Dental cleaning

[Discussing Labradoodles & Goldendoodles]

When did your doodle have his/her first dental cleaning (surgery)? My vet recommends one every year, but it's about $400 (assuming no extractions) so I'm not sure if it's very necessary for a 1 year old doodle. Noah has such beautiful white teeth though, and I want to make sure they stay that way. I have noticed a small amount of tarter build up on one of his molars.

[F, Calla & Luca]

My doodles have never had their teeth cleaned. Luca had a checkup at 1 year and the vet did not suggest it. She did look at his teeth. My doodles are both mediums though and I know the smaller the dog, the more dental problems in general.

[Sue, Murphy and Bella ()*o*()]

My vet had informed me recently that he feels that with a combination of raw bones and the homecooked foods we feed our doodle, that he may never need his teeth cleaned. He also gets raw vegetables and fruits along with some kibble during the week.
Vet said he doesn't do his own dogs teeth because the foods do the job. This is pretty impressive considering he gets about $350.00 a cleaning at his office. He wasn;t trying to sell cleanings to me and I like that.
He did say exclusive feeding of poor quality dog foods and even some high priced dog foods make it more necessary to have regular cleanings.
He recommends C.E.T. Chews also for dental health and hygiene. I give those once in awhile. So far white and shiny teeth for both our 10 month old and our daughters 2 yr old doodle.

[Chris & Boys]

What are CET chews?

[Pam and Ginger Snap]

they are sold on amazon too.  ginger loves them

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I really think it depends on the dog, and a lot of it is genetics, just like people. Diet does play a role, but not as much as you might think. Chewing bones & other objects that give the teeth & gums a workout does help.
My last dog was a very well-bred miniature poodle. Small dogs are known for having lousy teeth as far as tartar build-up, etc. This girl was a chewer, and she chewed bones & rawhides her entire life.
She died just short of her 16th birthday, and she never had her teeth cleaned...not once. They were never even brushed until after her 10th birthday. And they were blindingly white and firmly anchored, tartar free, with healthy pink gums, until the day she died. A vet who first saw her when she was around 8 years old commented that I was doing a good job brushing her teeth! It was the chewing and the genetics.
I can't imagine that such a young dog would need to have a professional dental cleaning, unless there was some major health problem. You can buy tooth-brushing kits at the pet supply store; I have the groomer brush Jack's once a month, because he is NOT such a great chewer, and we know the genetics aren't very good. But he sees the vet more than any dog on DK, and although he will be 5 next month, it has not yet been suggested that I have his teeth cleaned.

[HANNAH 8/2/07 & HONEY 7/2/08]

I brush Hannah and Honeys teeth a few times a week...lol, but in the long run it will save their teeth. Vets carry dog toothbrushes and toothpaste, some pet stores do also. They really love the taste of the toothpaste and get use to you doing it with them.

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Noah is too young! Don't waste that money (my opinion only)!
Taquito just had his teeth cleaned for the first time - 5.5 years old. But he is a chihuahua and chihuahuas tend to have very bad dental issues as they age. I have started letting him chew on Peri's antlers and bully sticks, so I hope that helps in the future.

[Libby & Bentley]

I may be wrong..but I don't think dental cleaning on dogs is standard practice in my area...we've had many dogs..this is our biggest..we used to always have small ones..and never have been told to get a cleaning..i know we had one dog have a tooth have to be pulled once because of decay..but otherwise, never heard anything other than being told to brush at home..

[Chris & Boys]

I never took Boomer for one single cleaning until he was about 11 years old. His teeth were beautiful, until he chewed on a Nylabond that broke one of his canines and one other tooth when he was about 12. He chewed so much he really didn't need it. I think it is neccessary for dogs that eat soft food and aren't big chewers, but otherwise, I think it is overkill. (BTW - I never brushed his teeth either, just massaged his gums.)

[Richard Crowe]

Our dogs who enjoy chewing on Bully Sticks usually have really clean teeth. Judy will do brushing and some minor teeth cleaning on a regular basis and so most of our dogs do not need a regular vet visit for cleaning. We do have an older Maltese who is not interested in chewing on Bully Sticks and is really to old to undergo anesthesia for teeth cleaning. There are several local pet supply stores who have non-anesthesia teeth cleaning appointments. One lady who does this type of cleaning has adopted one of our former Maltese foster rescue dogs. We have a lot of confidence in her cleanliness and cleaning methods. It only runs $75 since there is no anesthesia administered.

By the way - Holly would chew Bully Sticks from the time she wakes up until she goes to sleep if we let her. The chewing tends to keep her teeth sparkling white. We buy our Bully Sticks in bulk online. It is worth the expense. We let Holly chew a stick until it is too short for her and then recycle the sticks to our Maltese who relish the smaller sticks.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Jane, will he chew on bones? The sterilized marrow bones are perfectly safe, or you can microwave your own from the butcher, which is even cheaper..
Jack loves the Old West Beef Shank Bones. They have a lot of gristle, etc on them and he really works those teeth scraping that off. They run about $6 each and last forever.

[Pam and Ginger Snap]

where do you get these?