Periodontal disease is the #1 disease in dogs and cats today. In addition, studies show that 20-27% of all canine patients have fractured teeth and up to 68% of feline patients have resorptive lesions. Timely dental care to address these concerns can increase both your pet’s quality of life and longevity.
Tolerant pets will get a dental exam at the same time as their annual exam. This allows us to evaluate for swellings, fractures, tumors, tarter, and other signs of infection or disease in the mouth. At that time, we will make one of three recommendations:
1) Keep doing what you’re doing, your pet’s teeth and gum health look great!
2) It’s important for you to start a home care routine to reduce the plaque build up on your pet’s teeth, here are some recommendations…
3) It’s time to proceed with dental surgery to address concerns that will not resolve with home care alone.
The most common reason for an anesthetic dental procedure is to perform a thorough cleaning of the teeth. Plaque is an invisible film of bacteria that builds up on the teeth that can cause infection of the gums and tooth roots. Over time, plaque hardens into visible tartar. Daily home care can help reduce plaque build up but only an anesthetic dental cleaning will adequately remove tartar; the scaling of the plaque and tartar that lies under the gum line is the most important part of this procedure. This crucial step is missed during non-anesthetic dental cleanings, which is why they are strongly discouraged by the American Veterinary Dental Collage (AVDC).
Other reasons that dental surgery may be recommended are tumor removal or biopsy, minor jaw fractures, or tooth extraction due to infection, fractures, or resorption.
Tolerant pets will get a dental exam at the same time as their annual exam. This allows us to evaluate for swellings, fractures, tumors, tarter, and other signs of infection or disease in the mouth. At that time, we will make one of three recommendations:
1) Keep doing what you’re doing, your pet’s teeth and gum health look great!
2) It’s important for you to start a home care routine to reduce the plaque build up on your pet’s teeth, here are some recommendations…
3) It’s time to proceed with dental surgery to address concerns that will not resolve with home care alone.
The most common reason for an anesthetic dental procedure is to perform a thorough cleaning of the teeth. Plaque is an invisible film of bacteria that builds up on the teeth that can cause infection of the gums and tooth roots. Over time, plaque hardens into visible tartar. Daily home care can help reduce plaque build up but only an anesthetic dental cleaning will adequately remove tartar; the scaling of the plaque and tartar that lies under the gum line is the most important part of this procedure. This crucial step is missed during non-anesthetic dental cleanings, which is why they are strongly discouraged by the American Veterinary Dental Collage (AVDC).
Other reasons that dental surgery may be recommended are tumor removal or biopsy, minor jaw fractures, or tooth extraction due to infection, fractures, or resorption.
