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Here's the scoop.
Regardless of what you feed and how you feed it, the bottom line is that you MUST help your Yorkie maintain proper dental hygiene. You need to help promote healthy teeth w/ a proper diet and nice and tight gums free of debris-which means you should also brush his teeth for him if he isn't a chewer on his own (and it sounds like he isn't). Otherwise, he'll most likely wind up loosing the rest of what he has. If his teeth are THAT sensitive, you should ask your vet about using a soft bristle baby's tooth brush w/ a doggie toothpaste that rivals our "Sensodyne" brand. I'm sure one exists and if he doesn't have the answer for you, call a specialist for a referral-that costs you nothing more than time. Be sure to be gentle w/ the brushing, but get it done, no matter how much of a fuss he makes-it's best for him.
Also, there are oral rinses that you can add to his water if you're leery about brushing and all this does is help maintain the bacteria level in his mouth at somewhat of an acceptable level.
...His water dish, does he have a sensitivity to hot/cold water? If so, I'd find out what temperatures he can tolerate and try to water him accordingly. Many of our older dogs have always preffered room temperature over cold. Also, moistening dry dog food is what I've always done for our older dogs until they get to that truely "senior" stage and then I begin cooking for them. Your kid is no where near that point, so I'd hold off on that if you want as it is time consuming. |