February is dental health month, and the staff of Suburban Animal Clinic are encouraging all pet owners to lift the lip and check their pet’s teeth.
Approximately 70% of pets over the age of 2 have periodontal disease. Without proper oral care, that periodontal disease will progress and can affect the function of other internal organs (heart, kidneys, liver). So what can you do to keep your pet’s mouth healthy?
Take your pet to your veterinarian for a thorough physical exam every year. Your veterinarian should also look at your pet’s teeth and gums-most pets do allow this. Ask your veterinarian if your pet needs a teeth cleaning. If your pet is one who doesn’t let you look at their mouth at home, ask your vet to let you see the teeth and gums during the exam.
Home dental care is essential for a healthy mouth. You do home dental care on yourselves every day. You brush your teeth daily, you probably floss, maybe use mouthwash… You can do the same for your pets! Suburban’s staff members will be happy to tailor a home dental care program for your pet. Options range from tooth brushing (2-3 times weekly is great! Use a pet safe toothpaste), pet safe oral rinses, special dental chews, tooth sealant, and even a diet formulated for oral health. See our blog http://www.suburbananimalclinic.com/dental-care-at-home for more information on home dental care options.
Professional dental cleanings are as important for your pets as they are for you….probably even more important since most pets do not have daily tooth brushing, etc. Many pets will continue eating despite the condition of their teeth, including with broken teeth, so don’t wait for your pet to stop eating to indicate dental problems.
Something that bothers many pet owners about dental cleanings is anesthesia. To receive a proper, complete dental cleaning and oral exam, your pet should be under general anesthesia. This will allow your veterinarian to do the following safely and efficiently:
- examine all 4 sides of each and every tooth
- probe the gum line around all of the teeth (deep pockets signal diseased teeth and possible bone loss under the gum)
- check for missing, loose, broken and diseased teeth
- take oral radiographs (most vets have this capability)
- scale the teeth (often with an ultrasonic scaler which makes noise and sprays water)
- polish the teeth (another instrument that makes noise and can feel funny)
- treat with fluoride (which we do not want the pet to swallow)
- perform dental x-rays (pets aren’t good about holding the plate in their mouths and not biting on it too hard)
- perform any necessary oral surgery (including extractions)
The staff of Suburban Animal Clinic understands pet owners’ concerns about anesthesia. We practice human grade anesthesia by doing the following:
- performing a complete physical exam prior to anesthesia, including listening to the heart and lungs
- performing pre-anesthetic testing dependent on the pet’s current health status (blood work, ECG, radiographs)
- placing an IV catheter (for ease of administering medications) and giving every patient IV fluids during the procedure (helps steady blood pressure, which can drop under anesthesia, as well as flush anesthesia through the body and replace any blood loss)
- registered technicians monitor vital signs during the procedure and through recovery (ECG, respiratory rate, oxygen saturation level, blood pressure, and body temperature)
While we cannot completely eliminate the risk of general anesthesia, we do our best to make it as safe as possible. Dental cleanings with general anesthesia allow us to better clean and evaluate your pet’s mouth, which benefits your pet’s overall health.
Contact Suburban Animal Clinic today to schedule your pet’s dental cleaning! Take advantage of our $15 off dental cleaning special during dental month!