Preventative Dental Care for Pets
We recommend a regular, professional dental to keep your pet’s teeth free of tartar and plaque buildup. Your veterinarian will examine your pet’s teeth and mouth during their regular wellness exam and will recommend a professional dental exam and cleaning when necessary. To ensure that nothing is missed in dogs and cats, our patients require a thorough oral examination with digital x-rays as part of a dental scaling procedure. We believe in administering pain medication as part of your pet’s dental care. Once your pet’s teeth have been cleaned, your pet’s mouth will be healthier and pain free!
Our Dental Exam and Professional Cleaning Process
- Pet dentals require anesthesia for proper below the gum cleaning just like your dental care. X-rays tell the picture below the gums.
- Your pet will receive a comprehensive oral exam during which your pet’s whole mouth and each tooth is evaluated. The findings will be discussed with you so that the best treatment decisions can be provided for the health and comfort of your pet.
- We recommend digital dental radiographs to make sure the tooth roots are healthy and there is no bone loss
- Your pet will receive a blood test to check the health status of his or her vital organs.
- A sedative will be given to your pet to make him/her more comfortable.
- We use the safest anesthetics available plus state of the art monitoring
- Using advanced equipment, each tooth will be scaled above and below the gum line using ultrasonic equipment and hand scaling techniques to remove plaque and calculus.
- Each tooth will be polished to delay the re-attachment of plaque/calculus by smoothing the tooth surface after scaling is completed.
- A member of our staff will call you with a status report once the procedure has been completed.
- Your pet is usually sent home the day of the procedure.
- Medication(s) and aftercare instructions will be clearly explained to you.
WHAT CAN YOU DO TO KEEP YOUR PET’S TEETH HEALTHY?
At Home Care
Brushing – This can be accomplished with a soft washcloth, or a soft pediatric tooth brush, or a finger brush.
Toothpaste – You can’t use human toothpaste with your pet because they will swallow it! There are several special products that you can purchase that are safe to use, and will taste good to your cat or dog too!
