Pets Need Dental Care Too!
Maintaining the health of your pet's teeth is one of the most important
things you can do to increase the comfort and length of your pet's life!
Pet dental care is important because: Pets with gum
infections are uncomfortable, even though they may not show it. Gum and tooth
disease can lead to endocarditis (heart valve infection), kidney and
other organ infections. Your pet will
be much better company with no "bad breath." Your pet will
enjoy life without pain of sore gums and abscessed teeth, and your
pet health care expense in later years will be reduced.
Cleaning your pet's teeth requires: Pre-anesthetic
bloodwork to be sure your pet is in good health before general anesthesia
is administered. Anesthesia is
required to do a thorough, painless job. The part of the tooth under
the gumline must also be cleaned. Our sedatives are chosen with your
pet's utmost safety in mind. Scaling of the
teeth to remove tartar above and below the gumline is done with both
hand and ultrasonic cleaning equipment. Polishing the
teeth after scaling is important to smooth the tooth surfaces, making
them more resistant to new plaque formation. Without polishing, dental
specialists agree we do very little good. Fluoride coating
decreases tooth and gum sensitivity, strengthens tooth enamel, and
decreases the rate of plaque formation. Antibiotics are
always required in veterinary dentistry because some degree of tooth
and gum disease is usually already present. Injectable antibiotics
are used routinely. Oral antibiotics may be prescribed depending on
the severity of inflammation and infection, or if any extractions
are necessary.
Please call our office for more information about our Dental Awareness
Days!