Why are my old dog's teeth discolored, gums dark, and a tooth loose?

It appears in the picture that Twila has severe dental disease, and that is why her teeth are that color and loose. It is not normal to have loose teeth, and her mouth is likely very painful to her. She needs to see a veterinary asap to have a dental cleaning and scaling, and extractions to remove the loose teeth. Have your cousin take her into a vet first thing in the morning, that is the only option in this case. Best of luck.

Hi and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I am sorry to hear the Aevie has a loose canine tooth. Even though her teeth looked great two months ago, most dental disease occurs underneath the gum line. Therefore, the gums and teeth may have looked great but there may have been the beginning of disease under the gum line. I recommend taking Aevie to your veterinarian to get another assessment and likely discuss a dental cleaning with dental radiographs and extractions of that canine too plus any additional teeth that need to be extracted. Good luck!

I'm sorry that you are dealing with this with Kohl. Dental disease is very common in our dogs. If Kohl had 2 teeth fall out and needed 3 teeth extracted at his dental last year, then he likely had fairly significant dental disease. Often, we try to save as many teeth as we can when we perform a dental, but if they are too diseased, then our efforts may be futile. A tooth becomes discolored when its blood supply is interrupted. If Kohl frequently uses his front teeth to pull on things, this could be due to trauma. Once a tooth is discolored, it is considered "dead" and should be removed to prevent infection. Unfortunately, I would recommend that Kohl have another dental performed. If your vet did not do x-rays of his mouth, he should have that done and have any teeth extracted that have abnormal bone on x-rays. If your vet does not have dental x-ray, you can go to a veterinary dentist. I have attached a link to a handout below that has link to website were you can find a veterinary dentist. https://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=2368 Good luck! I hope that was helpful and that Kohl will feel better soon. I had a veterinary dentist take out a number of teeth in my dog and he feels so much better now! Thanks for using PetCoach.

AT that age, dental disease is common. The odor and discolorations indicate an infection due to gingivitis and tartar build up. The only way to have that removed is the have her teeth cleaned at your vet. They can clean around the gums and polish teeth similar to how ours are done. They will remove any damaged or infected teeth. You will likely need antibiotics to go along with this to further treat the infection and continue with brushing to help prevent this again

Bad teeth are common in older dogs. Loose teeth can cause problems with eating and chewing, but what is also very important they can cause chronic mouth pain. You should take BoBo to your vet for clinical examination and to assess what would be the best way to help your dog. In most of the cases, cleaning and scaling teeth under general anaesthesia is recommended. Also, extraction of loose teeth is often necessary.

What I see in your pictures looks like tartar buildup. It happens more frequently in smaller breeds and is sometimes associated with feeding wet food. Getting her teeth cleaned by your vet will remove the tartar (you can't clean it off by yourself, it's adhered firmly to the teeth) and ensure she remains healthy for longer. Tartar buildup will trap more material, irritate the gums, breed bacteria, leading to foul breath, gum and even heart disease, as the irritated gum allow the bacteria to get into the bloodstream more easily. I recommend getting her in to see your vet for an exam and bloodwork to see how well she'll tolerate anesthesia. She will have to be anesthetized for the procedure. Trust me, this is in everyone's best interests. It greatly reduces the stress for your dog and keeps the veterinary staff from getting bitten by a frightened dog. They will remove the tartar with a scaler, polish the teeth to make it more difficult for new tartar to adhere and most likely recommend some treatments you can do at home to help slow the rate at which tartar collects on her teeth in the future.

These bottom teeth probably have significant periodontal disease or may even be fractured causing them to be loose. They should be extracted. Even though Charl's other teeth seem okay, most periodontal disease occurs below the gumline and may not be obvious without a full oral exam under anesthesia and x-rays of the teeth. I would recommend talking to your vet about a dental procedure.