For today’s factoid: Dogs have 42 teeth. (And in case you’re wondering, people generally have 32.) 12 incisors, 4 canines, 16 pre-molars, and 10 molars, regardless of size of dog.
Dogs also have less than half as much enamel as people, which helps explain poor Mamie and her teeth – or as of Monday, lack of them.
When we first adopted Mamie at age 6, along with having her spayed, we also had her teeth cleaned. Things went along well, I made sporadic but what felt like ineffectual, attempts to brush her teeth. Unfortunately, she has jaws that clamp as tightly as an Alaskan steel bear trap if you approach her with medicinal intent.
She is also the one dog on the planet with no interest in gnawing or chewing on anything, even the tasty Greenies, a product meant to trick a dog into chewing it’s teeth clean.
Her breath reached epic proportions, our vet told us she needed them done again, and then Covid hit, and then her heart problems arrived. Was it safe to put her under sedation to do the cleaning?
Our vet gave us the go-ahead, and on Monday what turned into a cleaning became an extraction – many extractions – instead. 20 teeth, to be exact.
(Only one of many.)
returning to her old self.
Although it's hard to tell the difference between recuperating and her usual schedule of 23 hours of napping.
Plus, I’ve become such a master at disguising pills in cheese that I’m considering volunteering for cheese sculptures at the next state fair.
Poor Mamie.
ReplyDeleteI hear you on the pill disguise role too. Jazz will have to have at least two tablets a day until the end of his days. Which is a challenge. And he doesn't (usually) like cheese.
I friend swears by peanut butter.
DeleteAs her gums heal, I can go back to using a product called Pill Pockets. She gobbles those right down.
All the best to her.
ReplyDeleteDo you have advice on disguising medicine for cats? Not that I need it now, thank goodness.
About 40 years of cats, usually in sets of two, and I never succeeded in fooling them. However, I developed a very effective technique of a half-Nelson combined with backing them into the corner of a chair while simultaneously prying their jaw open with my left hand.
DeleteOh poor Mamie! I'm glad she's getting back to normal, but without those bad teeth. (sigh)
ReplyDeleteThe thing about cats and meds is that a lot of techniques work. Once. That's why there are so many.
ReplyDeleteHoping your little friend heals soon.
I never succeeded with cats; I just tell the vet, inject it or forget it.
ReplyDeleteTwenty teeth gone! Poor Mamie. Does this mean only soft foods from now on? I remember when my dog and later my cat Angel, had bad breath, (and much farting) the cause was the brand of soft food they were eating. No more Pal if I ever have another dog (unlikely) and no more Whiskas for my cat.
ReplyDeleteOh dear. I'm picturing a lot of opened windows.
DeleteThis week I've been softening her kibble with a little water, but the vet said she has enough teeth that she'll be able to handle dry food.
So sorry for your little dog. That must be painful and I wonder if she trusts anyone anymore! Hubby had dental surgery last week and moaned and groaned for days after.
ReplyDelete20 teeth?! I'm glad to read she'll still be able to eat normal food, and hopefully her breath will improve. Poor Mamie!
ReplyDelete