Well! There should be dental issues included...I am so gonna beat you up for this, Chad! I've heard about dogs getting root canals and actually grew up with a dog who had braces to correct his overbite! Plus I am a dentist myself. Anyway I had some friends (also dentists, no surprise) who would let me babysit/run their terrier and he had this peanut toothpaste. Turns out that he loves it... So I tried it on Gunny and he likes it as well. I would recommend introducing toothpaste to your dogs' and any other animals teeth and then start using the toothbrush and brush their teeth at least once a day. I will consult with the vet when I take Gunny for his first visit to see if that is the proper amount. Us humans are supposed to do it twice a day and floss once a day. I'll get off my dentist soapbox now...

Dental issues are considered medical issues in my book and can be posted in the medical issues sub-forum.

Proper dental care is recommended whether it's brushing, dental treats or the dental chew ropes with Arm and Hammer in it.

But since this is a technical forum and a question wasn't addressed or specific advice given, here's your chance to edit your post with a clear statement/question to benefit future members.

If you want to recommend a product wander over to our product recommendations sub-forum.

To clear up any confusion I did some research on tooth care for dogs. Here are some interesting facts that I have found:

Plaque: Dogs rarely get cavities, but are much more prone to gum disease and excess tartar build-up on the teeth. Food particles and bacteria collect along the gumline forming plaque. Routine home care can remove this plaque.

Regular brushing of your dog's teeth is a very important preventive for oral and other diseases. It is recommended to brush your dogs teeth every day or every other day.

Mechanical removal of plaque: Studies show that hard kibbles are slightly better than canned food at keeping plaque from accumulating on the teeth. There are veterinary dentist-approved foods and treats on the market that have shown that dogs eating these foods have less plaque and tartar build-up.

Canine products that have received the Veterinary Oral Health's Council seal of acceptance are as follows:

Bright Bites and Checkup Chews for Dogs - all sizes
Canine Greenies - all sizes
Canine Greenies Lite - all sizes
Canine Greenies Senior - all sizes
Del Monte Tartar Check Dog Biscuit: Small & Large sizes
Friskies Cheweez Beefhide Treats for Dogs
Eukanuba Adult Maintenance Diet for Dogs
Hartz Flavor Infused Oral Chews - Large Dogs and Small Dogs Sizes
Healthymouth antiplaque water additive
(Hill's) Prescription Diet Canine t/d: Original & Small Bites
Iams Chunk Dental Defense Diet for Dogs
Purina Veterinary Diets DH Dental Health brand Canine Formula
Purina Veterinary Diets DH Dental Health brand Small Bites Canine Formula
Purina Veterinary Diets Dental Chews brand Canine Treats
Science Diet Oral Care Diet for Dogs
Tartar Shield Soft Rawhide Chews for Dogs
Vetradent Dog Chews marketed as 'Bluechews' and 'dc Dental Chews'
Vetradent Dog Chews - Small Size marketed as Baby Bluechews and dc Tiny Toy Dental Chews

Mechanical removal of plaque can also be accomplished by using toys such as Plaque Attacker dental toys, rope toys, or rawhide chips. Do not use toys that are abrasive and can wear down the teeth. If your dog is an aggressive chewer and likes to bite down, trying to crack the toy, you probably should not let the dog chew on that toy. For especially aggressive chewers, look for toys they cannot get their mouths around. Rawhide or other chews that soften as the dog chews are another option.

Information compliments of peteducation.com

Mine eat raw so i dont have a problem with plaque or anything like that.
My vet loves my dogs teeth and non doggy breath.
Im not sayin raw food is the way to go but some good old fashioned raw bones can work wonders for cleaning teeth.

I was going to reply to this too...

Koda has about 5 bones and you wouldn't believe the state of his teeth... they are perfectly healthy!

So, I guess we should add raw bones or marrow bones to the list of doggy dental foods :-p

I think y'all are gonna hate me for this, but I'm so into teeth so I gotta say it. I asked Gunny's vet today, the same vet that treats Sitka, and he said brushing daily is the best. He also mentioned that the bones made specifically for tartar removal and other chewing toys don't really do much to help keep teeth clean so brushing is the best way to go.

Oh, and I heard that the previous dentist at my office used to bring in his own dog to his office and clean his teeth in the chair! I wonder if Gunny will like coming to the dentist?

My dogs also eat raw and my vet is amazed by the condition their teeth are in, especially Dakota, who will be 11 next month. In fact, he stated that if he didn't know her age, he'd place her at 5 or 6 just by her teeth. I'm a bit lazy about brushing their teeth, so I guess the marrow bones work!

Good to know! Thanks Danielle and Gloria

I'm just wondering if anyone else brushes their dogs teeth? I have been brushing Icon's since he was a baby and he is great at it, I guess I am just wondering if anyone has mastered that particular art with an adult dog. I have tried with Ecko but she gets so stressed out. She really is so much different than Icon in terms of training and I don't know if I should attribute that to her age or to her previous owner/upbringing.

I'm going to throw this in the grooming forum. Great thread though.

These make great toothbrushes...


My idiots get them once a week. I've been doing it for about eight months now, and I was very surprised but pleased at the results. Then we occasionally throw in some raw marrow bones too. I wish I had thought to take pictures. Bubba had tartar buildup stretching almost to the tip of his canines. Now there's just a hint of it left.

Merged with the old topic and given a more appropriate name (old one was "Dental Issues" and was too broad).

We don't brush Koda's teeth, but he does get Marrow bones once a month so that his teeth stay clean. That's how dogs used to 'brush their teeth' in the wild

no brushing here but they love their rawhides and keep the teeth realy clean, been thinking about doing the dental power i keep hearing about and i was wondering about the raw boned chicken (is that the wings in the pic?) do you feed it out side? i just have an issure with the germs from the raw chicken all over the house.

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Raw chicken bones (and raw chicken) is actually incredibly healthy and safe for them to eat. The bones only become brittle when you boil or cook them. Think about it... wild dogs/wolves don't cook the chickens and wild game that they eat... and how many of them have died from brittle bones

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I would refer to the BARF sub-forum for a list of safely edible raw treats

Well icon went in for his first dental cleaning yesterday, they cleaned up really nice and we have him back on the aquadent which is an additive for his drinking water that helps reduce the plaque and tartar buildup. The new vet at my work reccommends once yearly dental cleaning with the ultrasonic unit and daily brushing. I use the cet toothpaste it's chicken flavored:) but the only thing that concerned me with his cleaning was that I identified a slab fracture on his upper right canine. I am guessing it was caused from his nylabone. He is a really aggressive chewer and is not allowed any hard chews anymore. He just gets his cet chews and his soft toys (supervised ofcourse)... God I'm so OCD.... So I will post the hilarious picture of his walk home ( I live one block away from work) but I don't know how to post from my phone and I don't have Internet yet... Also icon will be 2 in July but the new doctor at work is really gung ho about dental care so we decided to get it done now since he is young and healthy and anesthesia isn't an issue with him. Interesting fact periodontal disease is the most common disease in dogs, so brushing g their teeth and getting regular dental checkups are a must regardless of how well raw chicken keeps their teeth clean, dental checkups at the very least are reccommended.

While I do believe a raw meaty bone to chew on once a week is the best way to go for dental hygiene (for dogs) I know we don't all feed raw. For those that don't feed RMB's and are a little lax about daily brushing I highly recommend Petzlife Oral Care Spray. We adopted our husky in 2007 and shortly after our vet said he would need a professional teeth cleaning soon and advised us to start brushing his teeth daily instead of weekly like I had been doing before that. I started using the Petzlife Oral Care spray on my sibe once a day (just spray on the teeth and done!) and the tarter and buildup literally started popping off within two weeks. Our next vet visit the vet was amazed at how great his teeth looked and he's never needed a cleaning. Three years later and his teeth are still in amazing condition. I use Petzlife on my two adopted chi girls and it has helped improve the health of their teeth sooo much, I love Petzlife Oral Care Spray!

That's awesome:) I'll have to check that out and see if I can reccommend it to some clients:)

Sierra and Jack got there teeth brushed last night i got to get better at doing it more.

ok so i can just go to teh store and buy raw chicken legs and give them to sniper?? the whole thing skin meat and all?? i will try this once she is back to eating normal stuff! will make a greta treat!

Huskyluv wrote:

While I do believe a raw meaty bone to chew on once a week is the best way to go for dental hygiene (for dogs) I know we don't all feed raw. For those that don't feed RMB's and are a little lax about daily brushing I highly recommend Petzlife Oral Care Spray. We adopted our husky in 2007 and shortly after our vet said he would need a professional teeth cleaning soon and advised us to start brushing his teeth daily instead of weekly like I had been doing before that. I started using the Petzlife Oral Care spray on my sibe once a day (just spray on the teeth and done!) and the tarter and buildup literally started popping off within two weeks. Our next vet visit the vet was amazed at how great his teeth looked and he's never needed a cleaning. Three years later and his teeth are still in amazing condition. I use Petzlife on my two adopted chi girls and it has helped improve the health of their teeth sooo much, I love Petzlife Oral Care Spray!

Hey Val- we wanted to order some of this stuff for our two... just curious though. How long does that little bottle last? Cheapest I can find it is $14.50 for a 2.2oz bottle.

That's a really good price actually! I think at Petsmart it sells for twenty-some dollars.

Hmm, that's a good question on how long it lasts. I've never really paid much attention to how long a bottle lasts but I'm pretty sure that I get at least a couple months out of it before having to refill the bottle. I think the 2.2 oz bottle says you get about 450 sprays of out it , so if you figure 4 sprays per day for each dog then that should give you a pretty good idea of how long it'll last you. I only do 2 sprays per dog, per day (which ends up being 6 sprays per day between my three). Once you have the little 2.2 oz spray bottle then when you're ready for a refill you can buy the 8 oz refill bottle which is a lot cheaper per ounce, I think I pay around $35 or so for the 8 oz refill and just pour that into my little 2.2 oz spray bottle when needed. I've been pretty lax about their Petzlife spray for the past few months (due to the move but it's no excuse really) and I've only had to refill their 2.2 oz bottle once in the past 7 months and their teeth are still in excellent shape despite my lapse in their dental care.

Koda wrote:

Raw chicken bones (and raw chicken) is actually incredibly healthy and safe for them to eat. The bones only become brittle when you boil or cook them. Think about it... wild dogs/wolves don't cook the chickens and wild game that they eat... and how many of them have died from brittle bones

are those chicken wings also safe for puppies?