Keeping Teeth Clean

[Baby Dragon]

My dog is raw fed, almost every vet we've been to in the past 2 1/2 years has commented on how good my dog's teeth are.

But I was recently told by a vet that he has tartar build up near the gums, and I should get him some big marrow bones to gnaw on.

I was under the impression the bigger weight bearing bones can damage/break teeth. Is that an old wives tale?

[Stitch]

I was told by the dental specialist vet that there is no way of preventing tartar build up on the back teeth other than cleaning them regularly with a toothbrush. This was a surprise to me as I always thought I would be able to keep the teeth looking good by feeding bones. He also said that gut and mouth bacteria does vary from dog to dog and it is that along with the tartar, which makes the bad breath.

As far as the bones go, I was also told not to leave big hard (weight bearing) bones with the dog for long as they can break or wear down their teeth by gnawing on them.

Only feed the bones that are from a non weight bearing part of the chicken or cow etc.

Edited April 14, 2010 by STITCH

[Baby Dragon]

Thanks Stitch

Yep the advice confused me a bit. I don't think his teeth are bad at all - there are some small stains along the gumline of some of the top teeth, but he's 5 this year and I thought that was normal. The rest of his teeth are extremely white as he eats raw meat and bone 6 x a week.

I do have a dog toothbrush and toothpaste, but he doesn't really like me using it on him and I don't really feel like it's a natural thing to do when they're already eating a natrual diet anyway

Then again, the vet was lovely and I know he was only looking out for my dog, so I don't want to just ignore the advice. I'm mostly just worried about doing worse for his teeth by giving my dog a weight bearing bone, than if I didn't.

[stormie]

I give Orbit the huge big marrow bones (NOT cut in half) but I take them away once he's gnawed the softer 'knuckle' ends off the bone.

[Kelly_Louise]

I give Orbit the huge big marrow bones (NOT cut in half) but I take them away once he's gnawed the softer 'knuckle' ends off the bone.

I do the same for Sasha I usually change them weekly or every second week (and give her breaks).

As Chloe can't eat too many bones and she is older now, I regularly brush her teeth with toothbrush and doggy toothpaste. She doesn't like it, and still doesn't, but she deals with it because I've always been persistent with her, it's part of her regular routine and regardless how much fuss she makes it's going to happen... so she puts up with it for a good while now - and then gets a treat at the end

[Jacquiboss&scoop]

I have found with the old dogs teeth that lamb spine bones work wonders , the bones are quite hard but not hard enough to do damage , the big marrow bones ours have on occasion we take them away once they have the ends chewed off have not had any broken teeth yet

Does anyone know the odds of dogs breaking their teeth on bones , has there been a study done to back it up ? as I have not seen one it is always good to read the actual numbers and to know the condition of the teeth that did break on bones

[Jacquiboss&scoop]

I have found with the old dogs teeth that lamb spine bones work wonders , the bones are quite hard but not hard enough to do damage , the big marrow bones ours have on occasion we take them away once they have the ends chewed off have not had any broken teeth yet

Does anyone know the odds of dogs breaking their teeth on bones , has there been a study done to back it up ? as I have not seen one it is always good to read the actual numbers and to know the condition of the teeth that did break on bones

[Jacquiboss&scoop]

I have found with the old dogs teeth that lamb spine bones work wonders , the bones are quite hard but not hard enough to do damage , the big marrow bones ours have on occasion we take them away once they have the ends chewed off have not had any broken teeth yet

Does anyone know the odds of dogs breaking their teeth on bones , has there been a study done to back it up ? as I have not seen one it is always good to read the actual numbers and to know the condition of the teeth that did break on bones

[Stitch]

There are very few 'studies' done on dogs unless there is money in it for someone eg. dogfood manufacturers and those with a vested interest in selling a product.

I always quiz the specialist vets when my dogs have to go to one and I get told this time and time again.

Don't hold your breath for anything other than anecdotal reports on how many dogs have broken their teeth on bones!!

I do know, anecdotally, several cases of big dogs breaking their teeth on hard bones - I guess because they can produce quite a bit of force in their jaws.

[Jacquiboss&scoop]

Ahh yes always the money issue on research , and research paid for by the vested interests tends to follow the we want to prove something to our advantage line , guess the butchers dont make enough to do the research , but doggy dentistry is expensive stuff would prefer not to get caught out with my rottie she weighs around 47 kg expensive for GA

[Staranais]

I believe slab fractures on molars are pretty common in dogs fed large weight bearing bones. No idea if there are any studies on it, I doubt it, like Stitch says there's no money in it (plus it would be a damn boring study to do, I wouldn't volunteer).

It would actually be quite easy to get a study done proving benefits of raw bones added to a soft food diet though, if everyone on this site over the years who bemoaned the lack of research on BARF put in $10 or $20 you could probably employ a research student for the summer to compare tartar accumulation on the teeth of cats (cheaper than dogs) who were fed soft food vs soft food with bones vs dental kibble. That's the same test methodology as Hills etc use to prove that their dental kibble is better than regular kibble, so the petfood industry couldn't really argue with it.

[Jacquiboss&scoop]

no where near as interesting as the study done to see how much energy is expended when a penguin waddles LOL but do see your point , hmmm the molar fracture sounds interesting I had an old dog that I had a dead and broken tooth removed as it was making her unwell I wonder if a bone did do it ? she did get a lot of different bones ?

[Nekhbet]

I was told by the dental specialist vet that there is no way of preventing tartar build up on the back teeth other than cleaning them regularly with a toothbrush.

fail.

lamb flaps, ribs etc big chewy parts the dogs have to use their molars on to cut through will do the job. He better tell my dogs that then, everyone sparkly white and never used a toothbrush in my life.