When a dog reaches adulthood he has a dentition made up of 42 teeth, which are anchored to supporting bone tissue and covered by gums. Obviously, keeping these teeth in good condition guarantees an optimal quality of life, since for any living being it is of great importance to be able to feed properly, and the dog needs teeth in good condition to do so.
With the passage of time numerous phenomena can occur that cause tooth loss, although obviously the risk of them appearing will be less if we take care of our dog's oral hygiene.
If the process has become irreversible, you can ask yourself, What to do if my dog has lost teeth? And in this article from Animal Expert, we offer you some tips to adequately cope with this situation.
Why do dogs lose their teeth?
A dog can lose its teeth for many reasons, however, in most cases veterinarians identify a very clear cause, periodontal diseaseor gum disease.
This disease can be divided into two phases, the first is reversible and the second is the one that causes the loss of teeth irreversibly, let's see it in more detail below:
- Gingivitis: This is the first phase of the disease and fortunately it is reversible. When there is gingivitis, the gums are mainly affected, which can cause pain, appear inflamed and in the most serious cases also bleed.
- Periodontitis: This is the final phase of the disease and it is not reversible since those beyond the gums begin to be affected. tissues and structures that are responsible for supporting the tooth. If the affectation progresses, it causes the loss of teeth.
Periodontal disease is initiated by the infection caused by the accumulation of bacterial plaque, therefore, the best way to prevent gingivitis as well as its progression to more serious conditions is to actively combat tartar on your dog's teeth.
Treatment of periodontal disease
The ideal is go to the vet as soon as we notice that our dog may have an oral problem, however, if we have not noticed it before and we notice that our dog has lost a tooth, the visit to the professional cannot take any longer.
Let's not forget that the loss of this tooth is caused by a bacterial infection that has not only affected the gums, but to deeper tissues, therefore, there is a risk that the infection can reach the bloodstream and spread throughout the body.
It will then be essential that the veterinarian evaluate the dog's situation and implement an antibiotic treatment, which can be topical (applied directly to the oral cavity) or internal, through tablets or syrups with active ingredients antibacterial.
In the event that a long-term oral treatment is decided, we recommend that your dog start taking probiotics at the same time, preferably also supervised by the veterinarian. This will protect the beneficial bacteria naturally present in your body.
Feeding a toothless dog
Obviously if your dog has lost one or more teeth it will be essential that you adapt his diet so that he can eat properly and with the least degree of pain possible. To achieve this challenge you have several options:
- On the market there are specific feeds for elderly dogs, it would be ideal to moisten their usual croquettes with water or broth (chicken or fish, but always without s alt or onion). We must wait until it achieves a texture similar to puree.
- We can also find in the market wet food, which is easy to chew. Remember that the indications "nutritionally complete" must appear on the packaging, if this is not the case, it is better to look for another product that fully covers your needs.
- Finally we can consult with our veterinarian about the option of offering a specific homemade diet, which will later be mashed to facilitate the dog's feeding. In this case it will be very convenient to consult with the veterinarian about the proportions and the supplements that the dog will need, to avoid nutritional deficiencies.
Regardless of the option you choose, it will be important that this change is made gradually and is supervised by the veterinarian, since he or she may recommend a nutritional supplement if deemed necessary. Finally, you must bear in mind that periodontal disease and the consequent loss of teeth is a situation that will require periodic veterinary visits in order to assess the degree of infection.
More things we can do
In addition to feeding, it will be important to take into account some changes that we must make in order to continue enriching our dog's day-to-day, is the case of toys, for example.
There are some specific tools on the market for senior dogs, such as the kong senior, much softer and more malleable than the classic. This is just an example, but our mission will be to find and choose those toys that best suit our best friend's tooth loss. The cloth toys, for example, are also a good option.
It is also important to continue stimulating his senses with games of smell and intelligence, in which he can not only use his mouth, but also his paws. There are many boards for dogs that we can use for this, but instead of using pellets of feed we will choose bits of frankfurt, minced and cooked meat or, directly,we will spread pâté so that the dog only has to lick.
Now that you know what to do if your dog has lost its teeth, it is very important to emphasize that it can lead a practically normal life, we simply have to take into account some details so as not to cause injuries to his mouth, now much more sensitive due to the lack of teeth.
