Which food is best for healthy teeth?

[White Daisy]

I have a 7 year old cocker spaniel called Millie who has recurrent teeth problems  She has had dentals under anaesthetic previously and is going in again next week for further treatment.  I am advised that she also has an abcess.  She has been on Hills T/D prescription diet food for several years now, as recommended by the vet and I feel that her teeth have made no improvement. I just wondered if we were wasting our money continuing with this food and are there other alternatives that we could consider?  Also is there anything else we can do to help prevent the build up of plaque?  My in-laws have her sister and she also has dental problems.  Many thanks in advance for your advice.

[Karma]

Your vet probably won't agree, but one of the best things for reducing plaque build up is a raw chicken wing every now and again. 

Honey has been completely raw fed from a young age, and has pretty good teeth... but my Dad has noticed the difference in his older Collie since moving onto raw food...

I think if you are sticking with a commercial food, a chicken wing once or twice a week is generally enough to have a good impact on teeth... (raw chicken bones are fine for dogs, despite what you may hear... it's cooked bones (in general, but especially cooked chicken bones) that cause the problems!)

If you don't want to try this, I believe some people have had good results from a product called Plaque Off...

[ElaineH]

I'd just typed out a reply then lost connection!  

My reply was similar to Karma's. Morgan is fed on Burns complete (dry food) but also gets raw wings about 3 times a week, he also has Sea Jerky chews from Fish4dogs, gnaws on a nylabone and we use "Plaque Off" too just to make sure!   It's a powder that you add to food, it's rather expensive but you only use a small amount so it lasts a long time (our cats get it too)

Obviously if your girl has an abscess then that needs to be dealt with first by the vet but I wouldn't rely just on a particular food to keep her teeth good.

A lot of people are rather uncomfortable with the idea of vets promoting particular foods, by the way!

[SimonandMandy]

Raw for me too, at 2 and 1/2 Harv's teeth were looking terrible and I was battling his weight all the time, changed him back to raw and within 2 weeks his teeth has massively improved, his weight is in control and he is so much happier in himself. 

There are lots of options if raw isn't one for you like the powders...

[jujuli]

I also use the Prescription T/D for Charlies teeth as he really is not into chewing bones or anything really and has started to get a build up.  It is really expensive but the vet nurse said  I could add a few to his food so he has 6 or 8 a day so a bag lasts a long time, but he loves them so much I dont know if I can stop now as he will sit and wait for them.  Im going to have a try with the chicken wings as it may encourage him to actually chew something.  With other bones he just licks them and then leaves them alone.  Is once a week enough for cleaning the teeth?

[Holly Berry]

We have had success with Plaque Off and chicken wings too. Rosie who is 6 has quite a bit of build up but that has disappeared and she is left now with just a bit of discolouration.

[elaine.e]

Chicken wings and Plaque Off here too.

William is 6 years old and had his teeth cleaned under GA when he was only 4 because they had so much plaque. I don't know why they were so dirty so young because he's always been fed good quality food and limited treats, nothing sugary. He's not keen on chewing anything hard, so maybe that contributed. He also used to be prone to lip fold infections and I wonder if those and dental problems might go hand in hand, with all those bacteria in the same sort of area?

After he'd had his dental I started using Plaque Off and that certainly seems to have slowed down any new build up of plaque. Over the last year or so he's also been given raw chicken wings a couple of times a week and I think they help too. Maybe a coincidence, but he's not had a lip fold infection for a long time either.

[Bluebell]

I have recently started adding this to my dogs food

http://www.csjk9.com/productcart/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=75&idcategory=3

I have seen a noticeable improvement very quickly

[White Daisy]

Thanks for all your replies.  I'm going to change her food back to Burns (which she used to be on before the TD) and get some of the Plaque Off.  Am still considering the chicken wings though - not sure if I'm brave enough!  Will probably give them a go when she's recovered from her dental.  Picking her up from the vets soon, where she's had to have six teeth out.  Poor girl - lots of love and cuddles tonight for her!

[elaine.e]

Thanks for all your replies.  I'm going to change her food back to Burns (which she used to be on before the TD) and get some of the Plaque Off.  Am still considering the chicken wings though - not sure if I'm brave enough!  Will probably give them a go when she's recovered from her dental.  Picking her up from the vets soon, where she's had to have six teeth out.  Poor girl - lots of love and cuddles tonight for her!

Poor Milly  My first Cocker had a few teeth removed when he was quite old and I was amazed at how quickly he healed up and got over it. I think if it had been me I would have moaned and groaned and felt sorry for myself for ages. Hopefully Milly will recover quickly too.

If you decide to try her on a raw chicken wing once she's recovered don't be surprised if she either pushes it round the floor and doesn't know how to tackle it initially, or practically bolts it down with just a few crunches. The scariest thing (I think) is the horrible crunching sounds. I used to worry at first, but don't think twice about it now.