Why Should You Never Neglect to Take Care of Your Dogโ€™s Teeth

BY | February 12 | COMMENTS PUBLISHED BY

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Neglecting to take proper care of your dogโ€™s dental health can do lots of damage to his overall health. There are many problems that have been associated with poor dental hygiene in dogs. It could end up leading to periodontal disease which is a disease that results in bad breath, bleeding gums, and tooth loss. Poor oral hygiene can also trigger other health issues such as heart disease and diabetes.

Here are a few issues that are caused by you not paying careful attention to your dogโ€™s oral hygiene:

  1. Dental diseases which promote inflammationBacteria caused by the dental infection will trigger your dogโ€™s immune system, resulting in inflammation. The inflammation successfully kills bacteria but it also destroys tissue. This further leads to infection, tissue loss, and pain in the areas surrounding the tissues that have been affected. The severity of the inflammation depends on the severity of the dental disease and the bacteria that it causes.
  2. Dental diseases increase your dogโ€™s risk of getting heart disease.Dental disease has been linked to heart problems such as endocarditis. Dogs who suffer from periodontal disease are six times more at risk of getting endocarditis than dogs who donโ€™t. The bacteria which is found in the infected valves of the heart are identical to the bacteria found in the infected mouth.
  3. Dental diseases complicate diabetes.Diabetes and periodontal disease feed on each other and worsen over time. The more severe your dogโ€™s diabetes, the more serious his periodontal disease. The inflammation which is associated with periodontal disease can have a big impact on the blood sugar metabolism in your dogโ€™s body. The inflammation decreases the bodyโ€™s sensitivity to insulin, which is a hormone that is involved in the blood sugar regulation. Address the oral problem to stabilize diabetes.
  4. Dental diseases can lead to pain and sensitivity.Dogs are masters at hiding pain. They might behave normal and even continue eating as if everything is normal. This however, may not always be the case. Dental diseases can be hidden. Your dog continues eating by avoiding the problematic tooth. He may however start showing certain symptoms such as swelling, a change in eating habits, bleeding, or drooling.By the time a clear sign comes up, itโ€™s usually too late to salvage the tooth. There is a big chance that your dog has been living in pain for quite a while.
  5. Dental diseases may lead to a broken jaw.Dental diseases have a high likelihood of causing broken jaws โ€“ especially in smaller breeds such as poodles and Chihuahuas. They already have pretty small jaws and an infection will just weaken them even more. A jaw fracture can be caused by simply jumping off of a couch.

Take care of your dogโ€™s teeth. Youโ€™ll just have to spare 5 minutes of your day. Thatโ€™s nothing compared to the months of pain he may have to suffer through when you neglect to care for his teeth.

False teeth for dogs

Yes, fake dog teeth are available in the market, and many veterinary clinics do the procedure. It is not a new procedure. The first of subsequent many false teeth fitting for dogs happened in 1938. American veterinarians did it and it slowly gained traction. The last few years saw demand for canine false teeth rise and it was at one time an extremely popular trend. A majority of veterinary dentists believe that such dental implants in dogs provide identical benefits as they impart in humans. Other veterinarians exhibit skepticism about this claim. This could be due to the fact that canines may suffer a few difficulties while adapting to their new set of false teeth. A few accidents have happened due to the dog swallowing its false teeth.

Onset

Both gum and teeth problems began to appear in dogs from an early age. There have been cases where teeth problems were seen when the canine was only three years of age. The only solution in most cases is to extract the offending tooth. Teeth may also be lost due to gum disease. There are multiple examples of dogs breaking tooth. False teeth can be implanted in dogs which have a number of missing teeth. If you take the decision to get false teeth, the decision could be an expensive one as only a few veterinary specialists and dental technicians have false teeth specialization. Not many veterinarians can do the procedure.

Food and anesthesia

The veterinarian may recommend changing the kind of food that you provide to your dog. The medical specialists will also monitor closely the animal's overall health to make sure that health problems in the dog are not due to poor dental health. The principal benefit of pet dental implants is jaw bone loss prevention. The bone shrinks from all directions in the space left by the lost teeth. In case multiple teeth get lost in one jaw area, there will be a large jaw bone loss. An advocate of dog dental implants claimed that the bone shrinks continuously until the part reaches a level which is equal to the stage when the dog was a puppy. The result is a weak jaw. Do note that such dramatic bone shrinkage is anecdotal. There is no corroboration from scientific documents.

The dog may get multiple anesthesia to insert dental implants. Even though veterinary anesthesia is not much better than it once was, there continue to be a few potential risks. This is especially true for the older animals which are in all probability be the patients for such proceedings. Routine dental care forms the background of implant success. You must daily brush your dog's teeth.

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