<p>Yikes! I guess dogs have 42 teeth, but 7 seems like a lot. Dog is 10 years old and hasn’t had his teeth cleaned in 3 years. The vet said they were “loose”. I admit we don’t brush his teeth like we should. Anyone else exerienced something similar?</p>
<p>Seven does seem like an awful lot. Our dog had a tooth pulled when she was 10, as she was a lab and ate all kinds of stuff- but when I tried to brush them, she would always chew on me.</p>
<p>It didn’t affect her eating much, but I would think 7 teeth would Were they all in the same place?. While the dentist was expensive, he did a check first to give us an idea of what would happen.
I hope the dentist gave you a plan to help prevent future tooth loss. ( without having to pay for the doggie dentist every 6 mo)
[Dental</a> Disease](<a href=“http://www.dr-dan.com/dental.htm]Dental”>http://www.dr-dan.com/dental.htm)</p>
<p>I haven’t picked the dog up yet, but the vet mentioned specifically canine teeth and molars. I’m sure he’ll tell me we have to start brushing, but my pomeranian has never been very cooperative in that area.</p>
<p>I know dogs with one tooth left. They still chew just fine.</p>
<p>Much better to pull them to let them get infected. Really.</p>
<p>Obviously not a pet owner here (but thinking about becoming one…) - you seriously have to brush a dog’s teeth?! I don’t know if I’ve ever heard that before - guess it makes sense, but…really? How often do they suggest and do dogs really cooperate for that?</p>
<p>Our 12 yr. old had either 7 or 8 pulled last year- some were infected. He was a stray when we got him and teeth were already pretty bad. I have to say his breath improved 100% and he still seems to be able to chew well. We also have a hard time with brushing but I do try.</p>
<p>I should add: I don’t brush my dogs’ teeth, but I do give them fresh marrow bones every week, without fail. They also get raw carrots, several every day. My vet is always pleased with their teeth.</p>
<p>My vet recommended brushing with liverwurst, not that I’ve had any success with that strategy.</p>
<p>Dogs are not cats (clearly) but my cat had all her upper teeth removed because her teeth are prone to deterioration. We brushed, we applied a special wax, we gave her antibiotics… she just has lousy teeth, it turns out.</p>
<p>She snookered us into feeding her incredibly expensive wet food for months because we thought she couldn’t eat the dry food we used to feed both our cats… Turns out she eats the dry food JUST FINE… She’s just been carefully avoiding having my husband or I see her eating it so that she can keep getting the good stuff!</p>
<p>Animals seem to do all right without teeth.</p>
<p>sneaky cats- they will rule the world some day!</p>
<p>Thanks, everyone! You made me feel a lot better.</p>
<p>My father’s dog had very few teeth left and still managed to eat without a problem. Canned food was easy to gum and the dog continued to eat for years.</p>
<p>dmd, do you cut up the carrots? Use baby cut ones? Wondering what size is big enough to chew and not choke. Our dog has a little bit of residual left side facial nerve damage and has trouble when the big dental dry chunk dog food gets stuck in her cheek on that side. If carrots are good and she’d eat them, that’s fine with me, but just want to have a sense if I need to be around to “help” her if needed.</p>
<p>My little dog had a lot of teeth removed around age 10, too. Like everyone else, he managed fine-- and seemed much happier after the teeth were gone. There are very few things a dog can’t adapt to.</p>
<p>My mom apparently never knew we were supposed to brush his teeth until he was already on the way out and he would never have tolerated it by then. It reached a point where he should have had some pretty substantial dental work but he was too old by then to go through the procedures. Be it through brushing or other means, it is important to pay attention to their dental health. When they’re young you may be able to get by ignoring it, but you don’t want to run into problems when they’re older and not as able to undergo medical procedures.</p>
<p>You really HAVE to brush their teeth. Not every day, but once or twice a week. I bought something at the pet store that looks like a little rubber finger with very small bristles. You put DOG TOOTHPASTE on it and just go in there. If you start as soon as you get the dog, it will become a regular part of his “Spa” routine. My dachshund starts to get excited when he sees the stuff come out of the box. He loves it! I gather that dog tooth enamel is very soft, not like ours. Our toothpaste is too abrasive. I did not brush my first dog’s teeth and he would have to go in regularly for cleaning at $300 per pop. It got worse when he got to be old, because he would have to have a cardiogram and blood tests to make sure that he would survive the aenesthesia. I learned my lesson, and I have to say it’s quite a chuckle to see Argos enjoy himself!</p>
<p>One more thing… you will have no trouble taking things out of his mouth if he’s used to your fingers being in there!</p>
<p>CountingDown… I do absolutely nothing to the carrots. Well, I rinse the dirt off. </p>
<p>Intriguingly, my dogs will not eat “conventional” carrots, only organic carrots. I can’t taste any difference, but apparently they can.</p>
<p>There was a “First person singular” in the Washington Post Sunday magazine on 7/25 by an animal (mostly dog) dentist that was particularly interesting (I am giving that info in case you want to search the Post site for it…I never have any luck supplying links). He says, among other things, that dogs that don’t have to catch their own food in the wild can do well without teeth. </p>
<p>H and I love our dog but have never been able to discipline ourselves for cleaning her teeth on a regular basis. She is less cooperative about it than anything else (baths, tick removal, etc.)</p>
<p>My toy poodle is missing uhhh about 20 teeth. Trust me it hasn’t stopped her any</p>
<p>dmd77, About those marrow bones – are they raw? and they’re beef, I’m assuming, is that right? Are those the circular shaped bones, like from osso buso? I’m trying to find something my little dog will chew on that will help keep her teeth clean. She doesn’t like any of the chew sticks from the pet store. And she’s small, about 10 lbs, so can’t handle large bones.</p>