DISEASES OF THE MOUTH AND TONGUE. 4g 



DECAYED TEETH. 



Sound teeth are essential to the comfort, health, and 

 pleasurable companionship of the dog as they are to man- 

 kind. Unfortunately, however, in our canine friends these 

 useful agents are liable to become decayed, and the once 

 nursed pet is, by the fcetor of his breath, rendered offensive, 

 and ordered to a distance. 



Decayed teeth are the cause of many diseases, especially 

 of the mouth and digestive organs. Painful swellings, ab- 

 scesses and sinuses of the cheek, structural changes in the 

 jaw-bone — leading to tumor, laceration of the tongue, canker, 

 constitutional irritation, indigestion, and intestinal disease. 



There can be no doubt that the dog at times is a martyr 

 to toothache, the slobbering manner in which he partakes of 

 _ his food, and often his refusal to do so, with the head held on 

 one side, denote this to the observant eye. 



Decayed teeth are dependent, to a great extent, upon the 

 system of feeding (see " Feeding "). They should at all times 

 be removed. Occasional haemorrhage will follow extraction. 

 In such a case a little cotton wool steeped in tincture of 

 myrrh, iron, or solution of alum, and packed in the cavity, 

 will have the desired effect of arresting it. 



TARTAR. 



The deposit of tartar on the teeth is likewise prejudicial to 

 health, and is usually the result of injudicious feeding and 

 gastric derangement. 



The accumulation, especiiil.- in aged dogs, is often very 

 considerable. In consequence of the irritation produced on 

 the gums, they become' congested, swollen, and spongy, the 

 teeth loosen and decay, the breath is disgustingly fcEtid, and 

 constitutional disease follows such a condition if long main- 



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