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| Dental Procedure:
Questions that clients ask. Answers provided
by Dr. Daniel J. Gray |
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Why is dental cleaning so important?
I’ve heard it said that the mouth is “a mirror to the body.” This is very true. The “dirt” on the teeth is actually natural cement with billions of bacteria.
This bacteria causes gingivitis. Gingivitis
creates a “window” for the bacteria to enter other
areas of the body. This, in turn, can cause problems
such as rapid aging of the lungs, heart, liver and kidneys.
Dental care started early in life can often mean that your pet will keep more teeth and have fewer dental problems later in life. The bottom line is that a clean mouth really means an overall healthier and happier pet. |
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What do the veterinarians look for to indicate a dental cleaning is needed?
We begin by looking for the thickness of the yellow-brown tartar coating on your pet’s teeth, along with how many teeth are affected. More importantly, we look at how the gums are responding to the presence of tartar. If there are any signs of gingivitis, then
a dental cleaning is needed. We prefer to clean the teeth before
the gingivitis is present. This ensures that your pet
will not experience the sensitive and painful gums that
are associated with gingivitis. |
Why do you recommend x-rays if you’re just cleaning the teeth?
Dirty teeth and bad breath are just the “tip of the iceberg” for a dental cleaning at our clinic. A full set of x-rays
will let us see beyond the plaque and tartar on the teeth into the roots. By looking at the roots and the jaw, we can catch hidden problems and painful abscesses, most of which would have gone undetected without x-rays.
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Why do you use intravenous fluids during the procedure? Are they necessary?
Fluids are absolutely necessary! They are critical to making anesthesia as safe as possible. Fluids maintain blood pressure control. Most anesthetic “problems” start with poor blood pressure control. By using proper fluid therapy, we avoid many anesthetic troubles.
How long is my pet under anesthesia and is there any risk?
The length of anesthesia is totally determinate on how many problems we find in your
pet's mouth. If the x-rays show good roots and cleaning is all that is necessary, then anesthesia is around 30 minutes. If there are other procedures needed like extractions, then anesthesia is longer. Preanesthetic bloodwork is a useful tool to let us know if your, otherwise healthy, pet actually has an underlying liver or kidney problem that would affect how anesthesia is processed. We typically do the bloodwork the morning of the procedure before any anesthetic is ever used. If
a problem is indicated, we won’t do the procedure! The bloodwork, along with the use of fluids, monitoring equipment, and a technician dedicated to your pet throughout anesthesia, makes longer procedures much safer. |
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My pet had 10 teeth extracted! Can he/she still eat?
For many cases, the loss of even more than 10 teeth can still result in normal eating habits, especially since many pets don’t actually chew their food. My favorite case is an older kitty that needed all her teeth removed because of terrible and painful dental disease. When her mouth healed, she felt so much better that she returned to picking up and swallowing her hard food. Her owner said she hadn’t eaten hard food in months! That’s how much better her mouth felt!
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What can I do in between cleanings so I don’t need to have the teeth cleaned so often?
There are three good methods for slowing down plaque accumulation (the root of all dental problems). The first and the best is daily tooth brushing.
Finger brushes and pet toothpastes have made this procedure easier than ever. The second is prescription oral diets such as Hill’s Prescription Diet T/D ®. The shape and consistency of the food helps with plaque removal. It can be given as a treat, mixed in with your pet’s regular food or fed as the only source of food. Finally, there are some very useful treats and chews like Greenies® and CET® chews. The best dental home care is done using all three methods. Keep in mind that using all these products will delay, not prevent, further professional dental care. Think of it like this… we brush our teeth everyday but, alas, we still need to see the dentist for regular cleanings!
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