Interview with Veterinary Dental Home Care Expert

Bio

Dr Fiona Patterson BVSc. is a graduate of the University of Melbourne Veterinary School. She worked in mixed and small animal practices before joining Mars Petcare in 2000. She is currently the Veterinary Advisor, providing veterinary expertise across the Mars Petcare business, and manages Mars Petcare College, an online learning platform that up skills those that work in the Pet and Vet sectors.

Dr. Fiona Patterson, Veterinary Advisor Mars Petcare fiona.patterson@effem.com

We asked Dr Fiona a series of questions.

Musts for dental home care – dog 

Periodontal disease is the most frequently occurring clinical condition in dogs, with 80% of dogs over the age of 3 years showing signs of the disease.^1,2 

• Start with clean teeth – Commence a dental home care program during puppyhood as this build’s the pet parent’s dental care habits and helps the dog become accustomed to having their mouth handled and teeth brushed. For older pets, commence dental home care after a thorough dental inspection, clean and polish under general anesthesia. 

• Understand how quickly plaque and tartar returns! – After cleaning, plaque starts to reform in 24 hours and tartar within 72 hours. This demonstrates the critical need for effective dental home care for the control of periodontal disease.

• Brush daily – Daily toothbrushing is the gold standard in dental home care for pets³, and more encouragement and advice should be given to pet parents to adopt the practice and incorporate it into their daily routine.

• Understand that (currently) very few pet parents perform daily toothbrushing – Only around 2% of pet owners manage to comply with daily toothbrushing recommendations.³ This means that while continuing to promote the benefits of daily toothbrushing to pet parents, other dental home care strategies should be recommended.

• Consider dental main meal dry food –A specially formulated dental dry food such as ADVANCE™ Triple Action Dental Care is more effective at helping reduce plaque and tartar accumulation than standard dry kibble. This is because the dental kibble in ADVANCE™ Triple Action Dental Care has a specific kibble size, shape and dimension plus contains active ingredients such as STPP to bind salivary calcium thereby reducing plaque calcification (tartar) and a natural plant extract (containing cate chins) that helps to freshen breath by inhibiting the growth of bacteria. The product is available for small, medium and large breed dogs.

• Provide dental treats – GREENIES™dog dental treats carry the VOHC Seal of Acceptance for both plaque and tartar retardation. They are an easy and delicious way to promote good oral health in your dog. For best results, offer daily.

• 60% less tartar accumulation and 32% less plaque accumulation⁴
• Unique texture fights plaque and tartar
• Complete and balanced for adult maintenance
• Made with natural ingredients plus vitamins, minerals and nutrients
• Easy to digest

Musts for dental home care - cat

Statistics show over 70% of cats display signs of periodontal disease by the age of 3. In addition to periodontal disease, cats also suffer from resorptive lesions, with 29% of cats in the UK having a lesion whilst this figure increases to 54% of cats presented for dental treatment.⁵

The same general advice outlined for dogs, also applies to cats. ADVANCE™ Triple Action Dental Care for cats is a main meal dry food with dental benefits (as listed for the dog product).

GREENIES™ cat dental treats carry the VOHC Seal of Acceptance for tartar retardation. They are an easy and delicious way to promote good oral health in your cat. For best results, offer daily.

• Unique shape and crunchy texture cleans teeth and freshens breath
• Nutritionally complete and balanced for adult cats
• Less than 2 calories per treat
• Made with natural ingredients plus vitamins, minerals and nutrients
  

Alternative to brushing teeth

Daily brushing, when properly performed, has been shown to be the single most effective means of plaque removal.³ Therefore, pet parents should be shown how to brush their pet’s teeth and counseled on the steps/process needed to condition the dog or cat to tooth brushing.

In addition, daily dental kibble and treats provide additional dental home care options and are easy for the pet parent and well accepted by the pet. 

What do the studies say about the most effective home care products?

I'd suggest this is a good place to check for effective dental products: 

http://www.vohc.org/all_accepted_products.html

Does size of kibble and chew hardness actually have a difference in effectiveness?

Yes – Studies at the Waltham Pet care Science Institute have investigated the effect of kibble shape, size and texture on oral health. Larger kibbles are chewed more and have a greater effect on the removal of plaque, which if left undisturbed will promote gingival inflammation.

ADVANCE™ Triple Action Dental Care is formulated with a research-backed kibble design to promote oral health.

What features of a dog dental toy are important ie. Bristles?

• It’s all about design – treats need attributes that facilitate effective plaque and tartar removal and prevent build up. These attributes may be in terms of shape, texture, dimension etc Look for dental treats such as GREENIES™that carry the VOHC Seal of Acceptance. That way you know they’ve been independently tested to be effective.

http://www.vohc.org/all_accepted_products.html

What is the latest thinking on raw bones?

• Tooth fracture in dogs is common. The advice is to avoid raw bones, stones and toys that are harder than the teeth. Also take care with play items such as tennis balls as the outer coating is quite abrasive and can wear down a dog’s teeth. Frisbees can be damaging and can dis color teeth due to trauma and pulp damage.
  

How long do home care methods extend the life of a prophy?

I don’t have any particular stats on this, but home care is only as effective as the carer providing it. We must encourage the pet parent to develop robust dental home care habits – and stick to them!

References:

1. Hamp, S.E., et al (1984) A macroscopic and radiological investigation of dental diseases in the dog. Veterinary Radiology 25: 86-92.

2. Kortegaard, H.E., et al. (2008) Periodontal disease in research beagle dogs--an epidemiological study. J Small Anim Pract, 49(12), 610-6.

3. Quest, B.W. (2013) Oral health benefits of a daily dental chew in dogs. J Vet Dent, 30(2), 84-7.

4. Data on file at Mars Petcare US 2010.

5. Ingham et al., Prevalence of odontoclastic resorptive lesions in a population of clinically healthy cats. J Small Anim Pract. 2001 Sep; 42(9):439-43.