Managing dental health in a large bird dog kennel

By Martin Coffman, D.V.M.

Managing the dental health of large sporting dog kennels can be challenging for the owner, trainer and kennel veterinarian.

Yet, I have observed poor dental health to decrease the ability to smell birds, decrease sexual activity in stud dogs and have a negative effect on the general health of dogs. In private veterinary practice, I witnessed many "poor doers" improve greatly just from having their teeth cleaned and gums treated.

Over the next decade, improving dental health will be an innovative but crucial step in improving performance of field trial dogs. Due to the large number of dogs involved in many of our kennels, treatment and preventive protocols used in smaller kennels or with household pets may not be logistically appropriate, and compliance levels may be low when these standard measures are used.

The objective for trainers and veterinarians who care for field trial breeding or training facilities is to include optimal dental care in the overall health plan for the kennel in a manner that is acceptable to the owners and that ensures the best possible dental health for the dogs housed in the facility. Compliance on the part of the kennel staff is a crucial factor, as is the economy of the plan.

A workable dental health care program for these large kennels can be divided into Professional Duties and Owner Duties. For success, veterinarians need a flexible attitude about the duties that fall into these major categories. Steps that traditionally may have been the purview of the doctor often are performed by the owner/trainer, and this division of duties will require some training efforts on the part of the kennel veterinarian.

Owner/Trainer Duties

Often owners and trainers discover and report dental pathology after it is well advanced and obvious. The goal of an optimal dental health plan for these kennels is to upgrade the ability of the owner/trainer to recognize problems before they affect the performance of the dog or require a major restorative treatment plan for an individual tooth.

Owner/trainers should be encouraged to observe dogs on a daily basis for signs of dental and oral disease.

Typical important observations will include difficulty eating, holding the head in a tilted manner, dropping food or retrieved game, quivering of the jaw or chattering of the teeth, and, of course, foul-smelling breath. Drooling, clicking or popping noises, or other evidence of oral pain are also important signs for which caretakers should be alert.

Facial swelling, draining tracts on the side of the muzzle and bleeding from the mouth are more serious signs of possible dental disease that kennel personnel can recognize. The kennel veterinarian should be recruited to hold training classes on site to educate kennel management and other staff on the signs of dental disease. These sessions can also be used to instruct the caregivers on the importance of sound dental health to the career of the dog and the overall success of the kennel.

Meal times are ideal for close observation of dogs for the signs of oral problems. Another excellent time for owner/trainers to examine the mouth for signs of problems is when dogs are handled during daily training.

While the manager of the kennel must accept and promote the concept of improved dental health, it is the staff that feeds the dogs daily, cleans the kennel and performs the daily training tasks that are most important in discovering problems early in the course of the disease.

These kennel staff members, from the lowest to the highest, must be included in training sessions concerning dental health of the dogs.

Physical Examination of the Mouth by Kennel Staff

Observe the entire animal: While this seems a "given" to veterinarians and experienced bird dog folks, it should be stressed during training sessions, not only because dental disease can affect other systems but also because even long-time dog owners and trainers may be unaware of the importance of looking over the entire dog. While signs like a rough hair coat or weight loss can be traced to many possible causes, dental problems are on that list.

Observe the face for swellings, especially subtle differences in the size of the muzzle compared to the opposite side.

Examine the Mouth

Open lips and examine teeth and gums; look at the back teeth and not just the teeth that are easy to see.

Open mouth: Most experienced bird dog owners and trainers in the sporting dog arena can recognize even unusual problems. Look at the roof of the mouth for foreign objects wedged across the roof of the mouth (common).

Look under the tongue for hidden problems.

Observe for nose bleed, bleeding gums, and ulcers on gums and inner cheek surfaces.

If this examination is required daily, it will likely become unimportant, and the effort may fail. A better recommendation is for the mouth of each dog to be thoroughly examined once per week. While it may be challenging for the trainer and the kennel veterinarian to gain complete compliance for all the recommended dental preventive steps, acquiring the support of the entire kennel staff will make the task much easier in the long run. Time spent educating the staff can lead to better well-being and field performance of the dogs in the kennel and an easier time of it for the humans involved, too.

Professional Duties for the Kennel Veterinarian

The kennel veterinarian will be familiar with common dental diseases and the management of them, and a written health care plan that includes educating caregivers about recognition of the basic signs of these conditions should be developed for the kennel.

In addition, a home-care preventive program that will help decrease the incidence of dental disease in the kennel population should be devised. Naturally, the doctor will provide treatment for dental problems that occur within the kennel.

Proactive Options

Peristat®: includes 20 mg of doxycycline, an antibiotic; can be given daily by mouth for dogs regardless of body weight.

Proponents say that it is an adjunct to professional cleaning and scaling of the teeth and provides anticollagenase ("toughens" the gums) activity. (There is no anti-germ activity at this dosage.) Opponents say that scaling and cleaning of the gum pocket is sufficient to control the infection and makes the anticollagenase activity unnecessary.

Brush oral tissues with a solution of one part chlorine bleach and nine parts water (Dakin's solution) or chlorhexidine gluconate gel. Once-weekly brushing will probably be sufficient in large training or breeding kennels.

Again, to begin the added duty of weekly brushing of a bird dog's teeth may seem totally impractical, but the dividends are substantial. With practice, the whole process will take less than five minutes per dog.

Dakin's solution works well and is safe at this dilution. Chlorhexidine rinses or gels are oral antiseptics with non-specific antibacterial activity as well as against some fungi and viruses. There is a large body of research documenting the antimicrobial activity of chlorhexidine. While it has been shown to reduce plaque and gingivitis, it paradoxically can increase the rate of calculus formation. The drug also causes a brown staining of the teeth that can be polished off but looks terrible in the interim. Chlorhexidine can be used sporadically in the sporting dog kennel, but due to this discoloration, daily or routine use is probably not advisable.

Maxi Gard® is a zinc-and-ascorbic acid product that is available as either a rinse or gel. It is sold through veterinarians. It has antibacterial properties and the zinc/vitamin C combination supports healthy gums.

he product is tasteless and easy to use. This product is useful in the large kennel because it only requires being placed in the dog's mouth and is economical.

Chew toys

Most chew toys, while somewhat beneficial, only last a day or two in the typical bird dog kennel environment. To be effective, a large quantity would need to be on hand and purchased on a regular basis. The old practice of "boning" the dogs, i.e., giving them some large bones to chew, probably does decrease tartar formation. This process is done commonly in hunting and field trial kennels.

Successful trainers and breeders have strong opinions about the benefits of this activity. Regardless, chewing and breaking off pieces of large bones is a major cause of fractured teeth, so "boning" is not recommended. The kennel veterinarian is the best source for development of a total health plan including dental care.

Specific medications may or may not be applicable in an individual kennel setting and the local doctor is the best source of information about these remedies.

Diet

Ideally, a diet will be selected for the performance dog kennel that has a positive effect on dental health. Some diets are available that, while effective in helping to decrease tartar build-up, do not have a nutritional matrix that adequately supports high-performance athletic bird dogs. Preferably, the dog will be fed a "performance" dog food that is manufactured using a technology that supports dental health through decreased calculus production. For example, a diet that contains a phosphorus source, such as hexametaphosphate, applied in a thin layer on the kibble surface has been proven effective in reducing tartar formation in dogs.

Specifically, a reduction in calculus formation of up to 55 percent has been reported, versus the same food without the hexametaphosphate crystal coating.

In a large sporting dog kennel, the use of this dietary aid for dental health can provide an important, economical and effective adjunct to other dental care measures as well as providing a diet designed for athletic dogs.

Professional Cleaning

From a dental health standpoint, there is no substitute for dental care under anesthesia in a veterinary hospital. The goal for the kennel plan is to keep these in-clinic visits to a minimum over a dog's lifetime, but eventually all dogs will need to have their teeth cleaned professionally.

Each dog in the kennel will benefit from an aggressive preventive approach to their health, including professional dental care. A discussion with the kennel veterinarian will disclose the best procedures for this important step in the overall care of a bird dog.

Conclusion

Owners and trainers should be educated to recognize cardinal signs of dental and gum disease through a cursory examination of their dogs on a weekly basis.

A home-care regimen should be designed by the kennel veterinarian that allows a substantial portion of the preventive steps to be performed by kennel staff and care givers.

Regular professional veterinary care for the teeth and gums should be a routine part of the care of bird dogs, and a diet should be selected that not only supports optimal performance for competitive dogs, but also helps reduce tartar build-up.