Teeth cleaning...how often?

[jenn D]

I admit, I do not brush my doodles teeth everyday. My vet is big on dentals. I've had all 4 doods teeth professionally cleaned by the vet 4 months ago and she's saying they all need dentals again! (They've since gone back for annual checks.). There is no way I'm getting their teeth cleaned again only 4 months later. It's expensive and I worry about too much anesthesia. Do you guys have any chews you recommend to help with this? I can't give them rawhides because they are aggressive chewers and they choke.

[Stacy]

I don't have any empirical evidence, but I feel like the smaller the dog the more frequently their teeth need to be cleaned. At 6 years old Ava's teeth didn't look so great when I brought her home, but she chewed on an antler for a couple days and the plaque popped off and they were shiny white without any other intervention. Katie - the mini has a little bit of tartar at almost 3 years old, but it's little enough that I'm keeping an eye on it. But the little dogs always needed dentals yearly, and really some of them could have used one more often than yearly. And they lost teeth with every dental. I agree with Karen that genetics plays a big part in it. Just like people. Some are luckier in the dental area than others. 

My vet who I fired for other reasons always did dentals with sedation instead of anesthesia, and his prices were much more reasonable than the vet dentist. The dentist is very expensive but thorough and kind of amazing. Still, I wonder if there is any down side to going the less expensive route if there is no known problem and you find that you need to have dentals done frequently. 

[Pauline Rackley]

Hi I am a RVT who does dental cleanings in my practice. In a nutshell, it is an individual judgement. Every dog develops calculus at a different rate. We recommend cleanings based on the condition of the teeth and gums. It is true that small dogs seem to  need more frequent cleanings. With that said, I have never heard of needing to do a dental every 4 months. It is possible that an individual may have a genetic prediposition that may make this advisable, but highly unlikely that this would be the case for all four of your dogs.

[DonMarie and Picco]

4 months - sounds expensive!  I've never had a dog go in for a dental cleaning - at least so far.

I use Virbac C.E.T. EnzymatI Toothpaste maybe twice a month although I should be once a week.  I've had 2 dogs in the past that I never had to deal with teeth issues but my Doodle is getting buildup.  Could be genetic or possibly the foods I fed.  Watch out for dental chews, a friend's lab had bad experience with vomiting/diarrhea, etc.

[Debbie and Toby]

We just went for Toby's annual last week and the Dr said we should probably have his teeth cleaned again this summer, he just had his teeth cleaned the end of January.  I am following this conversation because I am also curious how often the teeth should be cleaned. I really wasn't planning to have them cleaned again so soon.

[Maryann,Roo and Tigger]

My dogs love Antlerz.  Teeth are a big source of infection, but even without brushing their teeth once a year is often enough and some dogs can go years.  You do not want the plaque to build up at the gum line, It looks pale yellow, darker yellow, yellow brown and then brown to brown black.  You want to catch it before or at the yellow brown stage as then the plaque starts irritating the gums and that is when the bacteria in the dog's mouth can enter his bloodstream.   

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[Stacy]

My girls love them too, but the dentist was very anti-antler. They said that all chew toys should be soft enough that you can indent it with your fingernail. Sigh, my dogs would probably tell you that their mom won't let them have any fun at all!