Doggie Toothpaste

[chuckie500]

Does any one use doggie toothpaste? Can u tell me if reduces tartar (calculus) and stains? I see some on the market, but I don't see why they add tea tree oil. We don't have it in ours.

Edited April 11, 2010 by chuckie500

[Rappie]

Does any one use doggie toothpaste? Can u tell me if reduces tartar (calculus) and stains? I see some soon the market, but I don't see why they add tea tree oil. We don't have it in ours. l

Toothpaste will remove plaque (the fuzzy film we get on teeth when we don't brush) but not tartar (the hard stuff). It might help very superficial stains. The most useful part of brushing teeth is the abrasive action which has more to do with the brush / cloth used - the toothpaste makes the whole experience more palatable. Since they don't rinse and spit, I'd be wary of anything containing essential oils.

[tyra20007]

Nothing beats a good bone

try a bone that is totally consumable like lamb neck or lamb brisket.

My favourite bone which I call the toothbrush bone is a beef chuck - there are soooo many angles that they really have to chew from all directions to get the meat & it really cleans all the back and front teeth.

The only teeth I find hardish to get clean are the canines - which I scrape gently once a month to keep them at their best.

I personally would never use a toothpaste. With 2 dogs on a total BARF diet and bones every day, there really is no need for any toothpaste.

[Staranais]

I use toothpaste and bones. I don't know if it makes her teeth any cleaner than just brushing with water, but it makes her keener on the whole thing since the toothpaste tastes nice.

Bones help a lot too, but not all dogs can eat bones, and I've even met some dogs that eat bones regularly that still get nasty teeth (they'd probably have atrocious teeth if they had no bones, I guess - some dogs just seem to have an anatomical or genetic predisposition towards nasty teeth).

Plus, grooming is a nice excuse to get a dog cuddle, and get her used to getting the inside of her mouth handled.

[oakway]

Dog tooth paste is called bones here.

The young pups get chicken necks to start then wings and as adults they get turkey necks