Animal bites.

What would you do if your dentist blew a whistle at you?

If you were a zoo animal, you'd probably open wide for tooth care.

"Animals can be trained to open their mouths to let us brush their teeth," says Dr. Jeff Proudfoot, senior veterinarian at the Indianapolis Zoo.

Just like kids, the animals in zoos need to take care of their teeth. Cavities are not as common in animals as in kids--they don't eat sugary treats. But just like children they can injure their teeth and gums. And trouble can pop up when their adult teeth start coming in.

But when a child has a toothache he lets people know. Can the animals?

"They don't always," says Dr. Proudfoot. Animals can stand pain that would make people howl. "That's why training them to open their mouth so we can take a look is so important."

There are outward signs that an animal has a hurt tooth:

* swollen face,

* poor appetite,

* drooling,

* no energy.

When zookeepers notice an animal having these problems, they know it's time for a checkup.

But just like people, it's really better to avoid problems in the first place. Chewing hard things can help reduce the tartar (food leftovers and minerals hardened on the teeth) that can lead to tooth decay. Animals at the zoo also get monkey biscuits treated with a special tartar-fighting chemical.

Sooner or later, though, the animals have to come in for a cleaning, just like you. Your visits to the dental hygienist are probably a little easier, though. Cleaning an animal's teeth can be tough.

"Sometimes you're breaking it off with things that resemble pliers," says Dr. Proudfoot. An ultrasonic scaler is used to remove the small bits left. "Then we use a polisher just like your dentist would," say the doctor.

Tweets and Treats

Animals learn a lot like kids do--first you have to get their attention. "The key is learning what motivates the animal," says Dr. Jeff Proudfoot, of the Indianapolis Zoo.

It's fairly simple; when an animal does what the trainer wants open its mouth--it gets what it wants. Usually that's food.

But you also have to teach the animal when to open up. Using a whistle helps the animal remember the treat and the tweet come together.

Usually the first step is to get the animal to focus its attention on something, called a "target." A whistle and a treat every time the animal looks at the target soon gets the message across.

Another reward and whistle comes when the mouth opens, and again when the animal keeps its mouth open for longer periods of time. Soon, the trainer need only blow the whistle to get the animal's cooperation for a dental exam.

Does your dentist wish it was so easy to treat you?

Big or little, animals at the Indianapolis Zoo need tooth care. The big ones, like this Kodiak bear, have to be anesthetized (ann-ESS-thi-tized)--put to sleep--so the work will be painless for the animals and for the zookeepers.

Kids and animals depend on their teeth and need to have them protected. In the wild, elephants can eventually die because they've lost the ability to eat. "They have teeth that just gradually wear down smooth, so they have trouble chewing their food," says Dr. Proudfoot.