Doggy dental care is a part of pet health care that is often overlooked. But the truth is, your doggo needs dental care – just like us humans do! In fact, if left unchecked, dental issues can lead to life threatening issues like heart, liver and kidney disease. This in turn can affect your doggo’s quality of life and become costly to treat. So, good dental health can actually help extend your fur baby’s life.
Now, where to start?
Step One: Give Your Dog Dry Food & Treats
Dry dog food is much better for your dog’s dental health than wet food. Why? Simply put, dry food is less likely to stick to your doggo’s pearly whites and cause them to decay. However, that’s not to say there isn’t a time and a place for wet food – just try to limit it by giving it to your doggo every so often! Try our Marltons Sunday Roast Biscuits when you want to reward your pup for good behaviour.
Step Two: Invest In Chew Toys
Chew toys are a great way to boost your fur baby’s dental health. They’re specifically made to help strengthen your doggo’s gums and teeth using material that is soft on your dog’s mouth and safe to chew on! We recommend trying Marltons wide range of dog toys suitable for their needs.
Step Three: Dog-Friendly Chew Bones
A good chew bone will help your doggo by strengthening their teeth and clearing away any build-up. However, be sure to only give your furry best friend a bone that is dog-friendly to avoid getting bone shards stuck in their mouth and causing more harm. Try our Marltons range of Chews.
Step Four: Try Doggy Dental Health Products
There are many dental care solutions available to pet owners. The most popular by far is dog-friendly toothpaste. Many pet owners shy away from this as it’s difficult to brush a doggo’s teeth if they’re not used to it. So, your best bet is to start familiarising your pup with tooth brushing as a puppy.
We do, however, want to caution you against using human toothpaste, as this contains an ingredient called fluoride, which is highly poisonous to doggies. If you’re not comfortable brushing your dog’s teeth, we suggest you look into alternatives and consult your vet.
In the meantime why not try: Marltons Dental Bones, which help to clean teeth and freshen smelly dog breath, as well as Marltons Calcium Bones, which help strengthen teeth and support your doggo’s dental health.
Step Five: Book Regular Vet Check-Ups
Ideally, you should be taking your doggo to see the vet for a health check-up every six to twelve months. During these health check-ups your vet should be looking at your doggo’s dental health. If they’re not, be sure to ask about it.
Step Six: 10 Signs Your Dog Needs To See A Vet
Notice any of these 10 signs, listed below? We recommend paying your vet a visit.
• Bad breath
• Change in eating or chewing habits
• Pawing at face or mouth
• Depression
• Excessive drooling
• Skew or missing teeth
• Off-coloured, broken, missing or crooked teeth
• Red, swollen, painful or bleeding gums
• Yellow-brown tartar crust along gum line
• Bumps or growths in mouth
All-in-all, a healthy dog is a happy dog. It might sound like a lot of work now, but by implementing these steps you’ll end up saving your dog from any potential pain (and yourself from costly treatments) in the long run. For more doggy pet care, why not peruse our range of products?
