How to To Tell If Your Dog Has Gum Disease

Here's how to inspect your dog's mouth for the signs of gum disease.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

1. Open your dog's mouth and smell its breath. Bad breath is one of the first tip-offs that your dog might have gum disease or dental problems. If your dog always has bad breath, it might have gum disease.

2. Observe how your dog eats. Does it avoid hard food, and find some types of food painful to eat? Does it have difficulty eating, or eat in an awkward manner?

3. Watch to see if your dog appears to have a sensitive mouth. Does it whine when its mouth/gum area is lightly touched? This could be another sign of gum disease.

4. Inspect the inside of your dog's mouth. Use a flashlight, or look at your dogs mouth in a well lit area. Look for loose or cracked teeth, bleeding gums, or abscesses around the gum line.

5. Take your dog to the vet. Your vet will clean your dogs teeth thoroughly. Learn from the veterinarian how to brush your dog's teeth with a doggie toothbrush and dog toothpaste.