To brush your dog's teeth, put a pea-sized dab of dog toothpaste on a soft brush, lift the lip, and scrub the outer surfaces of the teeth for about 30 seconds per side, every day. The trick with a dog that hates it is to spend two or three weeks getting there in tiny steps, so the brush never becomes a fight. This post gives you the exact steps, what to buy, how often it really has to happen, and what to do when your dog clamps shut, so this becomes a routine you actually keep, not one you meant to start.
Why bother brushing at all
Because plaque hardens fast and the disease it causes is nearly universal. Cornell's Riney Canine Health Center: "Within as short as 24 hours, minerals in saliva, such as calcium, will begin to harden the plaque into what we call dental tartar."1 The AVMA says "by the time your pet is 3 years old, he or she will very likely have some early evidence of periodontal disease," and that "Regularly brushing your pet's teeth is the single most effective thing you can do to keep their teeth healthy between dental cleanings."2 Once tartar is on the tooth, a brush will not take it off. That is a cleaning under anesthesia, which HomeGuide puts around $1,000 on average and up to $3,000 or more with extractions.3 Brushing is how you stop paying that every couple of years. If you want the full picture of what untreated plaque turns into, we covered it in what happens if you never brush your dog's teeth.
What you need
- A dog toothpaste. Not yours. VCA's reason is simple: human toothpaste "is not formulated to be swallowed."4 Dogs swallow everything. Some human pastes also contain xylitol, which the ASPCA says "can cause low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) and potentially liver damage depending on the amount ingested."5 Enzymatic dog pastes come in chicken, beef, or mint flavors, and most dogs treat them like a treat.
- A soft brush sized to the mouth. A dual-ended brush (big head for a lab, small head for a frenchie or a terrier) covers most dogs. Finger brushes are good for the introduction phase but do not reach the gumline as well.
- A reward that is not food, if you can. Praise, a walk, a toy. Food right after brushing is fine too. You are not undoing anything.
Our Fresh Breath Starter Kit bundles a chicken flavored toothpaste, two dual-ended brushes, and a mint spray for $42. The limitation is the obvious one: it is a brush and a tube. The routine is on you.
Step by step for reluctant dogs
VCA lays out the same progression vets teach in the exam room, and it works because each step is boring. Go at your dog's pace. If any step gets a head turn or a lip curl, back up one step for a couple of days.
Step 1: Touch the mouth (days 1 to 4)
No paste, no brush. Once a day, at the same time, lift the lip on one side, touch a tooth with a finger, let go, praise. VCA: "Start by rubbing your finger or a soft cloth over the outer surfaces of your dog's teeth."4 Ten seconds. Then stop, even if it went well. Especially if it went well.
Step 2: Introduce the paste (days 5 to 8)
VCA: "Once your dog is comfortable with you rubbing his teeth, let him taste a little bit of pet toothpaste from your finger."4 Most dogs decide the paste is the point of the exercise at this stage. Then rub a bit along the outer teeth with your finger.
Step 3: Paste on a cloth (days 9 to 12)
VCA: "Once your dog has accepted the taste of pet toothpaste, apply a small amount to the cloth and rub it over the teeth."4 A square of gauze around your finger works. This is also the fallback for a dog who never accepts a brush. Merck notes that wiping the teeth with gauze at least every two to three days can remove plaque in dogs that will not allow a toothbrush, while adding that "Daily toothbrushing is best."6 Less effective than bristles, far better than nothing.
Step 4: The brush (day 13 onward)
VCA: "Once your dog is used to you rubbing his teeth with a cloth, it's time to start using a toothbrush."4 Paste on the bristles, lift the lip, brush at a slight angle toward the gumline in small circles. Start with the big teeth at the back on one side, do a few strokes, praise, stop. Add a few more teeth each day until you can do a full side in about 30 seconds.
What to brush
Outsides only. VCA: "Do not worry about brushing the tips or insides of the teeth unless your dog is very cooperative. Most periodontal damage occurs on the outer surfaces of the teeth and this is where you should direct your efforts."4 You do not need to open the mouth. Lift the lip and work behind it. The tongue handles the inside.
How often do you actually have to brush?
Daily is the answer, and it is not marketing. The 2019 AAHA Dental Care Guidelines state: "Brushing needs to be done daily to be of benefit."7 The trial behind that is Harvey, Serfilippi and Barnvos in the Journal of Veterinary Dentistry, 2015, which compared brushing frequencies in dogs: "Brushing daily or every other day produced statistically significant improved results compared with brushing weekly or every other week."8 So every other day still counts. Weekly does not do much.
VCA's floor: "Brushing three times a week is the minimum recommendation to help remove plaque and prevent tartar accumulation," and "Try to brush for approximately 30 seconds per side."4 My take: aim for daily, forgive yourself at every other day, and treat three times a week as the line you do not go under. One minute a day is what this costs.
Making it stick
Tie it to something you already do. After the evening walk, before your own teeth, while the coffee brews. Same spot in the house, same order of sides. Keep the brush and paste where you can see them, not in a cabinet. Set a phone reminder for the first month. If you miss a day, do not double up, just do tomorrow.
Two mistakes I see a lot. First, going too fast in the first week because the dog "seemed fine," then hitting a wall at the brush stage. Second, quitting because the dog still has tartar after a month. Brushing prevents new buildup. It does not remove old tartar. If the teeth are already brown, book the cleaning, then brush to keep them clean. Chews and water additives can help around the edges, and our post on whether dental chews are worth it explains which ones have data. For dogs who never accept a brush, the alternatives to brushing ranks the options honestly, because pretending there is an easier fix than the brush is exactly the kind of thing you are trying to stop falling for.
When to call the vet
If your dog yelps, bleeds more than a trace, or suddenly refuses a mouth it tolerated last week, stop and have the mouth looked at. Pain is usually the reason a dog will not let you brush, and a cracked tooth or an abscess is not a training problem. Also call if you notice a loose tooth, a swelling under the eye, or a strong new smell. Those need a vet before they need a brush.
Sources
- Cornell University Riney Canine Health Center, "Dental disease and home dental care." vet.cornell.edu
- American Veterinary Medical Association, "Pet dental care." avma.org
- HomeGuide, "How Much Does Dog Teeth Cleaning Cost?" homeguide.com
- VCA Animal Hospitals, "Brushing Teeth in Dogs." vcahospitals.com
- ASPCA Animal Poison Control, "People Foods to Avoid Feeding Your Pets." aspca.org
- Merck Veterinary Manual, "Dental Disorders of Dogs." merckvetmanual.com
- American Animal Hospital Association, "2019 AAHA Dental Care Guidelines," 2019. aaha.org
- Harvey C, Serfilippi L, Barnvos D, "Effect of Frequency of Brushing Teeth on Plaque and Calculus Accumulation, and Gingivitis in Dogs," Journal of Veterinary Dentistry 32(1):16-21, 2015. journals.sagepub.com