Brushing the dog’s teeth?

Should I brush my dog’s teeth or not?
What’s the best way to do it and what do I have to take care of if I want to brush my dog’s teeth?

In this post you will find the best information about brushing your dog’s teeth.

Should I brush my dog’s teeth?

Cleaning the dog’s teeth has some big advantages.
It saves the dog from unnecessary suffering, saves veterinary costs and the dog does not smell so much out of its mouth.

Many feed manufacturers offer special products for cleaning teeth, which are mostly ineffective or make the problem even worse.
In fact, these sticks contain lots of sugar and sticky starch that surrounds the dog’s teeth and forms a breeding ground for bacteria.

It is best for the well-being of your beloved four-legged friend to brush its teeth regularly, instead of giving such improper dental care snacks.

How often should I brush my dog’s teeth?

How often you should brush the dog’s teeth, depends on the dog food and the way how the dog chews.

If the dog eats raw bones or meat, you may want to brush the teeth after that, even though they look clean.
Especially when small children live in the household, you should brush the dog’s teeth to prevent the spread of germs and a risk of infection.

In some breeds, the teeth are almost vertical in the dogs mouth. These teeth have no abrasion with the food and they collect tartar faster than other dogs.

My dog has tartar

Some dogs quickly develop tartar on their teeth, which should be regularly removed by the vet.

The dog smells unpleasantly from the mouth and the upper edges of the canines and molars turn yellow. This layer is easily removable and the teeth underneath will be beautiful white again.

Many dogs tolerate this when the vet simply scrapes the tartar off the teeth with a special tool. However, some dogs are aggressive, or are very uncomfortable when you put things into their mouth.

In such cases, the dog must get a dental cleansing under sedation or narcosis to preserve the teeth from further damage.
So that it doesnt come that far, you should just get your dog used to the tooth brushing as early as possible, so it accustomes to brushing the teeth.

With a great reward and delicious dog toothpaste usually this works very well.

What do I need to brush my dog’s teeth?

To brush your dog’s teeth, you need:

– a soft toothbrush
– towel and water
– a little confidence and calm
– definitely special toothpaste for dogs:

Toothpaste for the dog

It is very important that you NEVER use your own toothpaste for the dog. Normal toothpaste may contain xylitol, which is very toxic to dogs and lethal even in small amounts!

The ingredient xylitol is used to sweeten the toothpaste and is also included in chewing gum and other products.
For a dog, even the low dose in a little toothpaste can be enough for poisoning, so always use special dog toothpaste.

You can buy toothpaste for dogs without xylitol in the pet shop or drugstore, perfect with chicken flavor or similar flavors.

How do I brush my dog’s teeth?

When you have everything ready and have already come up with a great reward for brushing your dogs teeth, let’s start:

The dog is sitting or standing, you put your hand on the mouth and pull up the lip with the thumb, then you can brush the canines and upper molars.

Dogs have tiny incisors on the front and large molars on the back, which can be used to crush prey and bones. In order to reach the lower, rear teeth, you can open the mouth a little, if the dog is calm.
Sometimes it works better if the dog is holding is a toy, e.g. bone made of rubber or something like that.

As soon as all the teeth on both sides have been brushed clean, it’s time for an exciting game. The dog toothpaste does not need to be rinsed out, but you should offer the dog some fresh water to drink right away.

Do you also brush your dog’s teeth?
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