bskeeter Posted June 24, 2006 Report Share Posted June 24, 2006 I'm getting a little concerned about BJ's teeth. They seem to be getting flat. He is only 2 1/2 yrs. old. Do I need to take him to "dog dentist"? Has anyone else every had this problem (if it really is a problem)? Ya, I know he need his teeth need cleaned. They have some build up on them. I'll worry about that later. Any input would be great. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nancy Posted June 24, 2006 Report Share Posted June 24, 2006 Do you play with real tennis balls? They have silica in them, which is like an emery board on the dog's teeth. We found out when Fergie's teeth were even more ground down. PetsMart (and probably PetCo and others) sells tennis-type balls that don't have the silica in them. They don't have quite the bounce, but they don't hurt the teeth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bskeeter Posted June 24, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2006 He doesn't play with tennis balls, but his most favorite toy in the world is a deflated basketball. Do you think that has the same stuff, therefore, the same reaction on his teeth? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zoe Posted June 24, 2006 Report Share Posted June 24, 2006 Hi, I was gonna post about the same thing. Dylan is just over 2 years old and his teeth are more ground down than BJ's. Dylan played with tennis balls for a few months but I changed to plastic balls when I found out here that tennis balls were abrasive on the teeth. I'm going to do a search now. I am really worried about it, but I don't think I can stop Dylan playing ball..... I have actually taught him to play "pushball" with a soccer ball which he loves so that has cut the time he has a ball in his mouth.And I try to get him to run around more without playing ball - search activities/agility training etc. And when he chews his nylabones or rawhide he doesn't use "those" teeth, so it isn't the chewing. It could be dirt in our case. His balls do get dirty especially when it has been raining nearly every day for two months straight Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bskeeter Posted June 24, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2006 We deal with a lot of sand here in Florida. I have just taken his favorite toy and put in the trash. I had to sneak it past him or would have thought it was play time. He used to play with soccer balls, but he would always puncture them and then start to peel off the black and white covering. I bought one of those Jolly balls from PetCo, but doesn't want anything to do with it. :confused: I am definitely going to have to change his play time with different toys. With three dogs in the house, we sure have enough plastic squeeky balls to play with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheStacks Posted June 25, 2006 Report Share Posted June 25, 2006 Zoeys teeth look exactly like that. Her favorite toy was also a deflated basketball and after fetching it she would chew on it with her front teeth for awhile before the next kick. We went to a canine dentist, who after taking one look asked if she played with deflated basketballs. Evidently the rough texture over enough time can do this. Because the wear was not into the pulp yet he suggested switching toys and seeing if we could stop further wear before placing crowns (4 canines = $2500). He did offer to do the crowns anyway and let her continue with the basketballs, but I opted to switch toys (wonder why?? ) From what I learned the pulp will start to recede when the enamel is worn. If the wear happens too fast this process cannot keep up and the risk of abcess and need for a root canal increases. You definately want to stop the wear now. I have switched to a latex football that is decent size and so far things are going great. Hope this helps! Lauren Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anda Posted June 25, 2006 Report Share Posted June 25, 2006 That's scarry! I did not have a clue that real tennis balls are damaging to their teeth! I'll switch mine to rubber/plastic balls. I don't think he will have any objections. When we confiscated all his tennis balls (he was getting WAY too OCD about them) two months ago, he found an old baseball and was happy even with that one, although he couldn't quite fit it in his mouth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shetlander Posted June 25, 2006 Report Share Posted June 25, 2006 I've been using racquetballs which Quinn really likes because of the bounce. Are those ok, I wonder? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bordercentrics Posted June 27, 2006 Report Share Posted June 27, 2006 Meg also has wear on her canines. She doesn't do toys but she does chew a bit on nylabones. However, she loves to dig for mice and when there are roots or turf in the way, she rips them away with her teeth. Her tongue is often dirt colored when she is done, but she has gotten four mice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
borderlicious Posted June 27, 2006 Report Share Posted June 27, 2006 I've never met a Border Collie over 2 years old that didn't have a bit of wear on their teeth. My boy's canines are chipped/flattened a little bit too, but his are due to the fact that he tries to pick up rocks and run with them in his mouth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheStacks Posted June 27, 2006 Report Share Posted June 27, 2006 From what the dentist told me, any toy that they can fetch or chew on with their back teeth is best. Zoey also plays with a raquetball. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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