Dental problems will affect nearly all domestic animals at some point in their life to differing extents. This could range from just the inconvenience of bad breath to more serious problems such as gum disease or severe toothache. Surveys show that after the age of three years, about seven out of ten cats and 4 out of 5 dogs have some kind of tooth disorders.

When to Start Examining a Pets Mouth

From an early age, you will need to get the animal accustomed to having his or her mouth examined (especially dogs). It will make your life easier as owners to examine and familiarise yourself with what is "normal" and will make our job as vets easier if your pet is used to having it's mouth opened. The more you examine the mouth, the less the animal will find the whole experience strange and it should get easier each time.

What to Look For

If you are familiar with what "normal" is like, then you will be able to spot if something is wrong faster. When examining the mouth and teeth - always be careful and be aware that any animal can inflict a nasty bite if they set their mind to it.

• Dogs: lift up the upper lips on the side of the mouth and look at the surface of all the teeth. You should look for excessive plaque build up, signs of sore or infected gums (redness, recession), signs of broken or chipped/fractured teeth and also look for any unusual lumps, bumps or swellings.  Try to examine both sides as they can be very different.
• Cats:  are notoriously more difficult to examine the mouth. Often the best way to quickly check the teeth is when they are yawning. If you can, gently hold the head and push apart the lips at the side of the head. Doing this you should be able to see the canines and molars. 
• Rabbits and other small mammals: it is only really possible to check the incisors (long front teeth).  Rabbits don't tend to appreciate a dental exam unless they are used to it. Again, it is advisable to start getting them used to having their mouths looked at from an early age. By gently holding the head and lifting the lips up at the front of the mouth - it should be possible to see both the upper and lower incisors.  They should be relatively short and not have too much of a curve to them in any directions. Your vet will check the back teeth, using a speculum, during routine vaccinations. It is worth noting that tooth problems may sometimes cause diarrhoea.

Knowing if a Pet has Tooth Disease

Plaque is a yellowish white deposit made up of bacteria and debris, which forms around the surface of the teeth. In time it hardens to become yellowish brown tartar (sometimes called calculus) at the base of the tooth which gradually spreads until it may cover the whole of its surface. As well as the visible tartar there may be other indications of disease.

The picture below shows a cat with sore gums due to plaque build up on the teeth.

What else to Look For

Other than examining the mouth physically - there are lots of other things you can check too:

• What is the appetite like? If they are not eating do they look hungry? Are they looking interested in the food but just aren't able to eat it properly?
• What is the breath like? Usually bad breath is caused by problems in the mouth - either teeth or gums.
• Is the animal selecting one type of food? - often animals with a sore mouth will only eat soft food or liquids. Quite a common finding is pets that will lick the gravy and leave the rest of the food.
• Is the animal favouring one side of its mouth?  Is food falling out of the mouth?
• Is there any excessive salivation? Rabbits especially tend to dribble or drool if they have a sore mouth.
• Has there been any weight loss recently?  Again this is more of a problem in rabbits and small mammals as it is harder to tell how much they are eating. Remember, bad teeth are unlikely to be the sole cause of weight loss or appetite and in older pets there may be underlying diseases to be investigated.

How Dental Disease Affects a Pets Health

The tartar hidden below the gum line is the main cause of problems. It contains bacteria that will attack the surrounding gum tissue causing painful inflammation ('gingivitis') and infection can track down to the tooth roots. Pus may build up in the roots and form a painful abscess. This inflammation wears away tissue from the gum, bones and teeth and, as the disease becomes more advanced, the teeth will loosen and fall out. Bacteria and the poisons they produce can also get into the blood stream and cause damage throughout the body in organs such as the kidneys, heart and liver.

Prevention of Dental Disease

As with many other conditions, prevention is better than cure. Often it is not possible to completely avoid dental problems but certain steps can be taken to limit these problems and reduce the need for dental procedures.

• Check teeth and mouth regularly - many problems if caught early will not be serious, but may progress to be more of a problem if not noticed or if ignored.
• Feed the correct diet - avoid inappropriate foodstuffs and diets.
• Ensure enough hard objects are given to chew on. Special chews are readily available that all will help keep the teeth in good shape. Although this applies mainly to dogs - it is a good idea for cats to have some form of crunchy biscuits in their diet as this helps. Rabbits should always have access to good quality hay or grass as this plays a very important role in keeping the incisors growing correctly. This is the most important method of dental care.

Brushing Teeth

Brushing your pets teeth is just as important in preventing dental disease as brushing your own. Ideally your pet should get used to having its teeth cleaned from an early age. Wrapping a piece of soft gauze around your finger and gently rubbing the teeth should get it used to the idea. You can then move on to using a toothbrush specially designed for pets or a small ordinary toothbrush with soft bristles. Toothbrushes that fit over the end of your finger are also available. Your vet can supply you with suitably flavoured toothpaste which animals enjoy. There are also some mouthwashes and antibacterial gels that can help reduce plaque deposits and prevent infection. Do not attempt to use human toothpaste which will froth up in the mouth, your pet will not like the taste and it could do it serious harm.

At first your pet may resist but with gentleness, patience and persistence many can be trained to accept having their teeth cleaned. A regular brushing every day or at least three times a week will significantly reduce the risk of your pet suffering serious problems or needing frequent general anaesthetics to treat advanced dental disease.

If you cannot use a toothbrush don't worry! There are animal toothpastes available from your vet which work by enzymes and so don't really require physical brushing. The toothpaste usually comes as a gel or paste that you rub onto the teeth daily and this help reduced the build up of large amounts of plaque.

Treatment of Dental Problems

If there is a problem with the teeth, we at Highcliff are often able to help.  Our dental services range from an ultrasonic scale and polish (which removes all the plaque from the teeth and then polishes up the surface so it is nice and clean and white again) to more serious dental work (such as tooth extractions).  To carry out this work the animal is given a general anaesthetic. Prevention is better than cure - it is better to do a simple scale and polish, than to wait until the plaque has caused serious tooth decay and gum infections.

Rabbits are very prone to problems with teeth. Overgrown incisors can usually be clipped or burred easily without the need for a general anaesthetic but these rabbits often also suffer from molar problems. Because the design of rabbits mouths, it is very difficult to even see the molars without a general anaesthetic, and so rabbit dentistry can be quite challenging.