Every year, many Veterinary hospitals take a part of the year to really focus on educating people on the importance of good dental health. A lot of the “marketing” for this will mention “bad breath” of pets. This is what we do to grab your attention. It is the bad breath you smell when your pet tries to kiss you. It is the “ick” factor. We naturally do not like things that smell bad and want to make them smell good. For us, we don’t see the bad breath as the problem. It may be a symptom of a bigger problem. Periodontal disease is present in the majority of pets we see. Periodontal disease refers to a disease in the structures that surround the teeth.
Many pets suffer in silence with pain in their mouth. They may not play with their toys as much and may sleep more. Perhaps they are only chewing on one side of their mouth because it hurts too much to chew on the other side. Perhaps there is so much infection in their mouth that they have a regular taste of pus.
Sorry to be gross there, I hope you aren’t eating as you read this. Maybe that is where the smell is coming from. We market bad breath to give you something you can identify because most pet owners do not really look in their pets’ mouths. That is why it is so important to have your pet examined regularly and hopefully prevent periodontal disease. We would much rather prevent it or identify it earlier rather than wait until there is pain. We are quite sure your pet will thank you for it; with a big, sloppy, fresh breath kiss!
Written by: Jennifer Kendrick, Site Coordinator
