[nagdu] how to choose toothbrush/toothpaste for dog brushing

[Tracy Carcione]

I brush my dog's teeth almost every day.  I figure it's good for me, so it's 
probably good for him.  I started teeth brushing with my previous dog Echo, 
and her teeth were still fine when she passed at age 17.
I like the finger brush, and I usually get chicken-flavored toothpaste.  Ben 
loves having his teeth brushed.  I basically just rub the paste on the 
outside of his teeth, but it seems to do the job, because the vet always 
says his teeth look great.  Better to spend a minute every day than to have 
to leave my boy at the vet to be anesthetized for a teeth cleaning.
Tracy

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "minh ha" <minh.ha927 at gmail.com>
To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users" 
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Thursday, August 08, 2013 12:44 PM
Subject: Re: [nagdu] how to choose toothbrush/toothpaste for dog brushing


> Hi Janice,
>
> When I was at GDB, they recommend that we brush our dog's teeth daily,
> but I thought this was a little excessive. My dog likes to chew on her
> bones all the time and this helps to get rid of any tarter that builds
> up on her teeth. I brush her teeth every couple of weeks or so just to
> help with breath odors. The finger brushes are super nice because they
> give you a lot more control in their mouths. I found a really nice one
> at Petsmart that has a round thing at the bottom so you can grip it in
> your palm as opposed to the traditional finger brush that just goes
> over the tip of your finger. It's worked out really well because I
> don't feel like it's going to slip off my finger and go down her
> throat. As for toothpaste, you can get a simple one that has the
> necessary enzymes to break down the tarter; I have a chicken flavored
> one and Viva absolutely loves it. She doesn't really like me brushing
> her teeth, but one technique I use is I kind of hold her nose shut so
> she'll open up her mouth and I rub the toothpaste over her teeth. It's
> good if you can actually brush the teeth, but they say it's enough if
> you spread the toothpaste over them because the enzymes will do its
> job. I hope this helps.
>
> Cheers,
> Minh
>
> On 8/8/13, Janice Toothman <janice.toothman at verizon.net> wrote:
>> Does anyone have suggestions on how to shop for toothbrush or toothpaste
>> for your dog.  Also, how frequently would you do it and is there a
>> proper technique to it.  Of course, this probably depends on how willing
>> your pup is to expose their teeth and gums for cleaning.
>>
>> But when Destiny was at the Vet last she commented that she had tartar
>> and plaque build up and asked was I brushing.  I had relied on the daily
>> dental treats because she was never too inclined to open her mouth to me
>> when she had gotten into something and I said to "drop it"; she just
>> clamped her mouth shut on her prize.
>> Janice
>>
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>
>
> -- 
> "All men dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty
> recesses of their minds, wake in the day to find that it was vanity:
> but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act on
> their dreams with open eyes, to make them possible." T. E. Lawrence
>
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