Pet Care Articles

1. Can I brush my pet teeth with human toothpaste?

No, because pets do not understand that they should not swallow the tooth paste. The fluoride in human toothpaste can actually be toxic to pets.

 

2. My pet eats dry pet food, do they need their teeth cleaned?

Yes, dry pet food does help with dental hygiene by scraping the teeth when the animal chews it up. However it does not kill all the bacteria in the mouth which is what causes most problems.

 

3. Does canned food affect my pet oral health?

Yes, canned pet food can actually contribute to bad oral health, by sticking more to the teeth and giving the bacteria a place to hide.

 

4. My pet only needs their teeth cleaned every couple of years.

Depending on the breed and the type of at-home dental care, some pets need their teeth cleaned every 6 months whereas some may only need it every couple of years. Your veterinarian will make recommendation when you come for your annual check up.

 

5. I do not want to put my animal under general anesthesia.

Anesthesia is not 100% safe, but with today modern technology it is safe as it can be. In the long run, the benefits outweigh the risk. Keeping your pet? mouth healthy can play a huge impact of overall longevity.

 

6. Is brushing my pet teeth once a month or so good enough?

Yes, some brushing is much better than none at all. However, the more frequently you brush your pet? teeth the better overall oral health they will have.

 

7. My pet will not let me have anything to do with their mouth.

Some animals are more resistant than others when it comes to dealing with their mouth, but with enough motivation and practice, they will learn to tolerate your advances. It can take several months for difficult animals.

 

8. My puppy/kitten is too young to have their teeth cleaned.

Puppies and kittens are always at the ideal age to start a oral hygiene plan. At this age, they are very impressionable and often less resistant.

 

9. I don't have time to deal with my pet oral hygiene needs.

When you get an animal, it is like having a baby. They require a lot of time and attention. Oral hygiene is just a small part of that, but it is very necessary. Even if you only brush your pet? teeth a few times a week for 2-3 minutes, they will be much better than if you never brushed them at all.

 

10. Even if I bush my pet teeth, they still get dirty.

Just like you and I, pet teeth will accumulate plaque and calculus over time. This is why they periodically need a general dental prophylaxis to break all the build-up away and start from scratch. There is not a replacement for professional teeth cleaning, but at home options are available to slow the process of dental disease.

By: Ryan Jurgensmeyer B.S., M.S., LVMT

Dental hygiene in veterinary medicine has changed immensely over recent years. Much research has been done to improve this void in our animal counterparts. They have shown that regular dental care can greatly improve your pet’s quality of life in many ways: decreased tartar build-up, decreased gingivitis, reduced bad breath, and an over all happier pet.

The average pet should have their teeth cleaned approximately once a year depending on the breed and the animals overall oral health. In conjunction with the normal dental prophylaxis, they need at-home care just as you and I do on a daily basis. Research has shown that even minimal at home dental care can improve the overall oral health of your pet.

Dental hygiene at home can be done many different ways with many different products, all of which are usually at a minimal cost to you the owner. First and best is an actually tooth brushing. This removes excess food particles, plaque, and other build up from the teeth. It also helps to eliminate the bacteria that can cause halitosis (the all too common bad breath that you may experience). Second, CET dental chews are an easy way to help your pet with their oral hygiene. The chews are made of synthetic, highly digestible rawhide material that is impregnated with chlorhexadine. Chlorhexadine is an antiseptic, which kills bacteria in the mouth. The rawhide material is designed to scrape the teeth while allowing your pet to think they are getting a treat. Finally, using CET dental hygiene rinse is a less effective, but productive way for you, the owner, to use some type of at home dental hygiene for your pet. This is a thick liquid that you apply to your pets teeth with an applicator. It also contains chlorhexadine which can kill bacteria in the mouth, as long as it is in contact with the gum line for approximately 60 seconds.

Dental hygiene is something you can start at any time during their life. Some may be more resistant or accepting than others. If you have any questions or concerns, you are always welcome to call or come in to talk to myself regarding tips or ideas on how you can best introduce this into your pets’ daily routine. If your pets teeth are already in bad shape we recommend they have a dental prophylaxis to get them as clean as possible, then we can start a at home dental hygiene plan.

February is Dental Hygiene Awareness month for our pets. We do not only recommend dental hygiene at this time to any client, but we take the opportunity to educate our current and future clients’ in more detail. Please feel free to call with any questions or to schedule your dental cleaning today!

How to Feed your Puppy or Dog: It’s All About Control Now that you know WHAT to feed your new puppy, let’s talk about HOW to feed him or her. Since obesity is the #1 health problem of adult American pets, how you feed your pet is very important. If you look on the back of the puppy food bag, you will notice that there are recommendations for the volume of food that he or she should receive, measured out in cups. This does not mean a 32 oz. cup from the gas station or a coffee mug, but an actual 8 oz. measuring cup. Your veterinarian should be able to provide you with a measuring cup free of charge. The recommendation you see on the back of the bag is an estimate only. We suggest that you start with feeding the recommended amount, and your veterinarian can help determine if your puppy needs more or less. Everyone has heard the saying, ‘the average healthy adult human should consume approximately 2000 calories every day.’ Well, every person’s metabolism is a little different, and dogs are the same way. Especially when you consider how many different sizes of dogs there are, and how their lifestyles may differ. For example, how a Labrador retriever metabolizes one cup of dry food is quite different than how a Greyhound would metabolize that same amount of food. Also, a Chihuahua will eat significantly less than would a Great Dane. It is a good idea to weigh your puppy weekly, so that you can ensure you increase their food intake at an appropriate rate. If you have a small dog, you can weigh them easily on a human scale. First weight yourself, and then weigh yourself holding the puppy – the difference is the weight of your puppy. Keeping track of the weight of a large breed puppy can be tricky since they will quickly outgrow your scale at home, and we certainly do not want you to injure yourself by picking the puppy. In this instance it would be a good idea to take them in to your veterinarian to use their scale. You should not be charged a weight check by your veterinarian. Finally, we encourage pet owners to feed their pets in a “controlled” fashion. Never feed your pet “free choice,” or just filling up the bowl whenever it is empty. Growing puppies should consume 2 meals every day, and 3 meals a day would be even better if your lifestyle permits it. These meals should also be timed and observed by you. Give your puppy 10-15 minutes to eat each meal. If your puppy does not clean his bowl at the end of the allotted time, remove it and do NOT add the leftover food to his or her next meal. Your puppy will quickly learn that meal times are a set time. In other words, it’s now or never! Not only will controlled feeding help prevent your puppy from eating too much, it also provides you the owner with the ability to monitor your pets eating habits. It could help you identify if your pet is feeling unwell much earlier than you would otherwise.

Congratulations on owning a new puppy! There is nothing quite like having a puppy in your life. There are so many things to think about potty training, vaccinations, obedience training it can be incredibly overwhelming. However, there is one aspect of puppy ownership that is very easy, and that is providing the new love of your life proper nutrition.

Proper nutrition is the cornerstone of a healthy animal. If you start feeding dogs the appropriate diet as puppies, it has been clinically proven to extend their lifespan. When asked what the most common health problem seen in adult dogs by veterinarians, most people are surprised when the answer is obesity. Just like with overweight people, obese dogs are at a much higher risk for a number of diseases such as diabetes, kidney disease, and arthritis of the joints. None of the obesity-related diseases are inexpensive to treat, and they decrease the lifespan of your animal. Therefore, now more than ever our profession is trying to educate clients about feeding their pets correctly from the beginning.

We recommend that you feed your puppy a dry, premium or super premium brand dog food. These are dog foods that consistently use high quality ingredients and therefore have a higher digestibility and bioavailability than the cheaper or price brand products. Dont get me wrong, any commercial pet food on the market has to meet a defined set of AAFCO (American Association of Feed Control Officials) standards. This means that the diet is complete and balanced, and in feeding it to your dog you should not have to worry about nutritional deficiencies. However, if you pick the cheapest dog food on the shelf, be aware that their ingredients may not be of the highest quality. I compare eating the least expensive diet to eating fast food for every meal. Sure, your dog will eat it, can live on it, and it probably tastes good. But is it really something you would want your pet to eat for every meal? You can consult your veterinarian for what brands of puppy food that they recommend.

Now that you know WHAT to feed your new puppy, let? talk about HOW to feed him or her. Since obesity is the #1 health problem of adult American pets, how you feed your pet is very important. If you look on the back of the puppy food bag, you will notice that there are recommendations for the volume of food he or she should receive, measured out in cups. This does not mean a 32 oz. cup from the gas station or a coffee mug, but an actual measuring cup. Your veterinarian should provide you with a measuring cup free of charge. The recommendation you see on the back of the bag is an estimate only. We suggest that you start with feeding the recommended amount, and your veterinarian can help determine if your puppy needs more or less. Everyone has heard the saying, the average healthy adult human should consume approximately 2000 calories every day. Well, every persons metabolism is a little different, and dogs are the same way. How a Labrador retriever metabolizes one cup of dry food is probably different than how a Greyhound would metabolize that same amount of food. We encourage pet owners to feed their pets in a controlled fashion. Never feed your pet free choice, or just filling up the bowl whenever it is empty. Growing puppies should consume 2 meals every day, and 3 meals a day would be even better if your lifestyle permits it. These meals should also be timed and observed by you. Give your puppy 10-15 minutes to eat each meal. If your puppy does not clean his bowl at the end of the allotted time, remove it and do NOT add the leftover food to his or her next meal. Your puppy will quickly learn that meal times are a set time. In other words, it? now or never! Not only will controlled feeding help prevent your puppy from eating too much, it also provides you the owner with the ability to monitor your pets eating habits. It could help you identify if your pet is feeling unwell much earlier than you would otherwise.

Feeding treats is another important aspect of your puppy? nutritional status. Let me emphasize, there is nothing wrong with giving your dog treats, especially to reward them for good behavior. However, there is a difference between good treats and bad treats. First and foremost, DO NOT feed your pets table scraps. Not only are they high in calories, but they can also seriously upset your dogs stomach and lead to undesirable behaviors such as begging, getting in the trash can, and counter jumping. We encourage people to feed no more than 2-3 low calorie treats per day such as baby carrots, frozen green beans, ice cubes, or apple slices. Another good idea is to set aside a couple of tablespoons of their daily allowance of dry food and give those as treats. Try not to feed the jerky style, dense store bought treats, especially the ones that look like they are made out of play dough. They are extremely high in calories, and a handful of those treats can easily become an extra meal worth of calories. There a number of human food items that are toxic to dogs and should be avoided all together, and these include chocolate, grapes, and raisins.

Finally, it should be noted that all puppies are the same. Large breed puppies (those that will weigh over 60 pounds as adult animals) need to be fed slightly differently than small or medium breed puppies. First of all, these dogs are predisposed to something called gastric dilation and volvulus, more commonly known as bloat. This is where the stomach fills with air and can twist on itself, which is a life threatening condition. One way to help prevent this is by elevated feeding, or raising the food and water dishes up several inches off the ground. Most pet stores carry pedestals that serve this purpose. This will help keep them from swallowing as much air while eating. Large breed puppies have a very rapid growth rate and are predisposed to two different skeletal diseases canine hip dysplasia and osteochondrosis (OCD). It is a common mistake for owners to think that they should supplement their large breed puppies diet with calcium. In actuality, adding supplemental calcium to your puppies diet will make them more likely to develop hip dysplasia and/or OCD. Never add supplements to your pets diet without first consulting your veterinarian. Nutrition has come a long way in recent decades, and we are very lucky that most premium and super premium brands have specially formulated, large breed puppy and adult dog foods on the market that provide puppies with the appropriate levels of vitamins and minerals. Large breed puppies should be fed a large breed diet until they reach one year of age, at which time they should be transitioned over a weeks time to an adult large breed diet.

We have talked about a lot of aspects of puppy nutrition today, and I hope I have answered some of your questions. If you begin implementing these feeding principals early on in your dog? life, you will have a happier, healthier puppy. Again, the #1 health problem in adult animals is obesity. If you learn how and what to feed them from the beginning, you can prevent obesity (and all the associated health problems) from ever becoming an issue. Go talk to your veterinarian today!