Guest lynne893 Posted October 17, 2008 Share Posted October 17, 2008 we've had a new foster grey, picasso (a 4.5 y.o., 85lb boy) for ~2 weeks now, and he came to us with bleeding gums. the rescue said it was probably anxiety making his gums bleed, and gave us an antibiotic course to follow. the bleeding seems to have ceased, but his teeth and gums look terrible compared to our own grey's, and his BREATH is out of control. his saliva "stains" anything it touches with a stench that lasts for hours (i'm not exaggerating) and you can smell his awful breath from arm's length if not more. every 12- 18 months we get our own grey's teeth cleaned by a non-anesthesia guy who comes to our home. we hardly ever brush her teeth because she makes it difficult. difficult doesn't begin to describe how he takes to the toothbrush. we can't do it. he fights so bad, i can't even get the brush in his mouth at all. he also had a seizure ~10days ago. could this be related? because of his strength and size, will we just have to put him under for a dental work over? i'm concerned about the cost of that, but more concerned about letting this mouth situation go on any longer. thank you for any advice you have to offer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest greytkidsmom Posted October 17, 2008 Share Posted October 17, 2008 Sounds like a once-over by the vet is in order. Our oldest has bad gum disease and needs frequent dentals. He has been bleeding a lot more lately and the vet suggested using a finger to "pack" the toothpaste in the deeper pockets he has between the teeth and brushing less frequently. Maybe you can get him to tolerate at least that. The vet can do bloodwork to help assess his metabolic status and determine if anesthesia is safe. I would definitely do something sooner rather than later, especially because of the seizure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trudy Posted October 17, 2008 Share Posted October 17, 2008 Has this dog been vetted yet? The vet should have concerns with how bad the breath is and if his teeth are bad, then yeah, he needs a dental. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MZH Posted October 17, 2008 Share Posted October 17, 2008 We regularly kept a friend's greyhound when she went away During Molly's last stay with us her gums smelled so bad we could smell it 3 *rooms* away. It was nauseating. Her gums were too sore and bloody to be brushed. Some time later she had a dental; she had a terrible case of periodontal disease. As they were getting her ready to go home, she died suddenly in the waiting room. She was only 8. I have to wonder if she went septic because of the bacteria that was released into her blood stream during the dental. Picasso's seizure could be related to the gum disease. Please don't wait to have a full dental done ASAP. Molly had had a dental a couple years earlier but she was probably one of those dogs who needed it 3-4 times a year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinM Posted October 17, 2008 Share Posted October 17, 2008 When Polli first came to us from the farm at 8.5, the inside of her mouth looked like a sewer and worse than that, it smelled like one. At her 1st dental she lost 17 teeth. She has had 3 dentals in 14 months because of the ongoing issues. The last dental she had was last week with her amputation becasue starting chemo with bad teeth/gums is dangerous. So, we may not have done the 3rd dental right now, but since she was under a general, we had to. We also brush her teeth EVERY single night with CET tarter control toothpaste. For your foster, it sounds like a mega dental is required. Quote ROBIN ~ Mom to: Beau Think It Aint, Chloe JC Allthewayhome, Teddy ICU Drunk Sailor, Elsie N Fracine , Ollie RG's Travertine, Ponch A's Jupiter~ Yoshi, Zoobie & Belle, the kitties. Waiting at the bridge Angel Polli Bohemian Ocean , Rocky, Blue,Sasha & Zoobie & Bobbi Greyhound Angels Adoption (GAA) The Lexus Project Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SAVED2 Posted October 17, 2008 Share Posted October 17, 2008 Hydrogen peroxide 3% on a cotton ball wiped on the teeth and gums every other day for 3 days then wait a week and do it again will remove the bad smell and turn the bleeding gums into close to healthy gums , but it will return as there is NO cure for periodontal disease.I did it for 8 years then at 10 had all her teeth pulled. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest FullMetalFrank Posted October 18, 2008 Share Posted October 18, 2008 Poor pup. I would get to the vet ASAP and also they might give antibiotics prior to the dental to take before hand. I hope everything turns out OK! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lynne893 Posted October 24, 2008 Share Posted October 24, 2008 thanks everyone! the poor fella had another seizure last night, so i'm going to take him in to the vet on saturday morning, and will also ask about the dental work. soonest they could do a dental, apparently, is 2 weeks from now.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LindsaySF Posted October 24, 2008 Share Posted October 24, 2008 we've had a new foster grey, picasso (a 4.5 y.o., 85lb boy) for ~2 weeks now, and he came to us with bleeding gums. the rescue said it was probably anxiety making his gums bleed "Anxiety"? Bleeding gums + bad breath = periodontal disease Couple that with the seizures, and this dog needs to see a vet ASAP. It is good that he has been on antibiotics, but something else is going on. He needs a physical exam and bloodwork, at the very minimum. will we just have to put him under for a dental work over? i'm concerned about the cost of that If this is a foster dog, shouldn't the rescue be paying for the vet work? ~Lindsay~ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest EmilyAnne Posted October 24, 2008 Share Posted October 24, 2008 (edited) Important question~ WHAT kind of antibiotics is he on, and how long has he been on them? About the foul breath, the only experience I have with very foul bad breath, is with my late pointer mix, who had Diabetes. It was one of the earliest symptoms. Edited October 24, 2008 by EmilyAnne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest longdogs Posted October 24, 2008 Share Posted October 24, 2008 Angel's breath would melt plastic when we got her. Although she'd had a dental and lost several teeth when she went into the adoption program a few months before we picked her up, her mouth was already foul and also bloody. I took her to the vet the next day as I was already booked-in with William. The vet showed me how bad her gums were and held out little hope for the survival of most of the rest of her teeth. That was several years ago. Her teeth aren't fantastic, although clean, but her breath is now OK and her gums are healthy. No more teeth have been extracted, in fact she's not needed another dental. This is all down to avoiding too much soft food and giving her fresh meat and bones to chew. Initially she couldn't chew them well and her gums would bleed a lot. She quickly improved and tackles them with ease now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cris_M Posted October 24, 2008 Share Posted October 24, 2008 Glad you are seeing the vet. With a mouth this bad, it is almost certain you are looking at a cleaning under anesthesia. You might check and see if a dog can be given vitamin C. If so, one of the things that it does is to increase the strength of capillary walls. Stronger walls = less bleeding. Since his mouth is so bad, it might be worth looking into the porphyromonous (sp) vaccine. There is a lot of controversy around this vaccine. However, for dogs with this much of a dental problem, it would seem worth getting or at least looking into very seriously. The vaccine severely limits or stops the bacteria that causes periodontal disease thereby stopping bacterial endocarditis (the bad bacteria that lodges in the heart). While probably not possible, a raw diet seems to really stop bad breath. Now, it can only work in a dog with a relatively clean mouth in the first place, and it is expensive. Still, it might be a last ditch idea and certainly one that the adopting family could look into. You are a wonderful person to look so carefully after a foster. What a lucky guy he is! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MAXNAV Posted October 25, 2008 Share Posted October 25, 2008 thanks everyone! the poor fella had another seizure last night, so i'm going to take him in to the vet on saturday morning, and will also ask about the dental work. soonest they could do a dental, apparently, is 2 weeks from now.... The poor guy. Hopefully they won't put him under to do a dental, until they figure out what's causing the seizures. Poor poor baby. Good luck tomorrow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaryJane Posted October 25, 2008 Share Posted October 25, 2008 Kidney problems can cause an ammonia smell to the breath. Has blood work been done? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lynne893 Posted October 25, 2008 Share Posted October 25, 2008 he had blood work ~3 weeks ago to try to nail down what might've caused his seizure. thyroid was a little low, but then they ran the results through a confirmation lab and turns out thyroid is within normal range. his kidney enzyme level was high (2.0), but they compared that to bloodwork from a year or two ago, and it was the same, so at least that's steady. going in to vet tomorrow AM-- will report back! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MAXNAV Posted October 26, 2008 Share Posted October 26, 2008 Checking in to see how Picasso's doing????? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest EmilyAnne Posted October 26, 2008 Share Posted October 26, 2008 (edited) In case you missed my question earlier, what kind of antibiotics is your foster on? And how long has he been on them? Edited October 26, 2008 by EmilyAnne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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