February is Pet Dental Health Month!
With periodontal disease being one of the most common medical conditions seen by vets, it’s essential for pet parents to be on the lookout for signs & symptoms so they can take the necessary steps to prevent potentially life-threatening conditions down the line. This week Michelle Fern welcomes Holistic Veterinarian, Dr. Ambika Vaid, to talk about putting the bite on pet dental disease with proper prevention.
Listen to Episode #314 Now:
BIO:
Dr. Ambika Vaid-Sidhu, also known as Dr. Vaid, is a distinguished Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, having earned her credentials from highly esteemed Midwestern University in Arizona. Her passion for establishing deep connections with clients and unraveling the unique tales of their pets has made her a standout figure in the world of holistic veterinarian medicine.
Specializing in pet nutrition, surgery, and dental procedures, Dr. Vaid is a trusted general practitioner who offers a comprehensive approach to animal care and disease prevention.
The catalyst for her journey into integrative medicine was the loss of her beloved labradoodle to chronic diseases at the age of 15. This personal tragedy propelled Dr. Vaid into a year-long exploration of holistic approaches, collaborating with integrative veterinarians throughout the Bay Area to deepen her understanding of pet care and discover alternative treatments and newfound ways to extend the life of her animal patients.
Dr. Vaid is currently finishing up her Graduate Diploma of Western Herbal Medicine from the College of Integrative Therapies and has pursued additional training to become a certified acupuncturist from Chi University so she can continue to expand her offerings to clients and their beloved pets.
Transcript:
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<Announcer> This is Pet Life Radio.
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<Announcer> Let's talk pets.
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<Michelle Fern> Hey, everyone, welcome to Best Bets for Pets.
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<Michelle Fern> I'm your show host, Michelle Fern.
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<Michelle Fern> We have a great show today.
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<Michelle Fern> We're talking all about pet dental health because it's February and February is Pet Dental Health Month.
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<Michelle Fern> And it's so important.
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<Michelle Fern> I have a wonderful holistic vet on the show today, and you're gonna get some great information.
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<Michelle Fern> So stay tuned, we'll be right back.
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<Announcer> Take a bite out of your competition.
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<Announcer> Let's Talk Pets on petliferadio.com.
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<Michelle Fern> Welcome back, everyone.
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<Michelle Fern> I'd like to welcome Dr. Ambika Vaid.
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<Michelle Fern> She's a holistic veterinarian, and we're going to be talking about Pet Dental Health Month, and then as well as periodontal health.
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<Michelle Fern> Welcome, Dr.
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<Michelle Fern> Vaid.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Thank you, Michelle, it's a pleasure to be here.
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<Michelle Fern> I'm so excited to have you.
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<Michelle Fern> So anytime, and as a holistic veterinarian, you probably have seen this, anytime I think about dental health, I go, well, I mean, cats are really hard.
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<Michelle Fern> It's hard to brush their teeth.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Absolutely.
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<Michelle Fern> Dogs are a little easier.
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<Michelle Fern> And I was multi household for a long, long time before the doggies went to doggie heaven.
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<Michelle Fern> But I know that it's always such a challenge to brush their teeth, but it's so important.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> It is.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> It is the only way to prevent dental disease.
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<Michelle Fern> I hear this question so much.
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<Michelle Fern> How often should you brush your cat or dog's teeth?
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> You know, ideally, it should be daily if you can do it.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And like you said, it's not easy to do in a cat, especially if the cat kind of figures out what's going on, they will hide from you.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> They know they're smart.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So ideally daily if you can, if you can't, honestly, whatever you're able to do is better than nothing.
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<Michelle Fern> I've also heard that it's always best that if you start them when they're really little, you know, the kittens and puppies and get them used to it, because some people have showed me, I say showed off, but showed me that they could just brush their cat's teeth and the cat says, oh yeah, yummy.
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<Michelle Fern> Easier for dogs though.
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<Michelle Fern> You usually see the dogs licking the toothbrush, whereas the cats, yeah, you show them a toothbrush and they go take off.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Yeah, exactly.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Well, yeah, so that's a very good point.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> I think when people get animals, especially puppies and kittens, they think, well, they have baby teeth.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> I don't need to start this yet.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And by the time they become adults and have adult teeth, they're not gonna be as easy to train to do that.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So even if they're just baby teeth, even if they're falling out of their mouth, it's really important to start early.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So they get into the habit and use the idea of you touching their mouths and being in their mouth, touching their faces.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Sometimes what's helpful as well is using, flavored toothpaste.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So that is something that's fun for them.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> It makes it more fun for them.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> There's a lot of different flavors out there.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> There's vanilla, salmon, chicken, beef that you can put onto a toothbrush for them that makes it a little bit more of a fun experience.
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<Michelle Fern> It almost sounds like the flavors for kids, bubble gum and cherry and...
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Yeah, the same kind of concept when you think about it.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> It makes it a little bit of a fun experience for them.
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<Michelle Fern> Now, do you advise, and we're going to get more into peridonal disease, of course, but do you advise starting with your finger in their mouth first with one of those little rubber finger gloves?
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Yeah, that's a great question.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Honestly, I think either or is fine.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> If one works better than the other, you can continue to use that.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> The finger brush, I think, is easier for cats because it's easier to control their mouths.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Their mouths are so small, it's easier to control their mouths with the finger brush, and it would be to stick a long toothbrush in there.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Some of the bigger dogs respond well to a big toothbrush because you're not shoving your hand up their mouth, you know?
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So I think whatever works for you and your pet is fine.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> There's no right or wrong answer there.
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<Michelle Fern> The important thing is just do it.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Just do it.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Just get in there and do it.
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<Michelle Fern> As an alternative, what about the chewy dental treats?
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<Michelle Fern> Because some people will say, well, you know, I use this.
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<Michelle Fern> And I don't want to mention any brands in particular, but we know some of them that look like toothbrushes, but they're really for dental.
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<Michelle Fern> And there's some toys that are for dental because they'll have nubs and so forth.
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<Michelle Fern> Is that with brushing the teeth or in place of in case you really have a hard time brushing their teeth?
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> You know, unpopular opinion is that nothing is going to work as well as brushing teeth.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So I know a lot of my personal patients' owners will just use the preventatives, and they still have really severe dental disease and still need their dental cleanings.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So nothing can take the place of tooth brushing.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And sometimes I feel like the products don't work as well as they say they do.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And so we have to be careful about, you know, getting stuck on picking up all of these treats and using them instead of just brushing the teeth.
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<Michelle Fern> You know, for most of the treats I've tried, not all, but for the most, I agree.
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<Michelle Fern> I don't know that they got rid of most.
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<Michelle Fern> And it seems like, and I'm talking more, my cats are pretty good, but I'm talking more about from dog point of view, maybe because their teeth are larger or you can see them better, but it doesn't seem to get rid of all that gunk.
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<Michelle Fern> But we're heading in the direction of what are some of the symptoms of periodontal disease?
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<Michelle Fern> Like, how does someone with a fur babe know, uh-oh, I'm in trouble?
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<Michelle Fern> And maybe before that, what should you do to make sure that you don't get to the place of, uh-oh, I think there's periodontal disease in my dog's mouth or cat's mouth?
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Yeah, that's a great question.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So number one is bad breath.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> The first thing you'll notice is pretty stinky breath.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So that's usually a big telltale sign that periodontal disease is on its way.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> The other thing too is you'll tend to see reddening or like bright red inflammation of the gums right above where the tooth meets the gum line.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> That's a really big sign as well of inflammation and bacteria going under the gum line, where we can't see it anymore and just getting really, you know, really upsetting and and inflaming the gums.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And then last but not least is that brown plaque or the black plaque that you see on the teeth.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> That's once it gets to that point, you know, we need to do a professional dental cleaning because it's pretty far gone at that point.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> The biggest thing is that if you don't see dental disease, like if you don't see the plaque, you think, oh, my dog's fine, my cat's fine.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> It's not that bad yet.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> But if you're seeing gum disease, that means that the infection's already reached up below the gum line and is probably infecting the bones now.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And so we may have to remove some teeth if we don't get into it sooner than we think.
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<Michelle Fern> And what about this?
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<Michelle Fern> I've heard different things and I've heard this more with for cats, I am sure you have to completely put them under.
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<Michelle Fern> But I've heard with dogs, there's where you do a deep cleaning and put them under.
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<Michelle Fern> And then there's something that's a less expensive alternative called Twilight Cleaning.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Yeah, that's it's not an aesthetic cleaning that is becoming very popular now.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And it's unfortunately not very common in cats, but definitely something that's common in dogs.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> If you have a friendly dog that doesn't mind being, you know, doesn't mind you being in their mouth, you can actually get in there and break off some of that plaque and that calculus build up without putting them under anesthesia completely.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And I think as a yearly maintenance product, or even every six months, it's a great place to be, especially if you're not able to brush teeth at home.
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<Michelle Fern> Okay, and then what are the main causes?
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<Michelle Fern> What causes the dental disease in our cats and dogs?
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So, you know, that's a very good question.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And I think it's sad because most of it is genetic.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Some of these smaller breed dogs tend to have a lot more severe dental disease than large breed dogs do.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So we tend to see severe dental disease in chihuahuas, Pomeranians, dachshunds.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Those are the ones that you're going to see, and you're going to have to tell pet parents immediately, you got to get on that tooth brushing.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And same with the British short hairs, you know, those really scrunchy face cats.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Persians tend to have really severe dental disease.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So it is a lot of genetics, as well as prevention, you know, how often are you able to do anything about their teeth at home?
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> If you think about yourself, and this is what I always tell my pet parents at work is, if you didn't brush your teeth for a week, just one week, you'd have some pretty gross teeth, you know, just in one week.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Imagine not doing that ever for your pets.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> It adds up eventually.
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<Michelle Fern> Ooh, I don't even like the thought of that.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Yeah, it's not a fun thought, but it's the same concept if you think about it.
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<Michelle Fern> Right.
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<Michelle Fern> And very, very important.
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<Michelle Fern> We're going to be right back after this break.
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<Michelle Fern> Molly, here's your dinner.
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<Michelle Fern> Zeus, that's not your food.
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<Announcer> Let's talk pets.
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<Announcer> On Pet Life Radio.
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<Michelle Fern> Welcome back, everyone.
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<Michelle Fern> We're talking to Dr.
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<Michelle Fern> Vaid.
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<Michelle Fern> She's a holistic veterinarian, and we're talking about pet dental health.
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<Michelle Fern> So we talked about how important it is to brush your cat's teeth and dog, because a lot of us have cats and dogs, and things to look out for for disease.
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<Michelle Fern> What can health parents do to prevent dental health issues?
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<Michelle Fern> Because as we all, we've heard, you know, a lot of dental health issues will lead to other problems.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Right, yeah.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So, you know, a lot of the things that happen is because you're chewing and swallowing that bacteria on a daily basis, that's in that mouth that you're not able to prevent disease from, you're running into issues of inflammation in your liver, inflammation in your gut, kidney problems, bacteria kind of lining up your heart.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So brushing teeth is really important, getting them on a good diet is really important.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Doing yearly dental cleaning is very important as well.
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<Michelle Fern> Have you ever heard of anyone flossing their dog's teeth?
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> I have not, not yet.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> I think just being able to brush teeth is amazing.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So flossing will take it a little step further.
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<Michelle Fern> Actually, a relative of mine did that.
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<Michelle Fern> I was blown away, but I said, it was a close relative.
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<Michelle Fern> I said, you're crazy, but you know, I mean, brushing is hard enough.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> That's amazing.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Your relative should definitely show us the video on how they do that.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> That's awesome.
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<Michelle Fern> Yeah, it shocked me.
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<Michelle Fern> Let's talk about diet, because diet can have a big effect on their teeth.
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<Michelle Fern> And I know that for, you know, there's a lot of change lately with diet.
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<Michelle Fern> You know, there's raw food, there's some pet parents cook for their fur babes, cats and dogs.
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<Michelle Fern> We hear more about the dogs, but there's definitely freeze dried raw food for cats as well.
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<Michelle Fern> And the other thing that's a challenge for cats is cats are more likely to have wet food and then some kibble, but it's usually wet food because they don't always drink enough water.
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<Michelle Fern> And what food I've heard is more of a challenge and adds to dental issues.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Yeah, that's true.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So cats are carnivores.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> They like meaty substances in their food.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And that's why fresh food, raw meat, canned food is a lot better for them than a dry dehydrated kibble would be.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So that's why we tend to...
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And they like it better too.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> They eat canned food and wet food more than they will eat their dry food.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> But that being said, you're right, where we run into the issue of that wet food is not really doing much for their teeth, especially if it's just canned food or some type of like fresh food diet.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So we need to make sure that whatever ingredients are in their food is something that's helping their teeth overall health and have supplements that help with their health as well.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> But raw food for cats is really nice because it, you know, especially dehydrated raw food is really nice because you're getting that chewing mechanism that you're not getting with the canned food.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So you're getting something that's helping them chew and break down some of that tartar and help kind of massage their gums when they're not able to do that with their wet food.
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<Michelle Fern> And what about for dogs?
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Yeah, so dogs, I think the big thing right now is fresh food diets, which is great, but again, kind of on the softer side.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And so I really like to talk about some of the kibble-like options that we have, like Badlands Ranch Superfood Complete is an air-dried kibble type of food that's a little bit harder than a fresh food diet would be, which is great for their teeth.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> The other thing too is that it has, you know, carrots and vitamin A.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Vitamin A is really important for restoring enamel, and carrots are great for strengthening teeth because of their rich calcium component of carrots.
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<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And so you're getting that in the ingredients of Badlands Ranch Superfood Complete, which is helping their teeth.
00:14:48.717 --> 00:14:49.057
<Michelle Fern> Dr.
00:14:49.077 --> 00:14:50.977
<Michelle Fern> Veeds, what about toys?
00:14:51.197 --> 00:14:57.257
<Michelle Fern> Because there's a lot of toys out there that say they help prevent dental issues.
00:14:57.737 --> 00:15:00.037
<Michelle Fern> More so, again, dogs win here.
00:15:00.057 --> 00:15:05.117
<Michelle Fern> There's many more toys for dogs, and dogs are more chewers than, heavier chewers than cats.
00:15:05.417 --> 00:15:06.817
<Michelle Fern> But there are some for cats.
00:15:07.277 --> 00:15:11.877
<Michelle Fern> How does that play in the whole role of your fur babes' dental help?
00:15:12.337 --> 00:15:15.857
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> That's a great question, and I don't think it gets asked enough, to be honest.
00:15:15.877 --> 00:15:28.157
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> I think when you think dental health, you want them to chew on these hard bones, on antlers, things that you see at the pet store, and you think, oh, this is going to help break down tartar, and it's going to help them with their chewing.
00:15:28.557 --> 00:15:35.897
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> But what you're not seeing is that some of these bones can actually cause a fracture in the tooth because some dogs just don't know how to chew very well.
00:15:36.417 --> 00:15:38.797
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> They get kind of crazy for it, and cats too.
00:15:39.197 --> 00:15:41.357
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And so then you're dealing with a much bigger issue.
00:15:41.377 --> 00:15:46.677
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And on top of that, these are things, again, that are processed, they're not healthy, that they're now ingesting.
00:15:46.977 --> 00:15:50.957
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And we're doing it to fix something, but we may be actually causing a bigger issue.
00:15:51.457 --> 00:15:57.237
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And so you have to be careful about what toys you choose when you want them to chew on things.
00:15:57.257 --> 00:16:14.377
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> I think my favorite is using a Kong toy and filling it with some of the Badlands Ranch kibble, and just sticking it in the freezer with some water or some chicken stock, sticking that in the freezer, and then having my dog chew on that as a treat.
00:16:14.557 --> 00:16:25.697
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And even cats can do this too, maybe with some wet food or some other food that they're eating, sticking whatever they like, some of their treats in there, putting it in the freezer, freezing it so that they really have to work for it.
00:16:26.077 --> 00:16:31.997
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And they're not ingesting the silicone from the Kong, they're ingesting the treat that's inside, which is what you chose for them.
00:16:32.277 --> 00:16:36.477
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> But that chewing mechanism is breaking down that tartar and helping get under their gums.
00:16:37.057 --> 00:16:38.377
<Michelle Fern> That's a great point.
00:16:38.577 --> 00:16:48.197
<Michelle Fern> And I will tell you, there's a lot of truth to those fractures, because many years ago, this was my first dog, my first fur babe.
00:16:48.537 --> 00:16:56.197
<Michelle Fern> She actually bit a hoof, and she bit it strangely and cracked her tooth, but not a chip, a vertical crack.
00:16:56.597 --> 00:17:03.617
<Michelle Fern> So I had to go to the doggy dentist, and I was living in Los Angeles, the Beverly Hills doggy dentist, which was quite expensive.
00:17:03.717 --> 00:17:07.617
<Michelle Fern> There was no other doggy dentist, but those fractures do happen.
00:17:07.857 --> 00:17:17.517
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Yeah, and it's probably my bread and butter, to be honest, where there's so many products out there that people are not well educated on, and so they're using them for their pets.
00:17:17.517 --> 00:17:30.757
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And we see, I see a fracture every time I do a dental nowadays, because there's the quick and fast way of trying to get teeth clean without actually doing the research about what's good or not for their actual pet.
00:17:31.137 --> 00:17:37.717
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And it's a lot more expensive, like you said, doing work to remove a tooth is gonna cost you a lot more than a routine dental cleaning would.
00:17:38.217 --> 00:17:40.817
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And so you're right, it can add up quite a bit.
00:17:41.237 --> 00:17:44.457
<Michelle Fern> Yeah, besides the trauma I put your fur babe through.
00:17:44.477 --> 00:17:45.637
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Yeah, yeah.
00:17:45.657 --> 00:18:03.057
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And so then, with a fracture, if you're not able to get in right away, which is a problem that we're seeing right now with all the dogs and cats that were adopted during COVID and the veterinary shortage, we're seeing that the wait time for a dental cleaning plus extraction is maybe a month out.
00:18:03.357 --> 00:18:13.537
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And so that then puts you in the kind of like the danger zone of is this fracture tooth, A, painful, second of all, is it gonna cause abscessation?
00:18:13.557 --> 00:18:21.897
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Because now there's an opening where that tooth was holding things in place, where bacteria can seep into your bone and abscess under your gums.
00:18:22.417 --> 00:18:25.817
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And that can become pretty brutal and it'll abscess right under the eye.
00:18:26.057 --> 00:18:28.057
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> It's really hard to treat without getting in there.
00:18:29.077 --> 00:18:32.837
<Michelle Fern> Well, all the more reason you should take care of your fur babe's teeth.
00:18:33.137 --> 00:18:45.237
<Michelle Fern> I know that you partnered recently with Katherine Heigl and we talked about, she was on one of my shows, Best Bets for Pets, and she is just amazing with Badlands Ranch and the Jason Foundation.
00:18:45.857 --> 00:18:49.177
<Michelle Fern> And can you tell us a little bit about what the foundation does?
00:18:49.197 --> 00:18:51.937
<Michelle Fern> And I know that they have something special in February.
00:18:52.137 --> 00:18:59.417
<Michelle Fern> We're recording this in February for Pet Health Month, but whenever you guys are listening to this, pet dental health does not change.
00:18:59.497 --> 00:19:03.337
<Michelle Fern> It should be every month, but we're making it special for February.
00:19:03.537 --> 00:19:04.517
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Yeah, absolutely.
00:19:04.537 --> 00:19:07.837
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So Katherine Heigl actually started this foundation with her mother.
00:19:07.837 --> 00:19:10.577
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> It's the Jason Debus Heigl Foundation.
00:19:10.937 --> 00:19:18.897
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And they partner with shelters in the area and they will take pets off of the kill list and rescue them and then try to adopt them out.
00:19:19.357 --> 00:19:31.337
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> They also serve under underserved communities and they'll do free spay and neuters and things like that to help animals that are not getting the care that they need.
00:19:31.937 --> 00:19:36.757
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> The February thing that's going on with them is that they're doing the forever love stories.
00:19:36.857 --> 00:19:44.357
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And so they're sharing adoption stories on their website and their social media pages of animals that they've been able to adopt out.
00:19:44.737 --> 00:19:58.397
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So one of the cool things about partnering with Badlands Ranch is that every year, they're doing an annual contribution of $250,000 of their sales to the foundation to keep it running and keep partnering with their shelters.
00:19:58.937 --> 00:19:59.877
<Michelle Fern> That's wonderful.
00:20:00.097 --> 00:20:02.917
<Michelle Fern> And the foundation's amazing.
00:20:03.017 --> 00:20:04.557
<Michelle Fern> Catherine Heigl's amazing.
00:20:04.557 --> 00:20:08.757
<Michelle Fern> She was so nice and so wonderful to have on the show.
00:20:08.777 --> 00:20:09.937
<Michelle Fern> I was honored to have her on.
00:20:10.557 --> 00:20:12.077
<Michelle Fern> What they do is incredible.
00:20:12.617 --> 00:20:17.777
<Michelle Fern> Where can people find out more about the foundation and about Badlands Ranch Food?
00:20:18.077 --> 00:20:19.057
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> That's a great question.
00:20:19.077 --> 00:20:24.297
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So badlandsranch.com is where they can find more about treats, food and their supplements.
00:20:24.677 --> 00:20:33.097
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> And then Badlands Ranch on social media is where they can learn more about the Forever Love stories, the adoptions and what they're doing right now with the foundation.
00:20:33.697 --> 00:20:36.697
<Michelle Fern> And where can people find out more about dental health?
00:20:37.077 --> 00:20:38.597
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So that's a great question.
00:20:38.937 --> 00:20:47.417
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> The VOHC, which is the veterinaryoralhealthcouncil.com is great, especially for cat owners that have questions about products for their pets.
00:20:47.497 --> 00:20:59.237
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> I think that's a great resource to have about how to brush teeth, what preventative options are there, what's a good toothpaste to use, especially because there's not a lot of food options out there for cats.
00:20:59.257 --> 00:21:01.117
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So that's a good place to go.
00:21:01.797 --> 00:21:03.597
<Michelle Fern> Okay, thank you so much for that.
00:21:03.597 --> 00:21:15.617
<Michelle Fern> And before we break, before we end rather, if you could tell for my listening audience, one thing to keep in mind for their pets' dental health, what would you tell them?
00:21:16.117 --> 00:21:29.397
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> I would tell them that I know dental cleanings are expensive and they're a big chunk of money out of your pocket, but it is such a great way to get under the gums and really, really keep those teeth nice and healthy.
00:21:29.697 --> 00:21:38.037
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Too many people wait until their animal is eight to 10 years old, and we're having to extract many, many teeth out of their mouths that we could have prevented from happening.
00:21:38.477 --> 00:21:44.957
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> So just remember that when you get a pet, put a little bit of money aside so we're able to get in there sooner rather than later.
00:21:45.217 --> 00:21:45.597
<Michelle Fern> Dr.
00:21:45.617 --> 00:21:51.937
<Michelle Fern> Vaid, thank you so much for coming on Best Bets for Pets and talking about pet dental health.
00:21:52.297 --> 00:21:57.117
<Michelle Fern> And this has been just a wonderful show and so much great advice.
00:21:57.137 --> 00:22:00.037
<Michelle Fern> So thank you again for coming on Best Bets for Pets.
00:22:00.437 --> 00:22:01.517
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> Thank you for having me.
00:22:01.537 --> 00:22:02.797
<Dr. Ambika Vaid> It was a pleasure to work with you.
00:22:03.257 --> 00:22:05.077
<Michelle Fern> Hope everybody enjoyed this show.
00:22:05.197 --> 00:22:07.717
<Michelle Fern> Dental health is so important for your pets.
00:22:08.037 --> 00:22:11.137
<Michelle Fern> If you haven't gotten into it, never too late to start.
00:22:11.457 --> 00:22:15.557
<Michelle Fern> And hey, it's February, Pet Dental Health Month, so get started.
00:22:15.957 --> 00:22:18.257
<Michelle Fern> So I wanna thank my guest, Dr.
00:22:18.277 --> 00:22:20.277
<Michelle Fern> Vaid, for coming on Best Bets for Pets.
00:22:20.597 --> 00:22:23.877
<Michelle Fern> Thanks to everyone listening to Best Bets for Pets.
00:22:23.937 --> 00:22:25.737
<Michelle Fern> I appreciate it so much.
00:22:26.277 --> 00:22:37.697
<Michelle Fern> And of course, thanks to my crew, Molly, Dennis and Charlotte, who keep me on my toes, especially when it comes to brushing their teeth, because it's a challenge with cats, that's for sure.
00:22:38.157 --> 00:22:43.077
<Michelle Fern> And this show wouldn't be the same without the magic of my producer, Mark Winter.
00:22:43.477 --> 00:22:47.737
<Michelle Fern> So remember, you never know what we'll have next on Best Bets for Pets.
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<Announcer> Let's talk pets, every week on demand, only on petliferadio.com.