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Keeping Your Pet Healthy With Chews for DogsMost dogs start displaying oral problems by the age of three. To help fight against this irreversible damage, you should start out early by brushing your dog's teeth daily. It's also important to provide chews for your dog, and make sure that you schedule routine checkups with your vet.
Once they get used to the idea, it's generally easy to brush most dogs' teeth. You merely have to learn the right way to do it. Choosing the right objects for your dog to chew can be a little more difficult.
The majority of chew toys available for dogs are made of rawhide or bone. There are also some edible chews made of compressed vegetable matter. When investigating all the various options on the market, there is one thing you should keep most in mind. The intent of a chew is to reduce the amount of plaque and tartar that accumulate on your dog's teeth. Remember this, because marketing strategies will try to get you to consider the taste of the treat or your dog's urge to chew over your primary objective.
Learn what your pet likes to chew before you go shopping. Different breeds have different requirements as to the size of their chew toys. Knowing your dog's chewing habits will help you to choose the best one. Depending on what breed you have, you may wish investigate varieties of chew that are fortified with vitamins and minerals. If you have a breed that is susceptible to a specific condition, such as hip dysplasia, you may wish to make sure that there is adequate calcium in their diet. Some of this calcium can be added in the form of a calcium fortified chew.
Remember that if you get a chew that is too small for your dog, it may end up being swallowed. Depending on the kind of toy, that could cause your pet digestive problems. Large dogs should be given medium to high density chews that they can digest easily. Smaller dogs and puppies will do better with smaller chews that are softer, to compensate for their weaker jaws.
Try to make sure that you keep an eye on your dog while he is chewing, even if the chew toy is one he's used to. If he gnaws off small pieces of the chew and swallows them, he may choke. To reduce this risk, make sure that your dog is observed while chewing. If you do see your dog cough or appear to be choking, it's vital that you take him to the vet right away. This isn't the sort of condition that will resolve itself. Even if you don't observe choking, if your dog is swallowing pieces of the chew, it's probably not the right size. Reassess the size of chew toy your dog needs if you see this happening. |
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