Commercial breeders are only concerned with the other end
Dottie’s tongue flops out the side of her mouth all the time, dry and twisted in a way that is obviously unnatural. Her teeth are all gone, leaving her mouth deformed forever. Too bad they don’t make doggie dentures so Dottie could keep her tongue back in her mouth. Despite her lack of chompers, Dottie eats well and is happy just to be held and petted. She doesn’t seem to care that she looks a little funny. Though she’s got the most obvious dental problems out of the dogs from a Virginia commercial breeder, she is definitely not alone.
Pictured left: Dottie. Dental problems abound with the dogs rescued from a Virginia commercial breeder, and they’re no different than hundreds of thousands of other little dogs that go without dental care. “In general, small breeds are prone to dental disease,” said Janet Pirog, Best Friends medical liaison. “They need their teeth brushed and dental cleaning by a veterinarian.” But that’s something that commercial breeders don’t do, and it shows in every little mouth.
A few cases, like Dottie, were obvious from the outside, but more problems lurked behind each little doggy lip. Patty, the only Pekingese in the bunch was the second dog that we discovered had a broken jaw. Janet said, “Her teeth were so horrendous, the decay ate away at and fractured her jaw.” Patty’s mouth was literally rotted to the breaking point. She was taken to a local veterinarian, Dr. Furman, for immediate treatment. Janet said, “Her teeth were so encrusted, Dr. Furman said he’s never seen teeth so bad.” He determined that although Patty’s jaw had been broken, it already healed on its own.
It turned out to be a very good thing for Patty to move up in line for the vet. In addition to a rotten mouth, she had an infected uterus, or
pyometra—a serious emergency.
Bad teeth, bad hearts
Right: Mabel. Dirty, tartar-encrusted teeth make not only for a “stinky, painful and uncomfortable” mouth, as Janet described, but they can even affect a dog’s heart. She said, “They’re constantly swallowing bacteria, which gets into the blood stream and causes heart disease if left for too long.” A dog’s “death breath” and brown teeth are not only gross, but they can endanger his or her life as well.
Though some of the dogs have been suffering with infected and decaying mouths for years, they are now finally getting relief. As each dog is spayed or neutered, their mouths are checked and dental cleaning done as necessary. Many are returning with a lot fewer teeth then they go in with, but in the end, each dog will go home with pearly whites.
HOW YOU CAN HELPDONATE Now that these dogs and puppies are in our care, we want to give them the best life we can. They deserve nothing less. Your donations are deeply appreciated.
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By Kelli Ohrtman: Best Friends Network
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