So, February is dental month.  If you have a pet you’ve been clobbered over the head with this fact (I hope!).  What this means to you is most vets offer discounted rates for dental procedures and most stores and online retailers will have dental goodies on sale.

What’s our fave product?  Well, we’re pugs (i.e. mouth breathers) so we have bad teeth – even with brushing and all that.  And we do get brushed, not with a brush but with a glove that has bristles on the thumb and index inger (we get them online at PetEdge.com).  We use 1 glove for all 4 dogs and they work – its kinda gross, you’ll know they work right away

For chewy things we don’t do Greenies except as a snack…they don’t really do a whole heck of a lot for teeth in our experience.  Ark Naturals makes a yummy treat (good for cats & dogs) that has enzymatic toothpaste as a ‘smooth creamy filling’.  We get them online here: Ark Naturals Brushless Toothpaste Treats

As animals get older you may decide its not safe to put them under for dental procedures. This is the case for Vince and Doug-Doug of course but even 5-year old Norm isn’t going under, pugs are known for more complications ‘cuz of anesthesia – so we use PetzLife dental gel. These folks have been doing infommercials for-evah and we got a trial bottle a long time ago. Its great, you use a drop the size of a dime at night after last food/drink. Just drop on finger – stick finger in mouth – spread on teeth. You don’t have to worry about getting it all over, the dogs will lick and spread it all over the place. Honestly after the first day Vince’s breath improved and at his age and with his health issues we need to keep those teeth clean and that mouth free of infection…this stuff has done that. We get it online here (it seems pricey but 1 bottle has lasted these 3 pugs for over 6 months): PetZlife Gel

So, you have to brush and/or use another product to keep the mouth clean. Chewing on Greenies or bully stix ain’t doing much and you don’t want to wait ’til they’re seniors to start. The mouth is the most common spot for infection and can pose huge complications for animals with a compromised immune system, diabetes, anyone really.

You don’t have to kiss your pug on the lips (I don’t !) but you do want them kissably fresh for your comfort and their health.