ANNUAL DENTAL EXAMS & MOREAnnual dental exams and cleanings are recommended to protect your pet from many health problems and help them maintain a healthy and clean mouth.
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Studies show that 50% of all dogs and cats have some form of periodontal disease. That number jumps to 80% in pets that are 3 years of age or older. If left untreated, periodontal disease can cause infection, pain, and tooth loss over time. It can also lead to serious health problems like microscopic changes in the heart, liver, and kidneys. Because of this, we recommend an annual veterinary dental healthcare examination for all pets.
Dental cleanings for pets need to be done under anesthesia. Because of this we follow a strict protocol to ensure your pet’s safety. We will always perform a pre-anesthetic blood screening, place an IV catheter, and administer IV fluids during the procedure. |
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We constantly monitor your pet’s vital signs including blood pressure, heart rate, respiration rate, body temperature and oxygen saturation rate electronically and manually before, during and after anesthesia. We provide a local anesthesia block if any teeth need to be extracted. Similar to human dentistry, we do full mouth digital radiographs (x-rays) of your pet. This allows our veterinarians to be able to evaluate the roots of your pet's teeth as well as any disease or abnormalities that are located below the gum line and not visible on examination alone. We make every effort to save teeth that we feel have a chance to be successfully treated. In many circumstances, however, periodontal disease is so advanced that treatment without extraction is unsuccessful. We only extract teeth that in the doctor's opinion are beyond saving. Many teeth require oral surgery to safely remove each individual root. We have extensive training and experience to perform these procedures properly. Pain medications are administered in clinic and provided for in-home aftercare.
