My dog has a toothache. Can he still chew hard treats like Milk-Bones?

He does have a lot of tartar and build up on the teeth and gum line. If the tooth is loose, it will likely need to be removed to prevent further damage or an infection. Your vet can check the teeth and start antibiotics and schedule to have the teeth clean in order to safely remove the loose tooth and check others for the same problem. As long as he is not crying or having a hard time chewing, then you can keep giving him bones.

If he will let you without you getting bitten, check inside his mouth for wounds or anything being stuck in his teeth or on the roof of his mouth. If there is something there and you can get it loose without much trouble, try that. However, if you cannot get it loose or there is nothing to be found that could be causing the problem, I recommend getting him seen by your vet as soon as possible.

Yes, however, anything that is hard has the potential to break a dog's teeth. You want to make sure it's large enough to be a rounded surface, rather than a flat one that your dog is chewing on (based on their mouth size). It's also important to limit calories from treats to less than 10% of total daily calorie intake.

Absolutely the pain could be causing him to lay around. They are very painful. I would wet the canned food down even more so he doesn't have to chew much. He is going to need some pain medicine from your veterinarian. They are going to need to pull that tooth to stop the pain. Poor Rex.

Active chewing on a bone may well loosen and encourage it to fall out without resorting to anaesthesia and extraction. There are many oral tooth gels which help to improve hygiene and reduce the risks of infection for the remaining teeth but would be unlikely to help a loose, infected tooth

It is possible that he has a painful tooth, that he swallowed too large a piece, or that he felt like he was choking. I would continue to keep an eye on Cosmo for a week. If you see any decrease in appetite, lethargy, vomiting, diarrhea, or constipation, then he should be probably have a check up with your veterinarian.

Hello, sorry to hear about Charlie. It sounds like this could be more a behavioral problem and not so much a toothache problem. Tooth disease typically causes dogs to avoid hard materials. You're correct in being worried about Charlie eating these things as it can indeed cause GI problems and lead to tooth problems. This behavior can be elicited from stress and lack of environmental enrichment. You should get Charlie toys (kong toys) for him to play with and remove any other materials that he could get into. If this doesn't improve, he may need to be crate trained or wear a basket muzzle while you work with a behaviorist to decrease the incidence of this. Contact your veterinarian for advice on a local behaviorist whom may offer better support and further information. Monitor Charlie for any vomiting, decreased appetite, or lethargy and have him evaluated if you note any of these. Hope this helps and best of luck.