Just like humans, every dog’s teeth are surrounded by gums. The gums are mucous membranes that not only hold our canine’s teeth in place but also give us insight into our pet’s health.
Gums act primarily as a protective barrier and produce mucus and a constant blood supply, so they have a natural pink color.
Wherever you notice a change in your pet’s gum color, it often means something isn’t right with your pet health-wise.
What Does a Normal Dog Gum Look Like?
The gum color should be a beautiful bright bubble gum pink color for a normal and healthy dog.
Even if you press a healthy dog gum, you should notice a change as the gum lightens up to a white or pale pink color and then reverts quickly to the former bubble gum pink color when you take it off your finger.
It takes some time for the flight dog’s gum to return to its natural pink color when you press them, and that time frame is called the capillary refill time.
Your dog’s healthy gums should also be wet and smooth if you had to run a finger over them. Something must be wrong if you notice they are either dry or sticky.
Common Gum Problems in Dogs
1. Blue Gums
If your dog is not getting enough oxygen to circulate through its blood vessels, it will begin to have blue or purple gum.
This gum color is linked to cyanosis, which comes in two types: the central and the peripheral.
Different issues may be responsible for the cyanosis condition, but whatever the cause is, there is no way it will affect the animal’s respiratory system.
Pulmonary thromboembolism, Pneumonia, congestive heart failure, and other problems that can block the airways often lead to this purple or blue coloration of the gums because of some decrease in oxygen flow.
All the above-listed conditions are serious and require immediate attention.
2. Pale Pink or White Gums
If you notice that your dog’s gum is white or pale pink, there is a problem requiring immediate attention. These colors are usually a sign of a lack of blood or hemoglobin.
This means your dog has either lost blood or is dealing with anemia. Different underlying diseases can lead to anemia in canines, and trauma can cause your pet to experience severe or acute blood loss.
The normal pink color of the animal’s gum should have usually faded because there is not enough blood to circulate in your dog’s body.
Every condition that leads to anemia is serious and calls for an immediate visit to the vet.
3. Bright Red Gums
We have mentioned that if your dog’s gums look pale, something isn’t right, and if your dog’s gum looks too red, you should be worried.
A bright red gum would mean your dog is dealing with gingivitis, overheating, or stomatitis.
Dogs dealing with heat stroke often have bright red gums as they pant to blow off the heat and calm their bodies down.
When your dog has bright red gums, it could also mean inflammation in its gums or an infection that might be spreading.
All these problems can make your dog begin to bleed through its gums, and they also can be very painful.
4. Growths on Gums
Warts and oral tumors can commonly be found on your canine’s gums. Sometimes, these growths and warts may disappear or heal without treatment, but they can also be dangerous, contagious, or cancerous.
Papillomatosis is one of the many diseases that can easily be spread from one dog to another, and this condition usually causes some pink fleshy warts on the animal’s gums.
Sometimes, they show up in other body parts. However, This may not give many reasons to be scared the way other tumors and growth are. Other tumors may be cancerous and lead to serious health concerns and also cause pain and difficulty eating.
5. Bleeding Gums
Gingivitis, stomatitis, and even growth may often lead to sensitivity in your dog’s gum, which may cause easy bleeding.
If your dog has bleeding gums, you must visit a vet immediately before the condition worsens.
How to prevent gum problems in dogs?
Depending on why your dog is dealing with a gun problem, there is no guarantee that your dog’s gum problem will be preventable.
1. Blue gums
For dogs with diseases that may hinder proper breathing and oxygenation, such conditions cause blue or purple gums. Still, the sad part is that these diseases are often unavoidable.
Make sure neither you nor your guests smoke around your pet, and get sure to get veterinary treatment as soon as you can if your dog is having difficulty breathing for any reason.
Note that some diseases, such as heart failure, are unpreventable.
2. Pale pink or white gums
Typically, Preventing the paling of your pet’s gums is difficult, if not almost impossible, mostly because you would need to prevent some of the illnesses that cause this problem.
An acute blood loss and medical condition leading to anemia should be treated immediately, as that is the only way to prevent the development of pale or white gums in dogs.
3. Bright Red Gums
Keeping your canine at a normal or regulated body temperature will help you prevent the occurrence of bright red gums that can be seen in an overheated dog.
However, if your dog’s red gums result from stomatitis or gingivitis, regular dental care must be performed to prevent such issues.
4. Growth in gums
You may decrease the occurrence of warts if you reduce the level of exposure of your dog that already has pink warts.
If it is discovered that the growth is cancerous or a different type of mass, then there might be nothing you can do about it when it comes to options for prevention.
5. Bleeding gums
If your dog’s gums are bleeding due to poor dental care, you need to consider regular teeth brushing and regular visits to the vet for dental care.
Treating gum problems in canines
The thing with treatment plans for gum problems is that they vary according to the different gum problems in dogs.
For problems involving the dog’s gums related to respiratory conditions, instant oxygen therapy and drugs specific to the underlying medical condition are often needed.
For example, a dog’s pale pink or white gum may require a blood transfusion due to anemia or blood loss. Also, if growth is involved, surgery may be needed to detach them from the animal’s gums.
Dental care that involves cleaning, medications, tooth extraction, and sometimes even a cold therapy laser treatment may be essential to tackle bleeding or bright red gums in dogs.
In conclusion, if a canine is overheated or has bright red gums, simply cooling it down may be all you need to address this.
Have you ever noticed any of the above conditions in your dog? Please do not hesitate to share your experience with us by leaving a comment below, and also remember to share and help other dog owners learn.
