raw diet and dental health

[blessedwithboys]

I've decided that if I'm going to commit to raw it will have to be commercially prepared. It's just too hard for me right now to take on worrying about getting ratios and amounts right.

I'm going to go with Nature's Variety frozen nuggets b/c I can get 5 different varities to rotate, a different one each day if I plan my thawing right. A local mom and pop pet store will special order me 5 bags every six months or so at a good price.

I will also give Vegas raw chicken wing bones, though she is not much of a chewer.

She came to me with horrible teeth, tons of calculus. I read all the time hwo raw diets keep teeth clean, but I can't get a straight answer on whether they can get teeth clean that are already somewhat bad.

What are the chances of her new diet eliminating the need for the dental? (I wouldn't just go for the $90 deal, I would pay 3x that for all of the blood work and the echo, and maybe even antibx, so it will be a few weeks before I have the money for that.)

Am I putting too much faith in the natural diet?

[Ola_]

For my greyhound switching to raw did actually clean up his teeth. It might depend on how bad her teeth are and how long they've been like that - if some need to be pulled or are infected then obviously it won't help with that.

However, a ground raw diet will not do much in terms of tooth cleaning. The lack of carbs will help but it's the chewing aspect that makes a big difference. It really isn't difficult, we can help if you'd like. You can buy things at the grocery store and depending on what you have available there and costs you can have a list of a few potential meals and just use those. You need meat and some bone, once or twice a week add in a piece of organ, that's it!

[blessedwithboys]

i know the preground stuff wont work for abrasion which is why i thought to give her raw bones in addition

right now i just cant put the attention on figuring it all out. i'm a single mama and i work 6 days/wk and somethings gotta give, yk?

I've filed all the great advice from barfers here and will try soon to go it on my own but for now the commercial stuff is a huge improvement even over the super premiun holistic stuff i've been feeding.

(ok, i have to admit i have moderate OCD and the thought of a dog holding a piece of raw meat between her front legs on the kitchen floor flips me out big time. she would have to be fed once a day not two b/c i'd be bathing her after each meal. LOL)

if i add in dainty little ch wing bones that should help the teeth i guess.

i just wasnt sure if raw bones could actually clean already gunky teeth. i'm sure that if and when she gets a prof scaling the raw diet will keep them clean after.

[3boobykins]

You could try this for her teeth:

http://www.petzlife.com/

[oneKnight]

Please DO NOT bathe your dog everytime she eats. Talk about dried out skin problems! Dry skin that's sensitive to overwashing is a problem of mine, so this idea horrifies me.

FWIW, my dog usually doesn't hold meat between her paws, she picks up a whole chicken leg in her mouth and eats standing upright - which is beneficial I think, since they do make raised kibble bowls intended to accomplish this amazing feat. Then she licks everything the chicken might have touched, and that's clean enough for the floor for my standards since we just walk on it (no kids crawling, for example)

You can always feed outside (my dog will hide stuff outside so I dislike this plan personally), in the crate, or train the dog to stay on a towel.

There's gonna be a learning curve no matter how you do it. It's not hard though. I wish you luck!

[blessedwithboys]

oneKnight: i was doing a forum search for petzlife and this older thread of mine came up. i just wanted to add in that i was joking about bathing my dog daily. she IS super messy with rmb's so using a raised bowl wouldnt work for us, plus shes a teeny tiny toy poodle and wouldnt be able to reach a raised bowl. i DO have to bathe her maybe more often than a dog that sheds, but no, i would never bathe her daily. i had a foster dog a fe wmonths back that had to be crated when i went out and even if i was only gone an hour he would poop and pee and roll in it. i had him six wks and lost count after his 30th bath. oy, that was too much work! LOL

[tine1973]

Our older dog has TERRIBLE teeth - we've had them cleaned twice already and she was due for a third cleaning.... we switched to raw (and basically all we do are chicken legs, whole chickens, and random bits of organ meat) in August, and the plaque literally FELL OFF of her back teeth. Seriously - the are almost completely clean. The insisors are less clean - because they aren't used as much in the chomping - but I have been totally amazed by how much better her teeth are - I don't think we will need to get them cleaned again, and her breath is better too.