DENTAL HEALTH FOR DOGS AND CATS

Diet

Dogs are omnivores so they can eat some carbohydrates like potatoes and rice but remember, think about what a wild dog would eat. Potatoes and other root vegetables would be kind of hard to find, maybe occasional feeding. Maybe some edible plants would be eaten. Berries, fruits and nuts would be eaten when they could be found. Insects and grubs would be eaten when they could be found. Most of the time wild canines are looking for meat. This diet would be called a “keto” diet where there would be no calories from grains, bread, or pasta and few calories from starchy vegetables and fruit. It would be a low or no carb diet. The more carbs in the diet, the more tooth decay so wild canines seldom have tooth decay or gum disease. 

Domestic dogs usually must have way more carbohydrates in their diet because of cost. It is hard to be able to afford to feed a 60-100 lb dog on raw meat alone. It can be done but most of the time we must supplement with some diet that incorporates grains, root vegetables, legumes and other vegetables and fruits. Also, raw meat diets are high in fat and some dogs cannot have such a high fat diet. Dogs with kidney, liver and pancreatic issues also need a low protein diet so an all-meat diet is not ideal for them. Unfortunately, diets with lower protein and more carbohydrates will promote tooth decay. To combat this, if your dog can have raw meat or high meat, then do that most of the week and feed the higher carbohydrate diet only twice a week. If you can’t because of cost or other health issues your dog has then you can’t, and you just may have more dental disease to cope with. 

There is really no excuse for not feeding an all-meat diet to cats. It is affordable for most people, and it is the best thing for them. Cats are obligate carnivores. They must eat an all meat or mostly meat diet. Cats come from desert animals that were getting all or most of their water from eating their prey. Cats that are fed raw food seldom drink water. Cats on kibble will be at the water bowl a lot. Cats' dental disease comes primarily from feeding foods to them that have higher carbohydrates and plant-based proteins. If you can’t afford or can’t find a raw food meat diet for your cat, at least feed canned food that is lower than 10% carbohydrate. Look at Dr. Lisa Pierson’s web page www.catinfo.org to find charts of common canned cat food that list their carbohydrate content. 

Tartar

Dental plaque is unsightly and smelly. Nice clean white teeth are preferable but removing plaque is not that great at preventing periodontal (gum) disease. The infected gums and roots of the teeth are what cause bad breath in pets. So, you can take your pet to the vet, pay a bunch of money for a dental and get back a pet that has shiny white teeth but still has bad breath because there is still gum disease and infected tooth roots. 

Chew Toys

Many chew toys are unsuitable for pets. People think that giving dogs bones is good for their teeth, but soft cloth chew toys do a better job of “brushing” the teeth. Slow motion videos of dogs chewing on soft cloth chew toys show that the cloth gets deeper into the subgingival area under the gums and cleans better even than tooth brushing. Bones and antlers can break dog’s teeth. Kong toys are OK. If a chew toy is too hard to be dented with your fingernail it is not good for the teeth. The veterinary oral health council (VOHC) has a list of recommended chew toys. 

Tooth Brushing and Toothpaste

This is a good practice. Do it daily. But how many people do it? Not many. Studies show that only 3-5 percent of pet owners will brush pets' teeth daily. You can also use wipes that were designed for the mouth of pets. 

Biofilm and the Microbiome of the Mouth

Research has shown that dirty chew toys and food and water bowls carry harmful bacteria that can contribute to dental and gut disease. A biofilm forms on chew toys and dishes that contains bad organisms that can invade the mouth and gut. It is recommended to wash chew toys at least once every 2 months and to wash food and water dishes daily. 

It is helpful to apply beneficial bacteria to the mouth. There is an oral gel called Perio Care from Rx Vitamins for Pets that is an excellent product. You can also buy Lactoferrin capsules, open the capsules and rub the powder in the dog's mouth. This type of product is even more helpful than tooth brushing or tooth paste in preventing dental disease.