The inflammation of tissues surrounding the tooth is called periodontal disease. Periodontal diseases can affect one or more teeth in a dog’s mouth or can even affect all the teeth in a dog’s mouth. First, the periodontal disease affects the teeth, and then slowly it spreads to the roots and tooth bone. When these problems are left untreated for a long time, they can lead to tooth loss, severe oral pain, and other complicated dental problems.
There are a myriad number of reasons dogs suffer from periodontal problems; below mentioned are few of the most important ones:
- The periodontal problems start when there is plaque deposition on the teeth.
- After the plaque formation, the bacteria adhere to the plaque.
- There are minerals in the saliva that harden the plaque into dental tartar. This tartar stays firmly attached to the teeth.
- The tartar and the saliva both hold in bacteria, which slowly spreads to the gums.
- These bacteria then slowly damage the surrounding tissues, bone, and tooth.
- This damage eventually creates a pocket around the tooth where the debris gets collected.
There are several signs of periodontal dental diseases; below mentioned are a few of the most important ones:
- Periodontal diseases vary from one dog to another, and the severity of the disease varies from one dog to another.
- The very first symptom of periodontal disease is usually bad breath. Dogs that suffer from advanced periodontal disease have very foul breath that the vet should immediately take up.
- When periodontal advances, your furry companion will suffer a lot of pain but may not be obvious in showing the pain. In some instances, they might show the pain they are going through by not eating the food they are offered or refusing to eat treats.
- The last sign of periodontal disease is the loss of a tooth.
So these are some signs and symptoms of periodontal diseases. It is always recommended to reach out to the vet in the first stage so that your furry companion doesn’t have to suffer through extreme pain.
A few dangers associated with periodontal diseases are:
- Development of a hole (fistula) from the oral cavity into the nasal passages causing nasal discharge
- Weakening of the jaw bone, which can lead to fractures
- Bone infection
- Heart Disease
- Kidney Disease
- Liver Disease
- Diabetes
- Various infections
If you have made it this far into the article, you might have realized that periodontal disease is severe and shouldn’t be taken lightly. Treating periodontal diseases is also not cost-effective. In some cases, you can prevent these diseases by having excellent dental hygiene. But then again, some dogs have a genetically predisposed condition of periodontal diseases.
In the end, this health condition requires reliable medical attention, which follows monetary expenses. Having dental insurance for pets before this condition emerges can resolve all these problems to some extent because it will cover much of the vet and specialist treatment fees. Being covered by dental insurance for pets will provide great peace of mind to the pet parent if their pet suffers from periodontal issues.
Many pet parents have already heard of pet insurance NZ, and many have already invested in pet insurance NZ. f you are amongst the ones who already have pet insurance, it may be time to make the package more extensive and include dental. Or, if you are someone who doesn’t have a coverage plan for pets, there is nothing to worry about because everything you want is just keystrokes away. So get a health and dental plan for your pet ASAP before teeth issues rear their head.
