Dental disease prevention

The prevention of gingival disease outbreak and sometimes of real pathologies in dogs’ teeth, becomes an absolute priority from the early years of life of the animal and especially in the most critical stage of growth when the puppies become adults. Unfortunately the occurrence of these problems is not detected even by the more careful owner in the initial stage, because the symptoms are not simply recognized in this initial stage.
It’s therefore necessary to make control visits and possible “debridement”, to use anti-tartar brush, anti-halitosis supplements and to limit the consumption of soft foods but mainly to use long lasting and anti-tartar “dental care” supplements and finally to train the dog to chew daily. After the initial phase, called “silent”, the possible pathologies grow exponentially with “escalation” effect transforming themselves, in particular cases, in the “acute phase”.

Periodontal disease: the most common dental disease in dogs.

Periodontal disease affects more frequently dogs of medium-small size and toys, animals with malocclusion, persistence of deciduous teeth, altered chewing or systemic disease that alter the normal function of the immune system. Periodontal disease is the result of a fight at the tissue level between the bacteria that accumulate on the crown of the teeth (dental plaque) and the body’s defense system. Halitosis, reddened gums, loss of teeth, difficulty of chewing, tartar are very frequent causes why dogs are taken to the vet, and all of them are symptoms of periodontal disease (problems in the area around the tooth).
In small size dogs with thin arches, the bone destruction caused by periodontal disease can weaken the jaw so much to cause it to break. The process begins with the formation of plaque which is a bacterial film that develops on the surface of the teeth. Slowly the plaque if it is not removed, through a mineralizing process, turns into tartar.

From the visible surface of teeth, then it spreads below the gum, where it causes an inflammation, called gingivitis. The bacteria can also gradually cause deeper lesions (destruction of the gums, damage of the alveolar bone that supports the teeth); these alterations located in the deep loosen the tooth, which becomes more mobile.

Together with the loss of tooth, periodontal disease has more serious consequences. The millions of bacteria present in an unhealthy mouth can spread to other parts of the body, such as the heart, kidneys, liver, causing diseases.