Dental...

When your pet comes in for dental care at Dogwood, you can take comfort and pride in knowing you’ve made the right choice for your pet. From initial exam to recovery from anesthesia, we give your pet optimum attention and expertise.

The Initial Exam:
During your pet’s routine physical, our doctor will examine the teeth and gums. This area is usually difficult for clients to examine at home, and we often find dental disease in various stages. If the condition of your pet’s teeth isn’t too bad, our doctor will recommend brushing at home, or special treats which use enzymes to dissolve tartar and revitalize the gums. If your pet has more serious tartar, tooth decay, or gum disease, a full dental cleaning under anesthesia will be recommended.

Pre-Anesthetic Profile:
This involves drawing a small amount of blood from one of your pet’s veins, and running a series of tests on that blood. This gives us important information about your pet’s ability to handle the anesthetic drugs used, whether your pet is actively fighting infection, and if your pet needs fluids during anesthesia. In younger pets, a basic profile is run; in older ones, a more extensive profile is recommended.

Anesthesia & Pain Control:
We use the safest anesthetics available. We use a 'multi-model' approach to pain control - including several pain medications plus local anesthetics and acupuncture. An initial injection is given to calm your pet, and also to provide pain relief in case we need to perform any surgery (like pulling teeth). This is followed by a second injection in the vein to cause your pet to fall asleep; once unconscious, we insert a breathing tube into the trachea, and provide your pet with oxygen and an inhalant gas anesthetic (isoflurane) to maintain the sleep state. While we work on the teeth, we constantly monitor your pet’s vital signs and adjust the anesthetics accordingly. We safely anesthetize many geriatric pets.

Dental Cleaning:
First, all tartar and plaque are removed with a scalar, including root planning, removing tartar below the gum line. We can then inspect the teeth for any chips, cracks, decay, or erosion, and the gums for any inflammation, pockets, or abnormal growths. If the teeth look good, we proceed with polishing to make the enamel smooth, which prevents plaque from gaining an easy foothold. Finally, we use a fluoride treatment to soothe and disinfect the gums.

Dental Extractions:
Sometimes, a tooth is so damaged that it really needs to come out. But this isn’t a simple matter of yanking it loose. We gently stretch the tiny ligaments that hold the tooth within the socket. Then, for premolars and molars, we drill the tooth in half so that final extraction is less traumatic to the surrounding tissues. Finally, the socket is inspected for any root fragments that may have been left behind; these are either plucked out with a probe, or drilled out. Pets who have teeth pulled often need extra pain relief; we pay attention to your pet’s comfort and will provide any necessary analgesia.

As you can see, your pet’s dental care is just as involved as your own. This is why preventive maintenance is so important, and why we take dental care seriously. Teeth left unattended can cause bad breath, discomfort, pain, and bacterial transmission to internal organs (a common finding in dogs is heart valve disease due to bacterial infection transmitted from the mouth via the bloodstream). Please let us know if you have any questions about your pet’s teeth; we’re happy to answer all your questions!