# Worn down teeth, HELP!



## Raziel (Sep 29, 2009)

Hey I havent been on in a looong time but, my dogs teeth are REALLY worn down in the front (canines) and on the side.
It looks bad, but doesnt seem to cause him pain.
The vet said not to worry unless he shows signs of discomfort.
But it looks pretty bad to me. It looks like he chews on cinder blocks or something  (he doesnt)
Should I take away his tennis ball??
Im really concerned here! Ill try and post a pic of his teeth.
He is not even 2 years old yet!!!


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## Raziel (Sep 29, 2009)

Anyone? Should I increase calcium? 
No more felt tennis balls??
Hes on a raw diet......so its not kibble......


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## Elaine (Sep 10, 2006)

He's chewing on something if his teeth are as worn as you say. The first thing I would do is take away the tennis balls as supposedly the glue in them is bad for teeth. True? I don't know, but I quit using tennis balls and switched to the orange Chuckit balls and the rubber balls on a string.


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## JakodaCD OA (May 14, 2000)

hey angel 

can't tell you what to do, but Masi's canine's are wearing, and she's only two, she is a big time chewer, bones, bully sticks, ..I am limiting what I give her, but obviously can't repair what she's done with them..(


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## LaRen616 (Mar 4, 2010)

Oh no! Poor Kilo!!! Do you give him bones? Maybe he is chewing on a really hard bone and it's filing down his fangs???


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## LaRen616 (Mar 4, 2010)

By the way, I totally miss you!! I dont have a computer at home so I use my work computer and I cant get onto Facebook here. They only way we can talk is AIM or here.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

Angel!! I would take away the tennis balls. I read that the glue breaks down the enamel. Does he have any hard bones he chews on? I know you don't give him bones in his meals so it would have to be something he's chewing on.

I use racket balls for Jax. But Keys is way larger than her so don't know if they would be to small for him.


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## LisaT (Feb 7, 2005)

Jax08 said:


> Angel!! I would take away the tennis balls.


Agree.


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## deborahgym2 (Dec 14, 2007)

My GSD had the same problem.Not as bad but we had to get him a root canal in one of his canine teeth. When they get worn down like that, sometimes the pulp gets exposed which can lead to infection and then the tooth eventually dies.
In our case it was constant chewing on his rubber ball that would have dirt on it from the backyard. My Vet (dentist) told me that the dirt on the ball almost acts like a (nail)file when constantly chewed on and wears the teeth down. She also told me to NEVER give him Tennis balls because of the glue theory and also because the material is rough and also acts like a nail file and wears the teeth down. 
I now rinse his ball in a bucket of water before each throw. It's a pain in the butt but better then having to take him to the dentist. We haven't had any problems since.
Hope this helps


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## FuryanGoddess (Dec 26, 2009)

My rescue Sadie had worn teeth. There was nothing I could do about it. They were worn... not sure why? She wasn't a toy player or a chewer. I always felt that it was because she was half starved when we got her and it effected the health of her teeth.


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## Raziel (Sep 29, 2009)

Im not sure what it could be! Im so worried. Im going to buy him rubber tennis balls.
Maybe up his calcium intake.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Get him a Cuz or orbee instead of tennis balls, choking hazard is reduced, too. You feed raw still, right?


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## Relayer (Apr 29, 2010)

I can't tell you much else, but I can say with complete certainty that adding extra calcium will NOT help at all. The enamel of the teeth is not regenerated by adding anything, once it's gone, it's gone. So, be careful adding additional things that may have other side effects you don't want. The ball/glue theory may have some merit.


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## Raziel (Sep 29, 2009)

I will deff change the balls he plays with *no jokes lol*
Yes he is still on raw.
The vet & the breeder said he might just hace soft teeth.


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## Raziel (Sep 29, 2009)

OH I bought him Jumbo tennis balls, after hearing some stories........


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## lucasmom (Jan 11, 2005)

Lukas has the same problem. When he was first got his adult teeth he decided to chew on dog house up over a period of time. His canines are extremely worn and you can see the pulp in the center of them. The doggie dentist told us there was not a thing we could do to make this better. He is five now and so far has had no dental problems with those teeth but I am concerned for the future of those teeth.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

How about a Kong ball?






Or a Jolly ball?

Jolly Pets, Inc. ? Bounce-N-Play


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## Myamom (Oct 10, 2005)

When I adopted Mya (at age 5) her teeth were horribly worn down...canines were broken...the rest of her teeth in front were barely existent...to the point where you could see the "cores" of all her teeth. She was definitely a tennis ball fanatic...so we suspect a lifetime of that (and the deflated basketball she came with) probably did it. My vet said NO tennis balls. The teeth made me cringe too...but they caused her no pain...and the vet said leave them alone. She lived the rest of her life with no issues at all / pain, etc.


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## roxy84 (Jun 23, 2007)

my vet has said dogs who do alot of ball chewing will wear down their teeth quickly if there is always sand/dirt on them. the grit is hard on their teeth. dont know how valid this is, but i try to keep my dogs chewy things cleaned of dirt.


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## Anja1Blue (Feb 27, 2008)

Anja has worn and broken teeth from her previous life where she was a rock chewer. I took her to a canine dental specialist when she came to live with us, because I was so concerned that she was in pain or I was looking at problems down the road. He told me that despite their unattractive appearance they were rock solid in the gum - so no worries. Another vet told me that as the dog ages, the nerve inside the tooth retreats - so older dogs can break teeth down to the gum line and not be in any real discomfort. Too bad people don't have the same set-up! Anyway, I was told to avoid tennis balls - and Jolly Balls, apparently they cause a lot of wear also (not sure why.) I use only Kongs or balls made by Planet Dog ( Orbees). 
______________________________________
Susan

Anja SchH3 
Conor GSD
Blue BH WH T1 GSD - waiting at the Bridge


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## kiya (May 3, 2010)

I never heard about the tennis ball issue, I am very upset because I consider myself pretty dog savy. I try to be careful with toys made outside of the USA too. You learn something new every day. I am in the process of getting rid of all of all the tennis balls outside. I just have to make sure Apache doesn't see me!


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## Anja1Blue (Feb 27, 2008)

Balls made by Planet Dog are made in the USA and are chemical free. They make a variety of different sizes and shapes (my dogs have the Orbees plus footballs and soccer balls.) A bit more expensive than some out there, but well worth it for a safe product which dogs seem to love.
______________________________________
Susan

Anja SchH3 GSD
Conor GSD
Blue BH WH T1 GSD - waiting at the Bridge


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