- It’s best to do this before feeding your pet. Food particles can contaminate the sample and make your results less accurate. Avoid meals and treats at least 10 minutes prior to testing.
- Store your test in a dry and cool environment. Do not use test strip after the expiration date on the package, and do not reuse the test strips.
- To collect a saliva sample and get your results, remove one of the test strips from the package, and rub the pad of the test strip along your pet’s gumline for 5 seconds on each side of the mouth to get it fully wet.
- Start a timer for 10 seconds and wait until time is up to view your results.
- Compare the color at the center of your test strip pad to the color-scoring scale on your test package.
- The more yellow and farther to the right on the scale, the higher the level of thiols that were detected.
- Where your test strip lands will tell you your Final Result (Negative, +, ++, or +++). For each possible Final Result, recommendations are included on the test package.
Tip: When administering the test, do not leave the test strip unattended in your pet’s mouth and avoid damaging the pad on your pet’s teeth or tongue. If the pad does become damaged, repeat the test with a new test strip.
- We do not recommend bringing your test strip into your veterinarian as the results are no longer accurate after 1 minute.
- If you’d like to review your results with your veterinarian, we recommend taking a photo of your test strip against the color-scoring scale. Keep in mind, however, poor lighting can affect how the results appear in your picture.
- That depends on your Final Result. The recommendation can be retest in 3-6 months, retest in 1 month, or contact your veterinarian immediately.
- If your pet continues to get Negative as their Final Result, we suggest retesting your pet every 6 months if they’re younger than 7 years and every 3 months if they’re older than 7 years.
- No, all the information you need to administer the test and get your results is available on the test package and our Petivity website.
- We don’t currently have an app associated with our Petivity Health Tests. If you have any questions, please contact our Petivity Support team.
- From puppies and kittens to senior dogs and cats, pets of all ages can benefit from a Petivity At-Home Oral Health Test to establish a baseline for their Final Result and track changes over time.
- As your pet ages, the chances of developing oral health issues tend to increase, so monitoring results over the life of your pet can help you stay proactive in your pet health care.
- Yes, since you’ll be collecting a saliva sample along their gumline, our test is still valuable for dogs and cats that are missing teeth.
- The Petivity At-Home Oral Health Test is not a replacement for regular visits to the veterinarian. It’s ideal for testing in-between routine visits or as directed by your veterinarian for frequent oral health testing.