our small dog a pork chop bone and it splinters. It cost us 150.00 for my dog to stay at the vet's office overnight to help her pass the bone. Use a soft child's toothbrush with baking soda. It may take some time but they will get use to you brushing their teeth. (09/21/2004)
By Vicki J
RE: Cleaning Your Dog's Teeth
I've heard it's bad to use baking soda so avoid that. (12/14/2004)
By Mariel
RE: Cleaning Your Dog's Teeth
I own two dogs, a mini wiener dog and a pug, who love their baths and getting their teeth brushed. They each have their own towel and toothbrushes. I do put just a little bit of toothpaste on it. I take my time and they are okay. I give breath treats between baths. My dogs are like my children, can't have dirty teeth! (01/12/2008)
By tammy
RE: Cleaning Your Dog's Teeth
Dogs are anesthetized for a subgingival cleaning and tartar removal. What you see on the outside could be worse below the gums which is why a dental cleaning from the vet may be imperative, especially if your dog develops bad breath, red gums, etc. It may lead to all sorts of diseases. If you brush your dog's teeth every day, this may reduce the buildup and your future vet bills. I've got some "peanut flavored" doggy toothpaste that my dogs absolutely love! (03/06/2008)
By Lex
RE: Cleaning Your Dog's Teeth
Hi,
I went to the vet yesterday and he suggested using Bi-carb Soda, mix it into a paste and apply.
Regards,
From Aus (08/19/2008)
By From Australia
RE: Cleaning Your Dog's Teeth
Absolutely take your dog to the vet for teeth cleaning and scaling. I have a beautiful toy fox terrier who at 6 years of age suddenly had a bump on her cheek. Within a few hours, it burst open and I nearly had a heart attack looking for a vet who would see her immediately in a regular office and not an E.R. $500.00 later, he put her under anesthesia and not only cleaned all teeth and professionally scaled them, but extracted what turned out to be an abscessed tooth! Dogs can't tell you they are hurting, it's not worth it. You can clean their teeth yourself as directed, but take your dog at least around 5 years of age to the Vet for really good cleaning and scaling which you cannot do as well as they can. It's not that expensive for them to just clean teeth and you won't have a surprise like I did. Good luck! (09/15/2008)
