Teeth cleaning

[Shalista]

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Looking for tips to clean Freddies teeth.

rescue said they were a "stage 2 or 3 and will probably need a dental soon". they obviously have a ton of gunk on them.

things I've tried:

Hills sensitive stomach kibble not a factor. the pieces are so tiny he just swallows them whole no problem. no chewing here.

brushing. He HATED this and since he's still adjusting I held off on further attempts rather than risk breaking our new bond by forcing the issue.

enzymatic dog chews. he LOVED these but he basically just gummed it until it was soft and then attempted to swallow the entire thing. I traded him for it and got it before he could swallow it but I am strongly unwilling to try these again due to safety risks.

Raw chicken drumette he gummed it a few times to crunch it then swallowed it entire like an anaconda.

Milk bones not giving these as a dental chew but this IS something he will in fact chew a couple times before swallowing.

collagen bully stix loves these and will chew them but it's not serious chewing. it's listed as for "mild chewers" and he basically just bites off a piece and then swallows it whole.

Things I am waiting to arrive still :

Skippers Fish Flatties these were highly recommended for keeping teeth clean by a member of this board and honestly I'll try anything. I am however going to keep a warm hot dog handy and closely supervise him eating this because I have an inkling that he's probably just going to try his usual "gum till soft. then swallow whole" method and I may need to swap in a hurry.

here's where I'm at. I want to clean his teeth ASAP because A. I think chewing is great behaviorally for dogs B. I want him to keep his teeth. he's a young dog (5+ years old) and he's way too young to start losing teeth(I haven't looked extensively but I believe he either has a full set currently or is close to it) C. I want to at least get STARTED on it before June 7 when he goes in for his vet appointment because I'm pretty sure the vet is going to take one look and recommend a dental.

at this point in time I'm opposed to a dental. he's still adjusting to life at home and I don't want to rip him out, sedate him, and keep him overnight in a foreign place. it is possible to just delay the cleaning indefinitely, like I said, his kibble is small enough that he can just swallow it so I'm not worried about him lacking nutrition because of being unable to chew. my primary concerns are A. his comfort and B. keeping his teeth. delaying a few weeks/months while he adjusts to life at home before a dental isn't a TERRIBLE option.

that being said Baxs teeth were one of my greatest regrets with him. he always hated to be brushed and was on Prescription Dental Kibble for most of his adult life which only slowed but did not stop the gradual build-up of plaque on his teeth. if you want to look at an unholy ingredient list take a look at what that stuff is made up of. I want to avoid that fate for Freddie if at all possible. but to do that I need him to actually CHEW things.

if I can't find him something to chew I think my best bet is to wait a few months (while plaque continues to build) and then go in for the dental. then hopefully set up some good chewing habits with the newly cleaned teeth to stave off further decay. thoughts?

 

[Shalista]

Would I be wrong to try puppy teething toys with him? he has stronger jaws than a puppy but with his teeth being so ouchy it might help to chew on something softer? just spitballing ideas.

 

[Shalista]

So i went shopping. this is what I have in my cart. nothing purchased yet, I'll wait to hear your thoughts.

First freezer choice trying a couple of freezer toys. maybe the cold will feel good on his gums?

second freezer choice

first nylabone choice nylabone is classic for a reason. maybe he'll like it?

second adult nylabone option ditto.

puppy nylabone thinking maybe puppy chew toys will be softer and easier on his teeth?

another puppy chew

3rd puppy chew

toothbrushing chew this thing looks wacky but maybe he'll like it?

classic KONG enough said.

of all the options the only one I'm confident he'd actually even try is the kong if I stuff it.

he currently has access to a Yak Cheese Chew which he attempted a few times when I first gave it to him but he hasn't touched it in days.

I'm worried I'll get him all these chews and it turns out that while he's food motivated maybe he's just not much of a chewer.

he loves his collagen chews but those he just eats, he doesn't have to put to much work into them.

obviously I think going raw or even eating those fish jerky pieces is my preferred way to clean his teeth. but since he's just gumming and swallowing I'm worried about the safety, and indeed, the efficacy of this option. I mean, if he's just gumming and swallowing how much dental cleaning is he even going to get assuming that he can digest everything he's ingesting in the first place? at least with these toys, I feel like they're a safer option.

I'll hold off on pulling the trigger and buying any of these until I hear my feedback from the board.

 

[JoanneF]

I'm not sure what you mean by gumming?

Anyway, one thing you haven't mentioned is toothpaste. To start getting him ready for teeth cleaning, you could begin with enzymatic toothpaste on a rough weave rag, like cheesecloth. Wrap that round a finger and gently let him lick it, then from there start gently moving it round his teeth. That's usually a good way to introduce him to the feel of something in his mouth then when he is used to that, the brush isn't so alien.

For chewing to be effective, you really want him to be chewing for 15 to 20 minutes. Any dental chew he can eat in less won't do much good.

 

[Shalista]

“Gumming” is he doesn’t really bite hard. He just kind of mouths it and moves it around his mouth without biting down hard on it.

I guess I’ll just keep trying with the tooth brushing then?

 

[JoanneF]

Maybe his teeth are already sore?

 

[Shalista]

Maybe his teeth are already sore?

My thoughts exactly

 

[Shalista]

Just bought Freddie his first proper 100% beef pizzle bully stick. I put it in his holder so he doesn’t swallow the blessed thing and he’s really going to town gnawing on this. I really like this compared to the fish skin and raw hides I’ve given him because I can tell he’s actually audibly chewing on it and not just gumming and sucking on it until it’s soft. Here’s hoping it will help with his teeth. Vet says he’s in danger of losing a tooth if I can’t turn this around and so far I’m 2/2 for tooth pastes he hated the taste of.

Edit: massive win on the pizzle. Took him almost two hours to eat it 3/4 of the way down. He walked away twice and I took it away(I don’t leave him with chews unattended and I had to step away)and he didn’t care and then I gave it back to him a little later in the night and he went right back to munching. I’m positively delighted I have something that he’ll chew both for his mental health and his dental health and also while he is very good motivated he didn’t obsess about it or guard it like Bax would have done. I didn’t even have to trade him for it when I collected it the last time. These pizzles are completely solid all the way through. Super high quality. And I got a good size for him right from the start. He could really get his jaws around it and start at the top but it wasn’t so thin he blew through it. Also my bully stick holder works significantly better for bully sticks than it did for the fish skins and was easily applied and tightened down and it held it great. Over all a huge win!

 

[Hemlock]

Great news. Delighted to hear of it.

 

[Shalista]

So I'm continuing to try to train Freddie to accept tooth brushing just because I'm not confident the bully sticks will totally work 100% and I may have found a hack and I'm curious to hear your thoughts.

see years ago I had a career as a dental lab tech making dentures and crowns etc for human teeth and while I was in school for that I was taught that toothpaste isn't really the biggest part of toothbrushing. like it really is all about the mechanical action of the brush that makes all the difference. like there are pros and cons to some toothpaste ( for example I use prescription strength fluoride) but on the whole it really doesn't matter what you use as the paste, its all about the mechanical brushing.

enter my possibly genius idea.

see Freddie has tried 2 of the top-rated toothpastes on Amazon and he hated BOTH of them. however. Do you know what he doesn't hate? peanut butter. freddie already has his own tub of peanut butter that I fill his kong out of that's for doggy consumption only so I started just swooping out small amounts of peanut butter on my finger and letting him lick it off. today I was able to actually touch his teeth a little bit which weirded him out but not enough to stop licking the peanut butter. I'm keeping sessions short and positive but so far he loves the taste of peanut butter and he's getting acclimated to me sticking my fingers in his mouth. win win?

 

[JoanneF]

Sounds positive. Even if it gets him accustomed to his mouth being touched before moving on to a brush with nothing else on it, it will be a win.