Question(s) about teeth cleaning.

[ChrisH]

Yep, bones work really well, if not being the best way at keeping teeth clean. I used to regularly give each of my RB dogs raw bones but unfortunately I can't give them to Bob, at least the bigger ones. He gets too territorial and obsesses over them, anyone really runs the risk of getting badly bitten on getting too near.

I hope Gonzo's tooth does fall out so he does not need surgery to remove.

[lovedogs]

teeth cleaning -
my late friend, who also raised many dogs, taught me to give dogs dry food and bisquits. because my funding is short, i cook my own bisquits. it is so easy. you can use the best ingredients-whole grains,milk..the secret-have you ever made such terrible cookies they were so hard and impossible to chew?--dont use any oil..the only oil(olive) i use is on the cookie sheet.you dont have to make fancy shapes just drop from spoon...no sugar.no leavening...just.flour, water and meat juice......store in a PAPER BAG..this will dry them out further....my dogs love them....they stand at the back door waiting in line like kids waiting for halloween trick or treats.

[bckrazy]

While cookies are definitely delicious... they can hardly be considered teeth-cleaning devices. Are crackers good for cleaning our teeth? Not really. In fact, they get stuck to our teeth, and the same goes for dogs. It's a common misconception that kibble/biscuits will scrape teeth when, actually, a premium soft food is much less likely to stick to the molars and promote plaque.

Have you tried trading Bob for bones? Like... what is something he finds irresistable? Fozzie used to be a brat about his bones being taken away, as a puppy. He even growled at me once, and he would always take off with it. I started bringing an over-cooked hotdog out to take his bone away. I would simply drop the hot dog a few feet away, take the bone when he went for it, and praise him. Now he leaves his bone when he knows I'm taking it away, albeit reluctantly. Teaching him that when a bone is taken away, something equally tasty is given to him really helped him to stop guarding.