Dental Health: Do You Brush Your Hounds Teeth?

Here  in the UK, February is Pet Dental Health Awareness Month!  Sadly,  greyhounds have historically been well known for having poor dental  health.  But it doesn’t need to be this way!  Given this month’s theme,  what better time to discuss the importance of looking after our hounds’  teeth, both for their benefit and yours!

80%  of all dog breeds over 3 years, and 39% of greyhounds, suffer from some  form of dental (periodontal) disease.  This is primarily because of  poor diet, but in some instances, genetics do play a part…but regardless  of the root case, they are very concerning statistics!

Dental  disease primarily shows in the form of plaque build-up along the  gumlines, which may not look that concerning but without taking measures  to prevent this, or intervene with its development, there can be  substantial knock-on effects.  

Apart  from the fact that dental disease is incredibly painful, the host of  health issues that can be caused from it is staggering.  The bacteria  that develop in the mouth because of it enters the bloodstream where it  travels around the body infecting vital organs such as the heart, liver,  and kidneys.  This is the number one cause of kidney disease in dogs.

Any  dog with poor dental health is at risk of fatal systemic disease such  as sepsis, or cancer…and because greyhounds are so infuriatingly stoic,  you won’t know there is even a problem until it is well established and  sometimes, too late.  

We have  witnessed hounds with chronic dental disease, or in need of whole mouth  extractions, in unquantifiable amounts of pain, still eating and acting  as if there was nothing wrong with them…which is why we still often hear  the phrase ‘he’s eating well, so his teeth can’t be bothering him’.   

Eating,  and acting normally, are not quantifiable when it comes to maintaining  your hounds’ teeth.  You need to physically look at them and know what  you are looking for, because in an ideal world, preventing the  development of dental disease is far better than the cure!  

Veterinary  dental procedures to remove diseased or broken teeth, as well as  descale the others, is incredibly expensive.  Although it is inevitable  that you will have to have it done at least once over the course of your  hound’s life, not all insurance companies cover such procedures…and if  they suffer from a disease that is directly related to your hound’s  dental health, they may not pay for the treatment of that either if  there is evidence to suggest it was preventable.

Therefore, the more you do to maintain your hounds’ teeth the less chance you’ll be hit with heavy vet bills later in life.

One of the simplest things you can do is regularly check your dog’s mouth and teeth.  

This  will allow you to spot signs of dental disease developing like  gingivitis, or other issues such as swellings, abscesses, missing teeth,  or cavities forming where the gums have receded.

Other signs of dental disease developing include:
- Bad breath
- Discoloured teeth
- Gum recession
- Swollen, red and/or bleeding gums
- Excessive drooling
- Bloody saliva/drool
- Chewing on only one side when eating
- Dropping food/difficulty keeping it in their mouth when eating
- Blood in water/food bowls or on toys after playing
- Reduced appetite
- Weight loss
- Pain and irritability

In  being able to identify there is a problem, you can then address it.   Depending on the situation when you look in their mouth, you’ll be able  to tell if they need veterinary intervention or not!

If  you look at the picture, you’ll see the development of disease.  Once  plaque starts forming, withing a couple of days it hardens and develops  into tartar.  This process puts pressuring onto gumline and damages the  fragile seal that the gumline has on the tooth.  This allows bacteria to  enter in underneath and drastically speed up the development of gum  disease, and other illnesses.

Should  your hound have any recession of the gums, or reddening around the  edges of the tooth, they have a problem.  Once dental disease is  present, you’re looking at a vet trip, regardless of how ‘normal’ they  are acting…because things will only continue to get worse!

If things are looking pretty good, you will want to maintain things.  

This  can be done by regular (ideally daily) tooth brushing, and occasional  support from an Emi-Pet ultrasonic tooth cleaner or similar.  This will  help prevent the development of daily plaque build-up.

It  may sound a little silly, to brush your dogs’ teeth but if you didn’t  brush your teeth…what would happen?  It is the same for our canine  companions.  Sometimes we can all be a bit too lax and a bit too blaze  about the fact that they can just go to the vet and have their teeth  removed…but would you want a dentist to do that to you?

While  it would be preferable to brush your dogs’ teeth daily to prevent their  food sitting in or between their teeth…it’s just not practical.  Life  is busy, things get forgotten, and finding time to wrangle a toothbrush  into your hounds mouth every day just doesn’t work out.  The best we can  advise (and follow ourselves) is to do it as frequently as possible.   Studies have proven that brushing their teeth at a minimum of 2-3 times  per week reduces the development of plaque and inflamed gums.

You  can get dog toothpaste from your local pet shop, or online, and while  you can get dog toothbrushes, a soft child’s toothbrush is just as  effective (and cheaper!).

Most  retired racing greyhounds will be familiar with having their teeth  brushed or descaled to some degree, as it’s routinely done during their  careers, but it isn’t something you can put into effect from the moment  you get them home as they will be stressed and may be unaccepting of a  stranger handling them in this way.

Allow  them time to settle, build some trust and then gradually introduce the  toothbrush to them.  There are some great tutorials on YouTube on how to  do this, so check them out!

If  you find yourself struggling to brush their teeth routinely, or that  they really aren’t a fan, you can take an alternative approach such as  changing their diet away from ‘greyhound’ or high carb-content food,  adding supplements like seaweed or coconut oil, and allowing them to  descale their teeth themselves using natural long lasting and  hard-wearing chews such as bones, antlers, and horns.

Ostrich  bones are amongst the most popular de-scaling bone available for  greyhounds.  The internal honeycomb structure of the ostrich bone is  very effective in scraping the teeth clean when provided for 20 minutes  once or twice a week.  They are expensive, but they last forever and do  not splinter the same way other bones do…but you still want to supervise  them regardless!  

If you are  going to give any bones, ensure they are raw or air-dried, never feed  cooked bones.  Additionally, if your hound has cavities, lose or broken  teeth, or gum disease, bones will not be appropriate and could cause  more damage.

Given the long  lasting and high value nature of any bone or chew, when it does come  time to take them away, always trade it out with another treat to  prevent resource guarding.

Avoid  using any soft, bendy, or flimsy chews that are marketed as dental  sticks, as these do not provide effective descaling, are highly  processed and packed with cereals and other unwanted additives.
They  are also particularly pointless when greyhounds just bite them in half  and swallow them…then they have no dental benefit at all and are just a  very fattening treat!

Greyhounds  do not need to be known for having bad teeth.  Yes, some are genetically  pre-dispositioned to it…but the rest, there is no excuse!  Take time to  look after your hounds’ pearly whites, if not for them, for your bank  account!