Pets-Brushing Teeth?

My dog (a Norfolk Terrier) hates having his teeth brushed. He moves, eats the tooth paste, refuses to open him mouth and more, is there any easier way to get his teeth brusded at home? [[ We dont go somewhere to get them brushed, we do it at home. ]]

Pets-Brushing Teeth?
You have to slowly de-sensitize him to the whole experience. First you start with playing with his mouth, when you can do that without him getting upset move on to playing with his gums. After you can put your fingers in his mouth all the way to the back on both sides you progress to introducing a toothbrush. I find that the finger brushes for puppies work best for this because it's just a texture difference in their mouth rather than a difference in the whole shape and your body position, etc. Once you do that, you slowly introduce the toothpaste. DO NOT use human toothpaste, only animal toothpaste. My dogs like the Vanilla Mint CET toothpaste, but they have all sorts of flavors, our old family dog liked the PB flavor from Petsmart, whatever works. Slowly introduce that. It is okay if he licks it or moves it around in his mouth. Pet toothpaste works on an enzyme level, not like human toothpaste that works on abrasion. If you get the toothpaste in his mouth, get it rubbed on his teeth and he moves it around his mouth, the enzymes will still do their job. This whole process takes MONTHS, especially if you've been doing it already and it doesn't like it. Just be sure to take it slowly and reward him with a break whenever he does what you ask him to. It make take days to get him through one step. But its worth it when you don't have to sedate for a dentistry in the end :)
Reply:Dog teeth brushing isnt an exact science. Brush what you can however you can, and other than that, give him bones to chew on that help his teeth. Theres not much else you can do.
Reply:There is no easy way to do that, but I know rawhide chews helps
Reply:Try a brush that goes on your finger and not an actual tooth brush.





This is typical for dogs though, I have never had a dog that enjoyed it. It is not a natural action for them and don't understand it
Reply:Put a leash on him and whle you and brushing his teeth have some one else hold the leash. who ever is brushing his teeth needs to sit down and try to get him to sit down. then roll him on his back and try to brush them. i have a great dane and this helps alot when i go to brush her teeth.
Reply:Just do the best you can, it's not always easy or exact!! Have fun.
Reply:with my dogs, i have a difficult time as well but i give a treat after. now that they've learned that, i set the treat on the table near where i have the dog so she is reminded. usually, they are so busy starring down the anticipated treat they forget about what i'm doing. it's still a difficult job, but not as bad as it was. also, eating the toothpaste is why we must always use pet toothpaste- never human.
Reply:Do his teeth when he is going to sleep or is very sleepy. When he is calmed down it will help a lot and praise him through out the brushing.
Reply:Some of the dog toothpaste you can buy is activated by the dog's saliva - so it doesn't really matter if his teeth don't all get brushed - just having the toothpaste in his mouth will be of benefit.





If he hates the toothbrush, have you tried one of the finger brushes - they look like a spiky thimble and can be easier to manouver around a reluctant dog's mouth!





It is also a good idea to brush teeth just before you feed your dog - they will start to associate brushing with food after, and this can make it more pleasurable for them.



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