DOG ESSENTIALS Fab 4 – Four natural essentials to keep your dog healthy.
Quickly and easily create a natural meal plan for your dog.
Dr. Peter Dobias, DVM has 30 years of experience as a veterinarian. His love of dogs and passion for natural healing and nutrition led him to writing, teaching and helping people create health naturally, without drugs, chemicals and processed food.
FIFTEEN HUNDRED DOLLARS! “Are you kidding me?!”
This is one of the most common replies when my clients see a quote for a broken tooth repair from a dog dentist. Yes, repairing a dental fracture can be very expensive. That is why reading this blog post may save you lots of money.
Avoid feeding beef, buffalo or bison shank bones. They are often harder than dogs teeth. Most dogs will simply get carried away chewing on a large bone and may crack one of their teeth. This is how a two dollar marrow bone can turn into a painful and very expensive adventure.
I already hear some of you protesting: “But my dog loves big bones!! He likes to work at the bone marrow!”
In reality, nature intended canines to hunt for birds, rodents, rabbits, goats and perhaps deer. Most dogs simply would not dare to come even close to a buffalo or a cow. With the exception of a pack of hungry Chihuahuas, most dogs simply do not like hanging on to the ankle of an angry bull.
However, if you want to avoid regular dental cleaning under anesthesia, the right sized bones can save Fido a lot of dental trouble and save you tons of money. I usually recommend feeding lamb or goat bones twice a week. The abrasive action of these hard but not too thick bones is perfect for keeping your dogs teeth shiny without the risk of dental fractures.
Many companies have come up with alternatives to dental bones. However, most of them are ineffective and loaded with artificial preservatives, wheat, starches and ingredients of questionable origin.
Real bones are the best option!
When my clients learned about feeding the right bones, I noticed that the number of fractured teeth dropped sharply. However, no matter what you do, your dog can crack a tooth by munching on a rock or having an accident of some sort.
I remember Roz, a German Shepherd that chased a ball and tried to catch it mid-air. Unfortunately, she missed the ball and bit a big cement block instead. She fractured several teeth and needed medical attention.
The rule of thumb is if you can, you should repair it. If a veterinary dentist is available in your area, he will give you the right suggestion. Many general practitioners also have suitable dental equipment, however, some over-prescribe extractions because they are not trained to do root canals.
Also, if a tooth is removed, the opposing one is usually affected by increased tartar build-up and gum disease. It will frequently be lost a few months or a year later.
The sooner you can get the fractured tooth examined the better because a freshly fractured tooth can regenerate and stay alive by applying a cement cap. In most fractures, older than a few days, a root canal is most likely needed and sometimes an extraction may be the only solution.
Worried About Your Dog’s Dental Health?
If you stumbled on this article, there are chances that your dog is getting older and you are wondering what bones would work best to help keep those dental problems at bay. Or even better, you may own a young dog and want to prevent dental problems from occurring in the first place.
If so, kudos to you, as preventing is much better than curing something that could have been avoided at least to a certain extent. Lets first take a look at what plaque is and how it affects our canine companions.
Dental plaque consists of a colorless or white film that develops on your dogs teeth. Its formed by bacteria naturally found in the dogs saliva which adhere to the surface of the dogs teeth. Initially, the film is soft and can easily come off by simply scraping the dogs tooth with a fingernail or the bristles of a toothbrush.
With time though (if left on the teeth), the plaque will harden in the next two to three days and soon will calcify, becoming yellowish/brown tartar that becomes harder to remove. On top of that, once tartar is present, the tooth surface becomes rougher, causing more plaque and tartar to build up. Once enough tartar collects in the dog’s mouth, it potentially ends up under the gums causing problems.
At this point, the hardened tartar can no longer be easily removed with the toothbrush and will likely require ultrasonic tools or a hand-held scaler to remove effectively, something that must be done by a vet under general anesthesia.
What dental bones for dogs are safe?
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Avoid Cooked and Smoked Bones
It may be tempting to feed Fido some leftover cooked bones to help clean teeth, but doing so is also a risky practice. Cooked bones tend to become brittle, and when your dog consumes them, they may splinter, potentially causing internal injuries explains veterinarian Karen Becker. On top of that, cooking strips the bones from a great amount of nutrients. Steamed or smoked bones, found out of the freezer in pet stores, are processed, causing them to become brittle as well.
The BEST Raw Bones To Clean Your Pet’s Teeth
Gum disease is a serious issue that goes far beyond unsightly teeth and smelly breath. Left to progress it can cause your dog serious discomfort and they may lose teeth. But more than that, the constant bacterial invasion at the gum line is a daily drain on your pet’s immune resources. This is why patients with gum disease are more susceptible to disease. Overtime, the body can become flooded with immune debris, clogging kidneys, inflaming hearts. For more, check out our article on gum disease in dogs.
We are going to show you that the very best way to keep your dog’s teeth clean are raw meaty bones. They are not only safe and nutritious, they are cheap to free. They’re definitely the tastiest solution, that’s for sure! We’ll recommend the ideal bone for your dog’s type and finish with a list of do’s and don’t that will not only explain why vets are a bit scared but will ensure your pet’s safety going forward (I hate those two words but wasted more than 5mins trying to think of an alternative…).