DIET FOR DOG AND CAT FEED AFFECTED PLAQUE AND TARTAR

DIET FOR DOG AND CAT FEED AFFECTED PLAQUE AND TARTAR

                                   by Nindya Kusuma, DRH

Pet in the hold of life requires eating. The journey of food will enter the oral cavity, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine and anus. Teeth are the main prehensi tool in taking a meal. Teeth are hard parts contained in the mouth. Dogs have four types of teeth, the incisors, canines, premolars and molars. Incisors serves to cut food, canines gear used to catch and tear the food, premolars for tearing and help grind food while molars to chew and grind the food.

Dental problems in dogs and cats are often found is the presence of tartar or tartar. The existence of tartar can affect the health status of the dog. If the tartar is not addressed it will cause odor from the mouth as a result of spoilage bacteria in tartar so the dog became agitated. The cause of the dog restless because they feel pain due to inflammation of the nerves causes have decreased appetite.

According to the American Veterinary Medical Association found when a buildup of tartar on the dog then the dog is classified unhealthy dogs. Dogs and cats are rooted thick teeth can be affected by the type of feed that the feed mixture of dry and wet. Remnants of wet feed will easily stick to the teeth so that trigger the onset of tartar. Basically, the process of the formation of tartar is divided into three phases, namely the pellicle formation, initial colonization on tooth surfaces and secondary colonization and plaque maturation. In phase pellicle formation, bacteria combine with saliva and food debris between teeth and gums, plaque will subsequently formed and accumulates on the teeth to form a pellicle. Pellicle is a thin cuticle, clear and mainly consists of glycoproteins (Foster and Smith, 2011). In the pellicle obtained microorganisms mostly aerobic gram-positive bacteria, especially of the genus Streptococcus which produce an exopolysaccharide.

Exopolysaccharide is a substance that acts like glue that serves as a facilitator attachment of bacteria to the tooth surface, forming colonization of the tooth surface. The process takes 24 to 48 hours later will be mineralized plaque about 12 days to form tartar (Pieri et al., 2012). In the final phase of maturation of plaque characterized by decreasing the number of gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria increased (Gehring and Willmann, 2003).

Diet dental feed is also one case of prevention for tartar and periodontal disease. Dry feed can reduce the incidence of plaque along with a given chewing. Diet with dry feed specially formulated to control plaque and gingivitis. Dental feed kibble diets formulated with the fiber content of the rubbery surface capable of brushing teeth are plaque and tartar. Fiber structure is unique because it is not easily crushed against the penetration of the teeth. When pet diet should feed it kibble diet can reduce supragingival plaque.
In addition, also available snack biscuit containing Sodium Hexametaphosphate (HMP) for controlling tartar or tartar. The role of Sodium Hexametaphosphate is a soluble form or solved so bound by saliva resulting in no space for the formation of plaque and tartar. In addition, the content of zinc ascorbate, zinc gluconate and zinc salt are found in a variety of oral cleansing gel can help control plaque accumulation because of their antimicrobial activity.

Deficiencies in vitamin A have been reported to cause marginal gingivitis, gingival hypoplasia, and resorption of alveolar bone. B-complex vitamin (including folic acid, niacin, pantothenic acid, and riboflavin) deficiencies have been associated with gingival inflammation, epithelial necrosis, and resorption of alveolar bone. Vitamin C plays a key role incollagen synthesis. Vitamin D helps to regulate serum calcium concentrations. Vitamin D deficiencies affect calcium homeostasis and reportedly affect the gingivae, periodontal ligament, and alveolar bone. Almost all commercial pet foods contain adequate levels of these vitamins.

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