Sunday, February 13, 2011

How to brush your Vizsla's teeth


How To Brush Your Dog's Teeth | DrsFosterSmith.com on Howcast

I liked this video.

This is now the method I am using with my Vizslas.

The trick is to get them used to getting their teeth cleaned.

The vet quoted $300 per dog for a full teeth cleaning.

They have to be sedated.

12 comments:

John Connelly said...

LoL I know what Juliet will say when she sees this "chicken wings and lamb ribs" !!

Juliet said...

You took the words right out of my mouth John!! Beef knuckles are also good for recreational chewing...

Anonymous said...

I've been wanting a Vizsla for years, but it just hasn't been a possibility until now. I'm hoping to add a new pup to my household within the next year, and in the meantime, I love reading about your canine friends and learning from your experiences. By way of thanks, I'm recognizing you with a Stylish Blogger Award. If you'd like to read about it and pass it on, I've posted about it here: http://midwesternexposure.wordpress.com/2011/02/19/better-than-flowers/

Rod Michaelson said...

Yankee, (midwestexposure)

Thank you for the recognition. Blogging about Vizslas has opened up the whole world. Vizsla lovers are in each corner of the world and there is a special bond that you can feel between dog and owner when you read their blogs.
In Iowa, you are in the heartland of America but it has many of the same environments as the plains of Hungary. Careful though. If you get one Vizsla, before long you will want a second. Then the time you have to cook will be gone! You will want to be outside with them instead of in the kitchen. Life is full of choices.

Anonymous said...

Rod, that is a risk I will gladly take! -Yankee

Anonymous said...

Good video, i will have to steal myself and be this patient in teaching this. I want it to become a regular thing around here. Luna's now 3 and she JUST started showing any sort of tartar on her canines. I know it has to do with what I feed her and all the chews she gets.

Juliet, are you talking raw chicken wings and lamb ribs? I used to give mine the dog treat cow ribs but then he was able to get pieces off and I worried as I doubt they are raw.

Anna
www.akginspiration.com

Laila said...

Thank you for tackling this issue. Canine oral health is often overlooked. We brush a few times a week and provide non-bleached rawhide chews for recreational chewing. Our Vizsla Laila is over three and hasn't had any signs of tartar on her canines.

Like Anna, I'm also curious -- raw chicken wings and lamb ribs from the grocer's meat department? A couple of friends that feed raw have suggested raw turkey necks in addition to (or in leiu of) brushing. They buy them in bulk, freeze them, and then defrost before giving them to their dogs.

Rod, you provide wonderful, insightful posts. Keep it up.

Renee (and Laila)

Rod Michaelson said...

Hi Rod,

Juliet can elaborate but I can say that both our dogs have been fed on raw chicken wings since they were old enough to pick one up and we have never seen anything untoward happen and do not see anything looking like a bone coming out the other end… We have been cautioned about feeding the longer stronger leg bones but the wings and chicken frames (carcass stripped of meat, legs and wings) seem absolutely fine and they love them. The big no-no is cooked chicken bones which seem indigestible and can splinter potentially lacerating the gut. Rio picked up a cooked leg bone, probably from somebody's discarded take-away dinner, and this came out his backside (fortunately) in one piece..I know 'cos he needed a hand!

forwarded from John Connelly

Anonymous said...

I have in the past fed Luna chicken backs, and necks.. Never wings but I think I shall start, as they are cheap and easier to deal with than the backs were. I have also thought of the turkey necks but it is hard to find them at stores in bulk. Maybe I will see if I can find some chicken necks.

Overall Luna has never had any problem with any of the raw I have given her. It takes her some time to get back into the swing of eating backs etc, but that's mainly due to her not being a big eater. I would really love to find some unbleaches tripe around here, but again can't find anything but the scalded which has no nutritional value.

Hmmm.. after all this talk I may have to write up a whole post on this.

Anna
www.akginspiration.com

Juliet said...

Hi there - I'm definitely talking about RAW chicken wings & lamb ribs (& about raw bones in general). Here in the UK I can buy wings from my local supermarket but can also source all raw bones directly from butchers, butchers wholesalers & abbatoirs.

Cooked or baked bones must NEVER be given as they can splinter & cause perforation of the GI tract.

Chicken wings are a brilliant source of fat, protein and minerals. The chewiness of the wings helps keep teeth clean without brushing.

Raw meaty bones (including meaty lamb ribs) help to scrub the teeth clean & the gristly stringy bits floss the teeth. It's very important to remember that it's not crunching the bone that does the work (even though they will eat EVERYTHING (!)...it's gnawing off the meat & cartilage that does the trick.

My two also get raw recreational bones (these are non-edible bones like big knuckles) - these are also valuable tooth-cleaners plus are good mind soothers & muscle exercisers.

Raw meat is also good because it does not stick to the teeth to start with &, therefore, does not encourage the formation of bacterial plaque on the teeth.

Feeding dogs a raw diet including the raw meaty bones means (imho) that they are healthier & suffer less from common modern diseases such as chronic colitis, atropy & periodontal disease. They are also less likely to suffer from blocked anal glands (a very common condition in dogs fed wet food or poor quality kibble).

Here are a few of the other benefits of feeding raw & raw meaty bones (RBM): Reduced doggy odour & “dog breath”; chewing RMBs cleans teeth & supplies minerals, but, most important, dogs love it…it gets their endorphins going; the time it takes for a dog to chew RMB gives their stomach time to get the acids moving; produces firmer, more “pick-upable”, less smelly, smaller stools.

As you can tell, I'm a real advocate of the Barf diet...in my opinion, dogs have evolved to eat this diet, so why feed them anything else?!

Juliet

Rod Michaelson said...

http://redbirddog.blogspot.com/2011/02/raw-chicken-wings-to-clean-teeth.html

Thanks Juliet, posted now on the blog. Good job. I'll give it a try.
- Rod

Juliet said...

Excellent - do let me know how you get on. By the way, if Bailey & Chloe have never had a raw chicken wing before, don't be surprised if it takes them a while to work out what to do. They'll probably lick it & push it around for a while before actually getting on with the crunching bit...just leave them to it, they'll soon work it out!!! Just yell if I can be of any more help.
Juliet