Teefer Pics!

[bckrazy]

Hey. I took a couple photos of Gonzo's teeth today... because I wanted to keep a yearly record, kind of, on how his teeth are doing. A LOT of people, including vets, have been commenting on his teeth and assume he is much younger than he is. His teeth are 100% better than what they were years ago, I definitely attribute that to raw bones. He cracked his rear left molar a few years ago on a smoked bone (as you can see in the pics) and it collected tartar rapidly when he was eating kibble. All of the Greenies in the world couldn't help that -_- buuut, after one beef femur a few weeks ago, the tooth was unharmed but nearly all of the tartar was GONE!

I thought it would be very informative to compare our dogs' teeth. I've seen kibble-fed dogs with great teeth, with just some added measurements (brushing, vet cleanings, chews, etc). Could everyone (who is interested) get a pic of their dogs teeth, preferably on both sides, and list their age, diet (kibble brand or raw), and what they do as far as cleaning goes? I really have no idea how Gonzo's teeth compare to the "average" 5 year-olds, but I would like to see other dogs with similar & different diets.

Please do not be afraid to post pictures, regardless, because we ALL have room for improving our dogs diet & dental health (as well as our own...).


Gonzo; 5 years old; Raw Meat & Bones; Occasionally cleaned with a toothbrush & Occasionally gets Greenies & Bully Sticks.



The last pic is of his chipped tooth. The whole part that was chipped used to be covered in plaque, it looks a lot better now. Still definitely room for improvement in his teeth.

[Karen]

What nice white shiny teeth he's got!

[k9krazee]

Micki - 4.5 years; kibble fed (Iams most of his life, Nutro past 6 months?) His are by far the worst of the five!



Jack - 1.5 years, kibble fed (Iams, now Nutro)



Mini - 4.5 years, Kibble fed (Iams, now Nutro)



Shadow - 10 years, Kibble fed (Purina the first 6 years, then Iams, and Nutro the past 6 months), haven't brushed them in years


Shadow was fed up with me so I only got one side, and Kyra has a mouth touching phobia, so I couldn't get her - shes almost 2 and hers are perty.

[.sarah]

I just took these pictures about 10 minutes ago:

Mandy, kibble fed for 8 years, raw fed for 6 months. Had dental cleanings in 2003 and in Oct. '05.



Nova, kibble fed for one year, raw fed for 6 months.



Luka, kibble fed for two years, raw fed for 6 months.



This is the tooth Luka chipped on a marrow bone or beef ribs, I can't remember which. You can also see her underbite here.


Buck, kibble fed for 3 weeks while with the breeder, raw fed since he came home 3 months ago.

[Giselle]

WOWW!!! Look at Buck's teeth!!! Are you sure you didn't bleach them??

Greyt topic, Erika! I have permission from another Greyhound's owner to use the pictures of her dog. I believe the dog is 7-something years old:

Before:


After ONE rec bone:


It amazed me, too.

[dab_20]

These pictures are not good quality. Sam didn't want me to tough his mouth, and Molli's is so small.

Sam-10 months-kibble fed (Iams)



Molli-1 year, 10 months-kibble fed (Iams)



Both of their teeth are pearly white

[Suki Wingy]

Kibble fed Iams for 6.5 years

ew. I just looked at them now and I think they got a bit better after one cooked pig femur though, if that can happen.
And I've been brushing them with cleaning pads once a week or so for the past month about

[Muddy4paws]

My dogs teeth arent too great unfortunatly, We have cleaned them before with doggy toothpaste but I dont know if i should believe that it works or not, Anyway my question!!

I cant feed raw, Its not an option to me because of money but they normally get a mixer with a tin of dog food, We give them Rasks which I'm guessing at like greenies, But would the rawhide or stuff like pigs ears help clean up the teeth more? Also does it take your dog a while to get through things like pigs ears? I cant have them eating food that takes too long for them to eat because they will end up fighting and i try to prevent that as much as possible!

[Flatcoatluver]

Kirkland Kibble for 3 years/brushing every night
sorry about it being blurry


Kirkland Kibble fed 6 years/3 years of brushing every night
sorry didn't have any side pics, and I am charging batteres for tormorrow trip

[bckrazy]

I finally got new pics that are not tiny, so I update my orginal post

Sophie, WOW, that's crazy!

Muddy4paws, just because you cannot feed a diet of all raw does not mean you can't benefit from raw bones. Buy soup bones with lots of cartilege and meat attached, and give your pups about 15 minutes of chewing on that per week (you can put the bone back in the freezer, and thaw it out when you want to use it again). You should see huge changes in their teeth! A raw soup bone usually costs less than one rawhide role. If you do not want to feed raw at all, brushing their teeth with DOG toothpaste every day will help (as you can see from Flatcoatlover's post).

[Muddy4paws]

Thanks for the info! I haven't heard of soupbones? I dont think they would be able to chew one of those without fighting but I'll give it a go if I can find some, I saw you mentioning bully sticks earlier, Will they be any good? I know I can get them if I cant find soup bones.

[bckrazy]

Definitely seperate them while they're chewing, if there is any chance of fighting. Either crate them, or keep one in a room with you with the door closed, or one outside. Keep an eye on them while they chew, make sure they aren't chewing too vigorously and remove the bone after 15-20 minutes. A soup bone is the same thing as a knuckle bone. I attached a picture of my dog chewing on one. If you can't find these, femur bones, pork ribs, & beef ribs are also good for chewing.

Bully Sticks can help, not nearly as well as raw bones, but they do. Rawhide rolls are also pretty safe, and can help clean teeth.

[Flatcoatluver]

One of the biggest reasons I brush my dogs teeth everynight is because about 5 years ago my dog (Tera) died. I miss her so much, she died of jaw cancer, which could have been prevented by brushing teeth. Sadly the cancer was a fast cancer we couldn't stop. Luckily are dog's love it us brushing their teeth, it's like a bedtime snack.
Rip Tera honey.

[GreyhoundGirl]

flatcoatluver: your dog's teeth are glowing... literally !!

[wolf_Q]

Nebo, 4 years old, fed dry Natural Balance venison and brown rice, teeth brushed 2-4 times per week, never professionally cleaned, occasionally chews nylabones/bully sticks/pressed rawhide never had a raw bone (yet)