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Dental home care in dogs - a questionnaire study among Swedish dog owners, veterinarians and veterinary nurses.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND:Periodontal disease remains one of the dog's most common health issues, even though it is largely preventable by tooth brushing. Implementation of daily tooth brushing would not only improve animal welfare, but also reduce veterinary costs for the owner. There is a paucity of studies investigating attitudes, opinions and practices of dog owners, veterinarians, and veterinary nurses regarding preventative dental home care in dogs. The objective of this study was to investigate these parameters in Sweden, thereby providing a basis for improved prophylactic strategies. METHODS:Validated questionnaire surveys were distributed to all Swedish dog owners (n?=?209,263), veterinarians (n?=?3657) and veterinary nurses (n?=?1650) with e-mail addresses in the national registry. The response rates were 32% for dog owners and veterinarians, and 38% for veterinary nurses. The survey questions concerned attitudes, opinions and practices regarding dental home care, including whether dog owners received information concerning dental home care or not, and if this information resulted in implementation. RESULTS:Attitudes, opinions and practices regarding dental home care are presented for Swedish dog owners, veterinarians, and veterinary nurses. A fundamental finding was that the absolute majority of Swedish dog owners do not perform adequate prophylactic dental home care. Considerable discrepancies were identified in the opinions of veterinary health practitioners and dog owners regarding attitudes towards dental home care and conveying of information. Several areas for improvement in the communication between dog owners and veterinary health practitioners concerning dental home care were identified. CONCLUSION:Our results illustrates the need for validated methods to increase dog owner compliance with dental home care recommendations. We also see a need of further education, regarding canine dental home care, among veterinarians, veterinary nurses, and dog owners. The results from this unique study constitute an important foundation for future development of prophylactic strategies, with the ultimate goal to improve dental health, and thereby animal welfare, in dogs.

SUBMITTER: Enlund KB

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7081671 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Dental home care in dogs - a questionnaire study among Swedish dog owners, veterinarians and veterinary nurses.

Enlund Karolina Brunius KB Brunius Carl C Hanson Jeanette J Hagman Ragnvi R Höglund Odd Viking OV Gustås Pia P Pettersson Ann A

BMC veterinary research 20200318 1

<h4>Background</h4>Periodontal disease remains one of the dog's most common health issues, even though it is largely preventable by tooth brushing. Implementation of daily tooth brushing would not only improve animal welfare, but also reduce veterinary costs for the owner. There is a paucity of studies investigating attitudes, opinions and practices of dog owners, veterinarians, and veterinary nurses regarding preventative dental home care in dogs. The objective of this study was to investigate ...[more]

PMID: 32188446

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Project description:Periodontal disease is one of the most common diseases affecting dogs, with a reported prevalence of at least 80% in dogs over 3 years of age. However, there is a lack of studies regarding dog owners' assessment of their dog's dental health, and whether they perceive clinical signs often associated with periodontal disease, i.e., dental calculus, halitosis or mobile or lost teeth. A validated questionnaire survey was distributed to all Swedish dog owners with email addresses in the national registry (n = 209,263). The response rate was 32%. The survey questions concerned opinions and practices regarding canine dental health, including assessment of dental health parameters and dog owners' ability to examine their dog's mouth. A construct (α = 0.76) was used to investigate dog owners' assessed symptoms of their dog's dental health in relation to background factors. Half of the respondents rated their dog's dental health as very good. However, one in four dog owners experienced difficulties when inspecting the dog's teeth. The most common reason for this difficulty was stated to be an uncooperative dog. Almost half of the dog owners reported halitosis to some degree in their dog, and almost four in ten owners reported dental calculus. One in eight dogs had been previously anesthetized for dental cleaning, and one in 12 dogs had experienced problems with gum disease, according to the owners. Owners' assessment varied significantly with the dog's age, weight, breed, breed group, sex, and concurrent disease. Owner-related factors that influenced the assessment of the dog's dental health were age, gender, education, county (urban/rural), and whether they were breeders or not. Dog owners with smaller dogs, older dogs and certain breeds predisposed to periodontal disease assessed their dog's dental health as worse than their counterparts, which is in agreement with previously reported higher prevalence of dental disease in these groups. This indicates that dog owners are able to perform relative assessment of their dog's dental health status. Our results also highlight the need for routine professional assessment of periodontal health, as well as education of dog owners and training of dogs to accept dental care procedures.

Project description:IntroductionPeriodontal disease is one of the most common health issues in dogs. However, disease is largely preventable by eliminating dental plaque, best achieved by daily tooth brushing. Unfortunately, owner adherence is low to the recommendation of daily tooth brushing in dogs.ObjectiveThis study aimed to evaluate the impact of various communication strategies, traditional advice (TA) versus motivational interviewing (MI), and compare them to a control group receiving no additional communication (CG), on dog owners' performance of dental home care and the oral health of their dogs.MethodsThe study was conducted as a longitudinal clinical intervention study spanning 3 years, and involved 75 dog owners with young dogs who were randomly assigned to one of three groups: TA, MI, or CG. Intervention groups received annual telephone consultations based on their assigned methodology. A questionnaire was administered twice to all groups, and the dental health of the dogs was assessed at the study's conclusion.ResultTooth brushing frequency demonstrated a significant increase in the MI group compared to the CG group (p < 0.01), albeit with a relatively low occurrence of daily brushing among owners. Dental health assessment revealed a significantly lower plaque index in the MI group compared to the CG group (p < 0.05), and a lower calculus index in the TA group compared to the CG group (p < 0.01). No statistically significant differences were observed between the MI and TA groups in terms of dental health.ConclusionRegular veterinary communication appears to have a positive influence on dog owner adherence to veterinary recommendations concerning dental care in dogs. Communication with veterinarians (MI and traditional advice) improved owner knowledge, attitude, and decreased frequency of not brushing. Although dental health parameters improved, the effect size was small, suggesting the complexity of adherence. Personalized calls to dog owners offer potential for dental health improvement, warranting further comparison of MI with traditional advice.

Project description:BACKGROUND:Dental disease is one of the most common health problems in dogs. However, no studies have investigated the attitudes, opinions and practices of dog owners, veterinarians and veterinary nurses regarding dental health and preventative dental home care in dogs. The objective of this study was therefore to develop and validate questionnaires for this purpose, in accordance with survey methodology guidelines. METHODS:Questionnaire items were determined based on the authors' academic knowledge and clinical experience, and modified throughout the validation process. Several measures were taken to reduce sampling, coverage, measurement and non-response errors. Content validity was assessed by Subject-Matter Experts (SME) and cognitive interviews were conducted in accordance with the "think-aloud protocol". Non-response analysis was performed using several methods. RESULTS:Constructs were identified using exploratory factor analysis and two predefined constructs from the dog owner questionnaire were confirmed "Dog owners' attitudes towards brushing their dog's teeth" (Cronbach's ? = 0.86) and "Dog owners' assessment of their dog's dental health" (? = 0.76). Additionally, exploratory factor analysis identified three potential constructs. In the veterinary health practitioner questionnaire, two constructs were identified: "Veterinary health practitioners' attitudes towards dental chews and dental feed" (? = 0.78) and "Veterinary health practitioners' attitudes and opinions on dental problems and dental cleaning" (? = 0.73). Non-response analysis showed a higher proportion of women in the sample of dog owners and veterinarians compared to the target populations. Veterinarians in the sample were also younger. In contrast, gender and age distributions in veterinary nurses did not differ between sample and target. CONCLUSION:The validation presented in this work showed that the developed questionnaires could be used as accurate and reliable tools for measuring attitudes and practices regarding dental home care in dogs among Swedish dog owners, veterinarians and veterinary nurses.

Dataset Information

Dental home care in dogs - a questionnaire study among Swedish dog owners, veterinarians and veterinary nurses.

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Dental home care in dogs - a questionnaire study among Swedish dog owners, veterinarians and veterinary nurses.

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