Groom Professional Dental Care Kit

The Groom Professional Dental Care Kit is two rubber sleeves that fit over your finger -- a brush and a softer massager. The finger format is the point: you can feel what you are doing, and the dog accepts it far more readily than a handled brush.

Key Features

• Finger toothbrush: A bristled sleeve over your fingertip, for close control
• Gum massager: The softer of the two, for getting a dog used to the idea and for sore gums
• Better accepted: Most dogs tolerate a finger long before they tolerate a toothbrush
• Reaches the right place: The outer surfaces of the back teeth, which is where tartar builds
• Two pieces: Brush and massager in one kit
• Washable: Rinse and dry between uses

How To Actually Get This Done

• Start without the brush. Let the dog lick dog toothpaste off your finger for a few days.
• Then one finger along the outside of the teeth, a few seconds, and stop while it is still going well.
• Build up to the brush sleeve over a week or two. There is no hurry.
• Only the outside surfaces matter. The tongue handles the inside, and trying to get in there is how you get bitten.
• Daily is the target. Three times a week does most of the good; once a month does almost none.

Never Human Toothpaste

Human toothpaste is not safe for dogs. It is not meant to be swallowed, and many brands contain xylitol, which is seriously toxic to dogs even in small amounts. Use a toothpaste made for dogs, or clean water on the brush, and nothing else.

What Brushing Will Not Fix

Brushing stops plaque turning into tartar. It does not remove tartar that has already hardened on, and it does not treat gum disease. Brown deposits at the gumline, red or bleeding gums, a bad smell, a dog that drops food or chews on one side -- all of that needs a vet, and usually a scale and polish under anaesthetic. By the time it smells, there is already disease there.

Who Makes It

Groom Professional launched in 2009 on the Causeway Coast in Northern Ireland and is sold through the grooming trade supplier Christies Direct. The range was built for working salons rather than for the bathroom cupboard, which is why so much of it comes as a concentrate and in four-litre sizes. Groom Professional say the products are manufactured in the UK.

Good To Know

• Use a dog toothpaste or plain water. Never human toothpaste, because of the xylitol risk.
• Stop if the gums bleed more than a trace, and get the mouth checked.
• Dental disease is the commonest health problem in adult dogs, and it is painful long before the dog shows it. Brushing is worth the trouble.
• Keep it out of reach of children and store it somewhere cool and dry.