Your Pets Dental Health

Today is Hug Your Cat day, so I figured… why not write a blog about proper hygiene for your pets? Here is some information on how to improve your pets dental health, whether they are a cat or a dog.

1. Breath Test: While many of our pets do not have the best smelling breath, we should be concerned if their breath is offensive. Foul smelling breath could be signs of digestion issues or gum disease. If your furry friend has a loss of appetite, vomiting, frequent urination, you should definitely be taking them to the vet.
2. Lip Service: Once a week lift your pets lips. Their gum tissues should be hard and pink, not red/white. Also make sure there are no fractured teeth and be on a lookout for brown tarter build up, their teeth should be sparkly and white just like yours.
3. Signs of oral disease: Bad breath, excessive drooling, inflamed gums, ulcers/tumors/cysts on the gum tissue or under the tongue, loose teeth,  difficulty eating, pus, a red line along the gum tissue or excessive pawing of their mouth. These signs may show that your pet may have problem in their mouth or a gastro-intestinal related problem.
4. Tooth decay: Bacteria and plaque forming foods can start to harden on your pets teeth and create tartar build-up which if left on teeth can cause gingivitis and tooth decay.

For more tips and information go to https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/cat-care/ten-steps-dental-health for our cat owners or https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/dog-care/ten-steps-your-dogs-dental-health for our dog owners