Dentals

[Guest AmyB]

I posted this in the wrong forum before.

 

How often should a grey have a dental? Any advice?

[Guest greyhound1]

I have Brenda's cleaned every 6 months. More if needed. I brush them everyday.

[Guest Tigonie]

Generally speaking, I think most people do a dental once a year, simply because greyhounds tend to be sensitive to anesthesia, and many people would prefer not to put their dog under more often than necessary. That, and it's expensive. Some vets give a 10% discount in February, which is Pet Dental Health Month.

 

Daily brushing can help a lot, although part of tooth decay is genetic. If you lucked out and got a grey with good teeth, you might be able to push professional cleanings to every 18 months. More likely, even with daily bushing, you'll want to get a dental every year. Sounds like greyhound1's Brenda has very bad teeth that need a dental every 6 months.

 

I'd check with your vet and see what he/she recommends regarding a dental for you individual dog.

Edited June 25, 2007 by Tigonie

[Guest MountainHounds]

It really depends on the dog and your vet will be the best one to give you advice on this. I've been lucky with Kamin, he got his teeth cleaned right before I adopted him in January of '03, again with his tail amputation in August of '04 (since he was under anyways) and again earlier this month. Honestly he might have been better off going in about six months ago or so, but he didn't have to have any pulled and they cleaned up really well. Praxis, I'm not sure on, although my vet did say on his initial exam that he had the prettiest greyhound teeth she'd ever seen. Kavana OTOH, has absolutely horrid teeth. When he came into adoption last October, he had 21 teeth pulled and the rest cleaned. By March, he had four more that had gotten so bad that they needed to come out. We're not putting him under for a dental because of the OS at this point, but he would not be a dog that could go two and a half years between dentals, he would fall more into the every six months category.

[Guest LokisMom]

Not to hijack the thread but will the vet usually just let you know when it is time? Or should one specifically ask the vet if the dog needs their teeth cleaned?

[Guest crazy4greys]

Your vet should tell you when your dog's teeth need cleaning.

 

I have had Tucker for just about 2 years and his teeth are good. Skylar doesn't have many left Autumn had hers done last Fall and Winnie had hers done in Jan.

 

I'd say depends on how your dogs teeth are, some are worse than others. Talk with your vet.

 

 

[Jackandgrey]

Jack has had one in the 4 years I have had him and his teeth are great. Jilly was on her way to one and the turkey necks have pushed it back so that's 11/2 years she's been home and no dental yet.

[MarcR]

Honey and Nadia get an annual cleaning. Kara, poor girl, has almost none left. She was a bounce and her teeth were in terrible shape when I got her. She had major dental work, but needed more in less than six months. So, it really depends on the dog. Your vet should tell you if/when a dental is needed, but if in doubt, ask.

[Batmom]

You should be able to tell yourself when the dog needs a dental -- don't wait for the vet to tell you at a once-yearly visit.

 

If you're seeing a lot of hard crud (plaque) build up along the gumline, the gumline is red and inflamed looking, bleeding occurs when the dog gets a hard chew or gets teeth brushed ... it's past time for a dental.

 

Here we seem to go 12-20 months between dentals.

[Guest hllb]

My vet said that the biggest health concern with greys is bad teeth. He said once a year at least - with some dogs needing it every 6 to 8 months. He also said he offers 2 discounts a year - 20% off in Feb. and June. Nikki has excellent teeth (per the vet) so we're hoping for the once a year thing.

[NeylasMom]

None if you feed a raw diet. My dogs are 8 and 3 and neither have had one.

[Guest Ola]

None if you feed a raw diet. My dogs are 8 and 3 and neither have had one.

No dentals since we adopted - my dogs are 8 and 4. It's totally worth it in my opinion, and dental cleaning it's one of the main reasons we switched to the raw diet (also to cure the big D).

[winnie]

We've had Celeste since April 2006. When we took her to the vet a few months ago for her annual exam. We were told she didn't need a dental at all this year. Our vet used to work near a dog track and has seen her fair share of greys. She said that Celeste must have inherited the "good teeth" genes because her teeth looked greyt. We don't feed raw either - just kibble and for snacks they get Greenies, bully sticks or pigs ears.

 

ETA... our vets office does free dental screenings during dental health month (February/March - they spread it over two months). The vet looks at your pets teeth - free of charge - and lets you know if you need to schedule a dental or not. You should check if your vets office does something like this.

Edited June 26, 2007 by winnie

[RileysLegacy]

Riley has not has a dental since I adopted him. He gets raw bones as snacks, regular tooth brushing (daily) and recently I have been taking him to an anethesia-free dentist for scrapings. I know this is somewhat controversial as it is not as good as a full dental at the vet, but the results on all my dogs has been amazing. I take them in for regular maintenance visits every few months. My vet is very impressed by all their teeth.

 

eta - I have had Riley for over 5 years and he is 8 years old... meaning he hasn't had a dental since he was 3 years old.

Edited June 26, 2007 by RileysMomma

[Guest LynnM]

As needed... Joplin goes in for a cleaning and extractions approximately yearly. Louis last got his teeth cleaned when I brought him home in 2004. He is gifted with very nice teeth. I had one foster (Sandals) who had the most exquisite teeth I've ever seen on a dog. He had some other stuff going on that required surgery, and we never got around to his teeth. He was so good at using bones that he kept his teeth in perfect shape without veterinary intervention!

 

Lynn

[Guest LancePearson]

I brush Kate's weekly with an electric battery operated toothbrush and have a dental tool for humans from the drug store for removing tartar. If I see any I gently scrape it off. We got her almost two years ago and it had been done the month before we got her. The vet checks her and when she had some surgery recently to remove a benign histiocytoma they checked while under and said......keep doing what you are doing..she has NO tartar.

 

Kate puts us with the two AA battery operated electric toothbrush provided I put my hand in her mouth and keep it open. She doesn't bite me but she keeps pressure on my hand to let me know this isn't her favorite thing though she stands there facing me and lets me do it. I always praise her up a ton and give her a treat after. She gets rawhides to chew on once or twice a week too.

 

Vet says, no set routine time, just check and it depends on what they eat and what you do toothbrushing wise. I've found the electric works better than the gloves with the finger toothbrushes or the finger brushes and they aren't expensive at all. She has her own electric toothbrush!

 

Lance, Karen and Kate Pearson

Chester, Virginia

[Guest shanesmom]

Shane had a dental once a year. Not sure how often Elton will need one yet.

[tbhounds]

Brush, brush, and brush. That's the best way to keep down the tartar and plaque formation--it really extends the time between dental prophy's. I'm actually using a sonicare toothbrush on my 3 and they all do well with it. I prefer the electric brush over the finger cot or traditonal brush because the electric brush does the work for you--you don't have to brush back and forth with as much vigor. I do brush them everyday, however, I think your veterinarian would be happy if you brushed three times a week. I also give large rawhide chips to my guys about three times a week but, your dog needs to be a good chewer for that to help reduce tartar formation.

Something to remember--most clinics participate in Dental month (s) which are held in Feb. and August. Most clinics give 15% off!! Every little bit helps

Edited June 27, 2007 by tbhounds

[Trudy]

Jet is 8.5. Ryan is 8

Ryan I think had a dental before I adopted him when he was 2.

I'm not aware that Jet had a dental as she was still a pup when she entered adoption at 18 months - I don't have paperwork stating she had one, just spay paperwork.

 

Very rarely do I brush their teeth.

I feed them kibble.

 

Both came to me at 2 years old.

Neither have had a dental in the 6 years they've been mine and don't seem to have one in their near future.

 

 

 

Depends on the dog - some will need one more often than others, some may not ever need a dental, regardless of what they are fed.