Why Pet Dental Health is Linked to Heart Disease and Other Illness

Pet dental health usually brings to mind images of teeth and gums. In reality, it goes far beyond that. Pet oral health can be directly linked to systemic disease (kidney, liver and heart disease, for example) in dogs and cats.

In short, keeping those fangs sparkly white, both at home and through vet care, is about more than your pet’s teeth. It’s about their overall health and wellbeing. Let’s take a closer look.

Pet dental health issues: an overview

Pet dental health encompasses every oral health problem that can occur in pets. From broken teeth and tooth abscesses to gingivitis and periodontal disease. Pet dental health problems are pretty common in pets and dental disease in particular can lead to heart disease, liver disease and kidney disease.

Let’s check out what exactly dental disease is next. But first, read about seven common pet dental health problems in dogs and cats in our article on pet dental insurance that looks at what’s covered and what’s not.

What is dental health disease?

Dental disease is basically another term for periodontal disease. To get dental disease, your dog or cat first has to have gingivitis (gum disease). Although gum disease is treatable and can be cured, if it’s left to deteriorate it progresses to periodontal disease, from which there’s no return.

It’s not that you can’t treat periodontal disease so much as that the damage is permanent. Gum disease affects the gums thanks to bacterial overload. Once those bacteria have their way, they eventually reach beyond the soft gum tissues into the tooth and worse: the jaw bone itself.

The bone deteriorates and this bone loss can’t really ever be grown back. (Pssst, science: if you change this in the future, we’ll happily update our blog). In humans, this can be tackled via bone implants and tooth implants. These cost a pretty penny though and aren’t fun to say the least.

So, how is dental health disease linked to systemic disease such as heart disease in dogs and cats?

The link between pet dental health and heart disease

Dental disease can cause heart disease in dogs and cats. It can also cause kidney disease and liver disease. That’s because once the oral bacteria penetrate the bloodstream they travel throughout the body, with that journey resulting in systemic disease.

The kidneys and liver clean the blood while the heart pumps it. These organs can be susceptible to bacteria that’s in the blood and, in particular, to oral bacteria. Typically we think of cat and dog gut health as being the home to bacteria, but in reality the mouth is a factory for the stuff, hence why there are so many oral hygiene products for people and pets!

Although poor pet dental health may not appear to be life-threatening, its effects can be. The moral of the story is simple. Just like you brush your own teeth, floss, use mouth gargle and go to the dentist for an annual checkup, do the same preventative steps for pets. More on that further down.

Pet dental health and other health issues

While kidney, liver and heart disease are some of the more severe problems that can affect dogs and cats because of oral bacteria they aren’t the only ones.

Bad pet dental health causes a range of other pet health conditions. Let’s look at some others.

• Depression. In the past we looked mostly at physical illness in pets. Today, though, we know they experience illnesses that are thought of in the human world as ‘mental health illness’, like anxiety and obsessive compulsive disorder in dogs. We also know some cases of depression in dogs can be linked to dental health conditions like gingivitis and periodontal disease.
• Loss of appetite. This one is easy to understand. Anyone who’s ever had a sore tooth, swollen gums, or just about any problem in the mouth knows that eating becomes a heart-palpitating exercise. In short, it’s not just no fun at all, it’s highly stressful, and eating less is the immediate response.
• Inflammation below the eyes. An unexpected side effect of a tooth abscess in dogs can be swelling of tissue under the eyes. Talk about adding insult to injury!

While these are just a few of the health problems that bad pet dental health can cause there are many more. In essence, good pet dental health is absolutely necessary for proper overall health. Now let’s take a look at some steps to keep pet dental health in check.

Prevention is better than cure, at the vet and home

They say a stitch in time saves nine. When it comes to pet dental health and systemic disease in dogs and cats, we may as well change the stitch to dollars and add a few zeros. For every dollar you don’t spend on upfront pet dental health, you could pay triple digits down the line.

As we’ve already explored, the price your pet pays in terms of good health is even bigger.

So what can you do?

Two things.

1. Annual vet check up

If you’re thinking of skipping that annual vet checkup for your pet or ignoring a particularly pungent dog breath smell you might want to think again. It could save you lots of money in treatment costs down the line and it could save your pet’s life in the long run.

During your pet’s annual vet checkup, they check your dog or cat’s teeth and gums. It could be a clever move to request an annual teeth cleaning is done concurrently. This is done under general anaesthetic. (Don’t expect your dog or cat to lie back while awake and peacefully let the vet dentist clean their teeth).

It’s a great added preventative measure against systemic disease in dogs and cats and likely worth every penny. In some cases, vet dentists may also recommend other forms of pet oral health preventative care, such as dog braces for dogs with misaligned teeth. If this sounds extreme, consider that our teeth are the only exposed bones in a our bodies and that bones are for life.

2. At home pet dental health care

Next up is the daily pet dental health care routine. It’s things like brushing, giving your pet dental chews, feeding them well and getting them used to you handling their mouth. Although you can never expect a dog to not have dog breath, if you notice it getting particularly pungent this could mean something’s off with their doggy dental health.

Click on these tips for keeping your dog and cat’s pet dental health in check at home:

• Dog teeth cleaning
• Cat teeth and dental care

Remember: the stomach may be the way to the heart, but it starts in the mouth. This goes whether you’re talking about nutritious pet food or oral bacteria. (Great) pet oral health, here we come!

Award winning pet dental cover

Pets are like people, they get into all sorts of scrapes and scratches that you simply can’t anticipate. However, you can plan for the unanticipated by investing in low cost, high value pet insurance.

Our award winning pet insurance comes in three tiers, and the deluxe plan includes dental cover plus accidents and illness. Choose the cover that matches your pet’s possible needs and suits your pocket. We’ll give you one or more months of FREE pet insurance when you buy your pawlicy.

Pounce on the button below to start your tail wagging and whisker twitching quote. Your cat or dog will love you for it!