We hanve had 4 basenjis. We have always paid great attention to their dental care - we brush daily and make sure they get dental cleanings regularly. Our current dog, JJ, has had to have about 20 teeth removed in the last three years. He only has 16 left. Our vet thinks the rest will eventually have to be removed as well. She thinks his problems are genetic - he had very unstable roots and unbelievable decay no matter what we did. Just wondering if anyone else has had this problem. Thanks.
I haven't personally had extraordinary problems with teeth, but I concur about it possibly being genetic. My niece had four cats, all raised and managed the same. One had terrible teeth, no matter what she did. The others were normal and had no issues. Genetics was the only variable. I'm sure dogs are the same. How old is your dog?
he is almost 12
My first male had many issues with his teeth. While he did not have as many as yours extracted, they were always an issue. And it did run in the family lines for sure….
Sounds like another good question people need to ask the breeder when choosing a pup, didn't know myself they could have this problem, not a nice problem to deal with.
Jolanda and Kaiser
In the case of my boy, it for sure was genetic on the dam's side…..
Very excellent point, I never asked about teeth or asked to see the sire and dams teeth but from now going forward it will go on the list of questions to ask!
Oakley gets his teeth brushed regularly and has had one pre-emptive cleaning and he always has awful breath and plaque 
has 2 surgerys to remove all of the teeth on his left side. We brushed his teeth and it seemed he just had bad teeth. My Vet says some dogs do and it wasnt our fault.
There are some lines with lots of dental issues.. I know of some related dogs of these lines that have had many many teeth removed.
In all the years I have had Basenjis, I have never once had a dental done on a dog.. I just make sure they eat their raw bones and scrape their teeth when necessary…. but if you are unlucky and have a dog with a genetic predisposition for teeth issues.. you have a lovely seat at the vet office with your name on it.
Best of luck with your kid.
My little 3 yr. old girl is getting her teeth cleaned after having it done just 6 months ago. She has now had 10 teeth removed. We brush and give her good things to chew on, but it seems that she will have periodontal problems for the rest of her life. Her gums, cheeks and tongue were all inflamed! It is comforting to see that she is not the only one. We have no idea of her breeding, as she was a stray. The vet believes she is most likely pure bred.
our female had red inflamed gums and tongue also,,,,we found out that she is allergic to the plaque on her teeth, we had teeth removed and it stopped all her problems..she is happy and eats wet food with no problem, think it was harder on us than her. we exhausted all options including 3 dental cleanings a year and brushing every day.. this was not an easy decision that we made in conjunction with 2 vets. I only wish I had done it earlier.
our female had red inflamed gums and tongue also,,,,we found out that she is allergic to the plaque on her teeth, we had teeth removed and it stopped all her problems..she is happy and eats wet food with no problem, think it was harder on us than her. we exhausted all options including 3 dental cleanings a year and brushing every day.. this was not an easy decision that we made in conjunction with 2 vets. I only wish I had done it earlier.
If you brush efficiently EVERY DAY, you remove the plaque, but if you still have issues, steroid may be the magic bullet. My vet suggested trying them before removing her teeth after a year of battling (cleaning every 3 mos and nightly brushing) and still ended up removing teeth. For us, low dose steroid was in fact the magic bullet. We have managed to lose no teeth and keep her mouth good for nearly 8 yrs.
CUPS is an autoimmune problem, so my vet, UGA and a specialist I called ALL agreed, she that low dose steroids might help as she may not need the steroids just for her mouth but to help keep systemic autoimmune at bay. Further, they warned even with removal, could STILL have inflammation, so going steroids first was the best choice. I am very glad your dog has done so well, but did your vet even offer steroid trial?
In cases in which discomfort is severe and the owners are unable or unwilling to brush the teeth, extraction of all teeth associated with ulcers may be necessary to remove the contact surfaces on which plaque accumulates. Although this may help control the lesions, it is not curative, because plaque forms on mucosal surfaces in the mouth, including the tongue. In some cases with complete extractions, dogs continue to develop lesions due to a hyperimmune response to the plaque.<<
I'm a bit excited they have had success with cats with gum inflammation : http://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/whatsnew/article.cfm?id=2789
we tried a steroid doseage for 2 plus years and did not offer enough relief to continue on that therapy.
