Dog dental care

At my dogs 6monthly check up my vet said the dog has the beginning of gum disease. He had a dental under sedation 2 years a go and I am surprised he has got such bad teeth in a short time. He is 11 and fed on biscuits. The vet suggested using toothpaste but I don't think he would let me. Can I have some advice on what I can do at home to help his teeth and prevent them getting worse. What toothpaste should I try, I have also seen dog mouthwash you add to their water and a seaweed based powder you add to food.

Hello!  We would also advise tooth brushing for most dogs if at all possible, just as you'd do for your own teeth:  it's the gold standard.  Your vets may be able to point you to rubbery 'finger tooth brushes,' like a glove finger with a toothbrush tip, which some dogs take to better than a traditional brush. If you aren't confident about this, a good move might be to approach your nursing team to see whether they can give you a demonstration (on the patient, of course).  This should give you an idea as to whether tooth brushing is, in fact, achievable in this case and also give you some handling tips as to how to do it if so. Without this, I can see how it would seem an overwhelming task! They will also discuss the various products available as it can be a bit of a minefield.  A lot of products look highly technical and have no science behind them at all; your nursing team ought to be able to tell you where to most usefully concentrate your efforts. I find that questions such as:. 'If I was going to do only one of these things, which has the most science behind it' or 'Can you rank these ideas in terms of how helpful you think they'll be'  can be very useful. Best of luck.

Ps I haven't mentioned issues of safety here and they shouldn't be ignored.  This is where having your vet or nurse demonstrate on your own dog, is useful.  If they have any concerns at all, they will discuss other methods of keeping teeth clean - some of the supplements are much better than they used to be - but it pays to explore the most effective, research-backed methods first and move down.