Periodontal! Something unfamiliar? Yeah, because, the same as how difficult to define this word is, the same also how painful it is for your dog to suffer from such. Periodontal disease or periodontitis is a serious inflammation and infection involving tissues and structures that are found around the teeth. There are four primary structures included: the alveolar bone, periodontal ligament, the cementum and the gingiva. Although in reality, one of these tissues can be affected alone without the others. So if the gingiva is the problem, it is usually called as gingivitis.
Periodontitis is a serious problem in dogs and cats especially with smaller breeds of dogs. Some epidemiological reports say that 95% of all dogs and cats will encounter one or several forms of periodontal diseases in its lifetime.
Now the problem is, if periodontal infections are not treated early on, these could lead to severe complications which eventually could end up not only to teeth loss in your pet but severe expenses out of your pocket.
So why and how do these happen? Well, just like us humans, as your pet eats, some food particles got caught and/or retained between the teeth as well as deep surfaces around the gums and teeth. If these are not cleaned regularly, it could accumulate and serve as medium for bacteria leading to bacterial overgrowth. The result would be plaque and tartar formation. In severe cases, these areas could further complicate and be the source of infection to other areas of the body.
You need to stop before it cracks!
Yeah, bacteria in there could go crazy and spread the infection to other areas of the body. The inflammation and infection brought about by bacterial overgrowth can damage the periodontal ligament and cementum. These structures are very important as they hold the tooth in place. The alveolar bone can also be affected leading to more pain to your pet and eventually teeth loss.
The good news
Periodontal disease is preventable! In fact if you have trained your dog early on with regular brushing and teeth cleaning, periodontitis would not be an issue anymore to your dog's life. However, most owners found it hard to go to the vet clinic to have their dog's teeth cleaned on a regular basis.
Fortunately, there are now lots of oral care products available.Two great products include Petzlife oral gel and Plaque attack for dogs. Plaque attack and Petzlife dental gel are known to use only all natural ingredients which safely combine with saliva to break up bacteria, plaque, and tartar which cause bad breath and gum disease.
So that's it. Can periodontitis be prevented? Absolutely yes!
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