https://www.vetsurgeon.org/f/clinical-questions/29073/dentistry-prevention-v-cure-treatment I&#39;m as interested in prevention as much as cure/treatment - although it may not be so good for the VS&#39;s bottom line. What should we be advising our pet owners to do in order to keep their pet&#39;s mouth in the best possible condition? One thing I have noticeden-USTelligent Community 10https://www.vetsurgeon.org/thread/222254?ContentTypeID=1Mon, 04 May 2020 08:43:52 GMT146601cc-3922-4be7-9974-7e1d4e45a66b:b9dff0f7-73a4-4099-8f04-255f2d4ebd5eRachel Perry<p>Great question Stephen. I think our primary aim as veterinary surgeons should be prevention, and unfortunately vets are not great at being preventative when it comes to dentistry- we are much more reactive.&nbsp;</p> <p>In a nutshell periodontal disease is caused by the host&#39;s inflammatory response to oral bacteria in the form of plaque. The immune response is driven by our genes from a benign watchful approach, through the spectrum to a very aggressive and destructive response. Yorkshire Terriers get bad periodontal disease because of their genes, not because they&#39;re fed proprietary tinned food. Your farm dogs in the Falklands will more than likely have the &#39;good&#39; genes for oral health. It doesn&#39;t mean however that they won&#39;t get periodontal disease, but their teeth will certainly look cleaner &nbsp;when fed a raw, whole bone/meat diet- so I suspect they never have a GA to assess their dental health with radiographs because they look so clean. We know wild dogs and cats get periodontal disease, but less calculus deposits- so will certainly look cleaner. Clean doesn&#39;t = healthy though. Tooth spacing certainly helps. In smaller or brachycephalic breeds there is a tendency for overcrowding and tooth rotation. If this means the gingiva cannot form a tight seal around each individual tooth then we already have an entry point for bacteria.</p> <p>So, my recommendation is &nbsp;brushing of teeth of all breeds of dog/cat we know are prone to periodontal disease, before disease starts i.e. from puppies/kittens. All owners of puppies and kittens should be instructed on periodontal disease and the benefits of brushing, but <em>especially</em> at risk breeds. Brushing is the best, and if needed you could add in a chlorhexidine-based paste.&nbsp;</p><div style="clear:both;"></div>