Gingivitis in dogs: My dog hates mouth touching. What's the solution?

If dental cleaning is no option then ask your vet to prescribe antibiotics for the gingivitis, and pain medicine such as carprofen. The antibiotics will kill the bacteria that cause the painful gingivitis and the carprofen will take pain away from the dental condition as well as some of her musculoskeletal problems. However, if there is a tooth root abscess, then the tooth needs to come out right away, as this is seriously painful and can cause sepsis with can actually be life-threatening.

Hello, congratulations on your new pup. He may indeed require that this tartar be removed with scaling as it may have a thick plaque that is tightly adhere to the enamel and unlikely to come off with brushing. This will also allow your veterinarian to examine Bernie and become acquainted with him. They will then be able to determine if a cleaning procedure is necessary or if he could benefit from dental chews/other hygiene approaches to remove this thick tartar. Hope this helps and best of luck.

Severe gingivitis should be addressed by your veterinarian. It may be indicative of periodontal disease and infection. If it affecting Brock's appetite, have him examined sooner rather than later. Otherwise, you can feed canned food or soak his dry food until soft. Daily brushing with a veterinary approved tooth paste and toothbrush is recommended.

I do not recommend the use of Colloidal Silver in dogs, especially if it will be going into the mouth or digestive tract. There have been no study to show that it is useful in this manner, and the potential negative side effects can be significant. The heavy metal cannot be eliminated from the body, and build-up of heavy metals can be dangerous. I will include a link to the Mayo Clinic's statement on Colloidal Silver. The best way to prevent gingivitis and build-up of tartar is to start brushing your dog's teeth. They are never too old to get started! It can take several weeks of training to get to the point where Kaiser won't fight you for it. Another thing that can help with tartar are treats (look for ones with a VOHC seal of approval) and larger kibble size. The larger kibble causes the dogs to chew more often and while chewing the kibble with gently remove debris from the surface of the tooth. Losing teeth in dogs is much more common than in humans. In part because they don't brush their teeth, but also due to the shape of the teeth in their mouth. The closer the teeth are together (most small breed dogs), the more likely they will lose teeth either naturally or removed during a dental cleaning. http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/consumer-health/expert-answers/colloidal-silver/faq-20058061 https://www.petcoach.co/article/how-to-brush-your-dog-s-teeth-properly/ http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=128

Truly your dog needs to have dental cleaning under anesthesia to evaluate these teeth and clean up all the tartar and around the gumline. Unfortunately most of the time loose teeth need to be removed and it also sounds like your dog could have some gingival recession that needs to be evaluated. I would make an appointment with your vet for an oral exam and most likely they will want you to schedule a dental procedure. Brushing teeth at home is great and will slow buildup of tartar, but it isn't going to fix the problems that Tiger has right now.

This does indeed look uncomfortable! Pictures can be deceiving but it appears there is significant loss of bone and gum tissue above the affected teeth, with tartar and infection build up. Referral to a specialist dentist for xrays to fully assess what is going on under the gum may provide more information but it is likely that extraction of 2 or 3 teeth and repair of the gum over this area will be required in order to eliminate the infection and prevent pain

I wouldn't recommend restraining her head in any way to brush her teeth - this is more likely to make her try to get away. The best thing to do is to slowly get her used to having her lips lifted/pulled back to expose the teeth. Pull her lips back for just a second, then give her a treat to make it a positive experience. Once she's used to this you can rub her teeth with your finger, then the toothbrush. It could take weeks or longer before you build up to the toothbrush. If you think she already has dental disease you should talk to your veterinarian- brushing is very helpful for preventing periodontal disease but will not reverse calculus (mineralized plaque) or address disease below the gum.