Best Dental Products For Aussiedoodles: At-Home Oral Care Guide

Is your Aussiedoodle’s breath starting to smell? Are you having trouble brushing his teeth? Here are the best dental products available for your Aussiedoodle.

Brushing your Aussiedoodle’s teeth daily is the most effective at-home oral care method. But other dental products can also help keep your dog’s teeth clean including dental diets and dental chews. Combining multiple products often makes it easier to support your dog’s oral health more consistently.

While brushing your dog’s teeth regularly is ideal, it is often easier said than done. At-home oral care is important because dental disease negatively affects your dog’s comfort, overall health, and quality of life. There is no one correct at-home oral care regimen. Rather, you need to find a combination of methods and products that you can realistically commit to consistently.

As a lifelong pet owner, I recognize that brushing your dog’s teeth consistently can be challenging. Thankfully, there are many dental products available to help keep your furry friend’s teeth clean. In my veterinary experience, some of these products are more effective than others. Keep reading to learn about the efficacy and risks of different dental products so that you can choose what works best for you and your pup.

Why At-Home Oral Care is Important For Your Dog

Good oral hygiene should be a priority for your Aussiedoodle because it affects your dog’s overall health and quality of life. Dental disease can cause significant pain and systemic illness in dogs. 

Dental disease in dogs begins with bacterial plaque. While we do not want plaque to accumulate above the gumline, it is plaque below the gumline that causes dental disease. If left untreated, this will progress to gingivitis (inflammation of the gums) and dental disease.

A consistent at-home oral care routine is crucial in minimizing the formation of plaque and maintaining oral health. 

Dogs require regular professional veterinary dental cleanings but at-home oral care is paramount in the interim. In fact, research regarding human dentistry has shown that professional dental cleaning is less effective in patients with poor at-home oral care. 

Unfortunately, plaque starts to accumulate in as little as 24 hours following a professional dental cleaning, further emphasizing the importance of regular at-home oral care.

Methods of At-Home Oral Care

Generally speaking, at-home oral care approaches can be categorized as active or passive. 

Active methods require the owner to actively partake, such as tooth brushing or applying a tooth sealant. In contrast, examples of passive techniques include dental diets and dental chews since these rely solely on the dog for chewing.

While active methods are more effective than passive ones, both types of methods can be incorporated into your dog’s at-home oral care routine. Moreover, compliance is often better when passive methods are incorporated since they tend to be easier to implement.

The Most Effective Way to Keep Your Dog’s Teeth Clean

Research suggests that tooth brushing is the most effective type of at-home oral care for dogs. 

Tooth brushing is especially important in addressing the teeth in the front of your dog’s mouth. Conversely, passive methods like dental diets and dental chews tend to target the premolars and molars in the back of your dog’s mouth.

Ideally, you should brush your dog’s teeth daily. While frequent and consistent tooth brushing is ideal for controlling plaque, it also conditions your dog to the process and makes the process less stressful for you and your dog. 

To achieve the best results, you should brush your dog’s teeth once a day and utilize an appropriate toothbrush and toothpaste. Research suggests that brushing your dog’s teeth at least three times a week is necessary for sufficient oral hygiene. But if a dog already has some degree of dental disease, he will likely require more frequent tooth brushing.

What to Look for When Choosing Toothpaste for Your Dog

There are several types of veterinary toothpastes available. 

Veterinary toothpaste often contains a calcium chelator, which is a binding agent that decreases calculus. Calculus is essentially the hardened form of plaque. However, calculus itself is not a significant factor in dental disease. Rather, its precursor, plaque, is the more sinister culprit in dental disease.

I do not recommend using human toothpaste because it often contains detergent or fluoride. These ingredients may cause stomach upset or discoloration of your dog’s teeth. Human products may also contain baking soda (sodium bicarbonate), which can make the pH of your dog’s urine abnormal.

What Type of Toothbrush is Right For Your Dog?

There are many types of toothbrush products to choose from including both human and veterinary options. The main thing to consider when selecting an appropriate toothbrush for your pup is size. 

There are toothbrush alternatives such as microfiber finger cloths and nylon finger toothbrushes. However, these non-toothbrush options do not clean below the gumline and therefore, are inferior to an actual toothbrush. Regardless, dogs tend to be more tolerant of these products. Therefore, these non-toothbrush options may be helpful when getting your dog acclimated to the tooth brushing process.

There are multiple veterinary toothbrushes available. However, certain human toothbrushes may also be appropriate as long as they have soft, nylon bristles. If choosing a human toothbrush, a child or infant size may be more appropriate depending on the size and breed of your dog.

Although electric toothbrushes are more effective than regular toothbrushes in people, it is unlikely that your dog will tolerate the vibrating sensation. Therefore, I do not recommend using an electric toothbrush on your dog, especially when your dog is first becoming accustomed to the tooth brushing process. 

Virbac’s C.E.T. Oral Hygiene Kit, available on Amazon, provides a fingerbrush to ease your dog into the toothbrushing process. Furthermore, it includes a double-ended toothbrush, which offers two different sizes of brushes to facilitate access to all teeth in different sized dogs. The toothpaste included in the kit also contains enzymes meant to better minimize plaque and tartar. Unlike human toothpaste options, this veterinary toothpaste is safe if swallowed by your dog.

How to Brush Your Dog’s Teeth

Brushing your dog’s teeth regularly is easier said than done. But there are ways to make the process less intimidating for you and your dog.

Here are a few tips to make brushing your dog’s teeth easier for you and your pup:

• Start as early as possible: handling your puppy’s mouth from a young age will help desensitize your dog to this sensation.
• Be consistent: even if you cannot brush your dog’s teeth everyday, making a point to touch your dog’s face and mouth will condition your dog to this type of handling.
• Gradual conditioning: it is important to avoid pushing your dog beyond his comfort zone too quickly as this could be counterproductive; it takes patience but progressing too quickly may make your dog even more averse to tooth brushing.
• Utilize positive reinforcement: get creative and use treats, toys, and verbal praise to help your dog associate tooth brushing with things he enjoys; never employ negative reinforcement such as scolding or physical discipline as this is unethical and will make your dog more resistant to tooth brushing.

Approved At-Home Veterinary Oral Care Products

The goal of at-home oral care is to minimize plaque formation to prevent dental disease.

Although we have determined that tooth brushing with a toothbrush and veterinary toothpaste is ideal, there are many other tools available to support your dog’s oral health.

VOHC (Veterinary Oral Health Council) has a list of approved at-home oral care products. These products receive the VOHC Registered Seal based on standards assessing whether a product is effective in delaying the accumulation of plaque and tartar.

In addition to tooth brushing, at-home oral care options include dental diets, rawhide and dental chews, water additives, dental wipes, and teeth sealant.

Dogs with dental disease have a plaque biofilm, which is a collection of bacteria that strongly adheres to the teeth. Unfortunately, this biofilm is resistant to many available products including antibiotics and antiseptics. Because of this, some at-home oral care products are more effective than others.

For example, dental chews or dental diets have been proven at least partially effective. However, water additives and oral antiseptic sprays do not appear as helpful, especially if used as a sole method of at-home oral care.

Dental Diets Designed to Help Clean Your Dog’s Teeth

When thinking about how diet affects dental health, hard, dry diet options are generally associated with less plaque and dental disease as compared to soft, wet diets.

In terms of food consistency, hard food requires your dog to chew more than soft food does, resulting in a greater degree of mechanical plaque removal. That being said, feeding a hard, dry dog food alone is not sufficient at-home oral care. 

There are veterinary prescription dental diets that are more effective than other standard dog kibble. These veterinary prescription dental diets are designed based on specific size, texture, and shape of kibble that best mechanically cleans your dog’s teeth when he chews. I recommend Hill’s Science Diet, Royal Canin, and Purina because these companies consistently invest in scientific research to formulate diets in the best interest of your dog’s health.

Dental diets may certainly be helpful for some dogs. Regardless, I recommend consulting your veterinarian if you are considering a dental diet as it may not be appropriate in terms of nutritional support for your individual pet depending on her life stage. For instance, a dental diet fed alone or long-term may not provide adequate nutritional support for a puppy or pregnant dog. 

Potential Dangers of Dental Treats and Chew Toys

Pet owners often enjoy giving their dogs dental chews as a means of providing a tasty treat and enrichment. Dental chews also mechanically clean the premolars and molars in the back of the mouth.

Dental chews, including rawhides and other edible dental treats, often contain a high number of calories. Therefore, it is important to factor these into your dog’s daily caloric intake requirement to avoid overfeeding and obesity. Like any treat, dental chews may cause gastrointestinal upset like diarrhea and vomiting, especially if given in excessive amounts.

It is very dangerous if dogs swallow chew treats or toys whole or in large pieces. Chew treats or toys can become lodged in the esophagus or cause an obstruction in the intestines, which could be fatal.

Most dogs love chewing. But dogs can fracture their teeth, especially if treats or toys are very hard. For example, I do not recommend giving antlers or marrow bones, since these options commonly result in fractured upper premolars. Two brands that offer a wide variety of chew toys are Nylabone and KONG. They offer many products with a range of durability, including slightly more flexible options for puppy teeth and more heavy-duty options for enthusiastic chewers. 

Risks of Giving Your Dog Rawhide Chews

Some dogs love chewing on rawhides, ranging from cow hooves, cow skin, pig ears, and “bully sticks” (or bull penis). But these rawhides are not without risk.

As the name suggests, rawhides are in fact raw. This means they carry an increased risk of causing foodborne illness due to bacterial contamination. Research has shown that rawhides can be contaminated with bacterial pathogens such as Salmonella, Clostridium, MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus), and E. coli. These bacteria are zoonotic, meaning they can also infect humans. Additionally, some of these bacteria are resistant to antibiotics, thereby making treatment more challenging.

General tips when selecting a dental treat or chew toy:

• Only give dental treats in moderation
• Avoid raw options
• Avoid very hard or sharp objects
• Observe your dog to ensure he chews adequately before swallowing

Water Additives to Supplement Your Dog’s At-Home Oral Care Routine

Another passive method of at-home oral care is water additives. There are water additives that contain antiseptic ingredients such as chlorhexidine. Unfortunately, while water additives may reduce a single type of bacteria, they are likely not potent enough to significantly reduce plaque overall.

One study showed that a water additive containing xylitol did reduce plaque and tartar in cats. However, I recommend avoiding products containing xylitol because it is technically toxic to cats and dogs. If dogs ingest a certain amount of xylitol, an ingredient often found in sugar-free products (e.g. sugar-free gum), it can cause dangerously low blood sugar.

If you choose to give your dog a water additive, I recommend introducing it gradually to prevent stomach upset. In general, you should follow the product’s instructions about administration but gradually tapering up to the recommended amount over the course of a few days is ideal.

If you are interested in integrating a water additive into your dog’s at-home oral care regimen, I recommend considering Dechra’s Vetradent Water Additive, which can be found on Amazon.

Do Oral Gels and Sprays Reduce Plaque in Your Dog?

There are veterinary dental gels and sprays available that contain an antiseptic intended to reduce plaque accumulation.

Research has shown that oral gel containing the antiseptic chlorhexidine reduced plaque in dogs, especially if applied consistently following a professional dental cleaning. Similarly, a study assessing the efficacy of a dental spray in cats showed that oral sprays may reduce the amount of harmful bacteria in pets’ mouths.

As with the other at-home oral care methods, oral gels and sprays may certainly provide some reduction in oral bacteria and dental plaque but are not nearly as effective as regular tooth brushing.

Teeth Sealant to Minimize Plaque Reaccumulation After Your Dog’s Dental Cleaning

After professional veterinary dental cleanings, your veterinarian may apply a teeth sealant. A teeth sealant is designed to act as a barrier to more effectively prevent the reaccumulation of plaque. Following the dental cleaning, your veterinarian will dry your dog’s teeth and apply a wax-based sealant. Your veterinarian may also recommend continued weekly application of a teeth sealant.

Why Your Dog Needs Regular Professional Veterinary Dentistry 

Despite regular at-home oral care, dogs require professional veterinary dental cleanings under anesthesia. This is not surprising when we consider that we as humans require regular professional dental cleaning despite daily brushing and flossing.

I recommend a wellness exam at least once a year for adult dogs and twice a year for senior dogs. At these wellness exams, your veterinarian will examine your dog’s mouth as part of the physical exam and can determine when a dental cleaning is indicated. While cavities are not common in our canine companions, regular dental exams by your veterinarian are necessary to check for other issues like fractured teeth, oral masses, or malocclusions (abnormal positioning of teeth or bite alignment).

Fortunately, there are many different possible combinations of methods for at-home oral care for your Aussiedoodle. While daily tooth brushing should be part of every dog’s oral hygiene routine, I recommend incorporating additional methods and products to achieve the best results. The success of an at-home oral care routine depends largely on compliance. Therefore, whatever combination of dental products and cleaning methods works best for your dog and your family will inherently be the one that is most effective.