# Opinion on teeth



## Kayla (Jul 3, 2013)

Okay so my vet has recommended having mckenzie sedated to have her teeth cleaned. This makes me really really nervous, it's going to cost 100$ all together. Which sounds cheap to me. 
I will admit although I have taken care of Mckenzie I did not take the absolute best care of her, which is now changing due to now having a much better job. 

Have any of you had experience with this? 

What do you do to clean your dogs teeth? And keep them healthy? 

I have tried greenies but kenzie hates them


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## pupluv168 (Mar 7, 2012)

Toby has retained baby teeth that will be surgically removed at the end of the summer. It's not due to lack of care, just genetics. 

If it were me, I would go ahead and get the procedure done. I would request blood work first to make sure there are no hidden issues and she is healthy for anesthesia. 

After her teeth are professionally cleaned, you can maintain by brushing her teeth. Get a child's toothbrush or a dog toothbrush (pet stores have them). Buy the enzyme toothpaste for the pet store - you can't use human toothpaste. And brush her teeth every day. It will help keep her teeth clean and healthy. 

And do not feed greenies. They are dangerous - they can expand in the digestive tract and cause big problems. 

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## flowersnsunshine (Apr 27, 2013)

I brush Josie's teeth often with a toothbrush and mint flavored doggy toothpaste, both of which I found at Petco. She actually likes having her teeth brushed and she treats it like a toy - She just chews on the toothbrush while I try to brush back and forth.


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## pupluv168 (Mar 7, 2012)

flowersnsunshine said:


> I brush Josie's teeth often with a toothbrush and mint flavored doggy toothpaste, both of which I found at Petco. She actually likes having her teeth brushed and she treats it like a toy - She just chews on the toothbrush while I try to brush back and forth.


One of the other Chis on here, Jaxx, does the same thing! Oh why can't my Toby be like that it would make it so much easier for me! I have to corner him to get him to sit still long enough for me to get all his teeth. Luckily he doesn't fight too much once I start because he really likes the toothpaste. 


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## flowersnsunshine (Apr 27, 2013)

Well Josie doesn't exactly run to me to have her teeth brushed.. I hold out the toothbrush with the toothpaste on it, then she starts licking off the toothpaste, then I shove it in her mouth, and then I think she gets agitated so she starts trying to bite it, thus brushing her own teeth.


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## TLI (Sep 3, 2008)

Sometimes even with best efforts, Chi's can be prone to dental problems. Plaque build up, retained teeth, fewer adult teeth, poor rooting, overcrowding.....

I would do as Ashley suggested. Have the dental done. Always do the pre screen blood work. Then you can brush, and offer things like bully sticks. This will help keep their teeth from building plaque. Since not many like brushing their teeth, it might take some time getting your baby used to it. We have a member here that her pup enjoys brushing his teeth. She said she made it more of a game, and now he actually looks forward to it. The enzymatic toothpaste is beef or chicken flavored, so sometime that helps get them more enthused.


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## Zorana1125 (Oct 24, 2010)

Hi! I have 4 chihuahuas, one who has really bad teeth due to genetics (Lola). I take Lola to the vet for dentals every 6 months to try to prevent any further extractions. My vet charges $155 for the dental plus $75 for bloodwork so $100 sounds super cheap. 
Mojo and Mimi let me brush their teeth with a baby toothbrush, but Leo hates having his teeth brushed so I started putting the tooth paste on a little gauze wrapped around my finger and use that instead of a tooth brush. He does much better w the gauze. 

I wanted to suggest trying Petzlife tooth paste. It works miracles! I had a chi years ago who was on high dose prednisone for autoimmune disease, as a result his teeth got so bad so fast. After a few weeks of using petz life, almost all the plaque was gone, I couldn't believe it. My vet couldn't believe it either. They also make a spray formulation to use in between brushings or as an alternative for doggies who refuse to let their teeth brushed. And it comes in peppermint flavor, smells sooooo good. Good luck!!


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## intent2smile (Dec 4, 2011)

We started early on with Jaxx and treating the toothbrush like a toy.

Now if I ask Jaxx if he wants to brush his teeth he starts jumping with excitement. 

Jaxx always misses some spots when chewing on his toothbrush but after he has played and chewed on the toothbrush he knows I am going to work on his teeth.


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## Kayla (Jul 3, 2013)

I regret not doing something sooner for mckenzie, and starting when I was young. 
But now I see how important it is that she has all this done and I want to make sure she is healthy. 

I will make sure to ask about having her bloodwork done! She has only been sedated one time in her life span and that was 7 1/2 years ago to be spade. 

So I'm extremely nervous and the bloodwork will help. 

I saw some stuff that you out like 2 teaspoons into like 8 ounces of water that looked interesting? Might try it after researching it. 

Well I'm glad mxkenzie hates greenies then!!




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## BlueJax (Jun 25, 2012)

In addition to pre-op bloodwork you can also request to have an IV catheter with fluids during surgery to keep her blood pressure stable. Since she has already been under anesthesia once, most likely she will do just fine.

Brushing (or even using dental wipes if she won't tolerate the brush) are really the best way to keep teeth clean. My poor boy gets scared when he sees the toothbrush coming but once he tastes the toothpaste (beef flavored) he gets really into it.


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## mooberry (Jan 31, 2011)

Oh my goodness thank you for the reminder I have to get bijoux a new toothbrush/and toothpaste.


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## lilbabyvenus (Feb 8, 2009)

I brush both Ocean and Venus' teeth, and I use PetzLife. Venus is almost five and has perfect pearly white teeth, but I've had her since she was a puppy. Ocean has awful teeth. They have gotten better since we got her, but her previous owner did not take care of her teeth at all. Brushing helps a lot, and I really feel like the PetzLife works well too. Tropiclean has similar products too. There are a lot of different dental bones and toys out there if Kenzie likes to chew


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