Pet dental health tips
Tuesday, February 23, 2016 | NHS Staff
February is National Pet Dental Health Month. Sink your teeth into these facts to help keep your pet's mouth looking its best.
Gentle brushing every other day using a pet toothbrush or fingertip brush and pet paste will help tremendously.
- According to the American Veterinary Medical Association, oral disease is the number one health problem diagnosed in dogs and cats.
- 85 percent of dogs two years or older have periodontal disease.
- Unhealthy teeth spread infection and disease to other parts of the body, such as the heart, and that can cut your pet's lifespan by five years!
Yearly veterinary dental checks and cleaning are key to good pet health, but you can help at home too!
- Gentle brushing every other day using a pet toothbrush or fingertip brush and pet paste will help tremendously. In fact, just getting the paste on the teeth can help — and pet paste tastes good to them!
- Don’t scrub the teeth too harshly — just a little rub.
- Hard chews/treats help scrape plaque and tarter from pet teeth and they keep pets occupied too! Make sure you always monitor when pets have chew toys.
- Other products made from gluten not only scrape teeth — their natural ingredients also help freshen your pet’s breath.
- If your pet stops eating and begins losing weight—bad teeth could be causing pain. So weight loss, bad breath, bleeding gums, and loose teeth should all be checked out by your veterinarian.