Dental Care

Considerations Regarding Your Pet’s Dental Evaluation,
Cleaning and Treatment

Each patient is an individual. The dental treatment your pet receives will be dependent upon the extent of dental disease. Our goal is to detect and treat dental problems before they become painful or debilitating.

We are able to prevent problems and maintain your pet’s oral health through cleaning with an ultrasonic scaler. While your pet is anesthetized, the teeth are thoroughly cleaned above and below the gum line and are then polished to a smooth surface. This slows the future accumulation of plaque.

Visual examination of your pet’s mouth allows us to detect potential problems. If dental disease is minimal, and no other abnormalities are detected, a visual and physical inspection of the mouth is sufficient in providing us with a good assessment of dental health.

When dental disease is advanced, it is often difficult to visually assess the extent of problems. Dental radiographs allow us to determine the extent of disease, whether extraction of a tooth is necessary, and whether any complicating factors exist. Extraction of loose teeth may be uncomplicated; other extractions may require surgical intervention, use of a high-speed drill, and suturing. Ultrasonic cleaning and polishing of the teeth, along with possible extractions, greatly improve the comfort and health of those patients with more advanced dental problems.

We want to work closely with you to develop the best plan in caring for your pet. Because it is often impossible to fully know the extent of dental disease until your pet is anesthetized and examined, it is critical for us to be able to consult with you if questions arise. At the morning check-in for your pet’s dental procedure, you will be asked to choose one of the following options:

• a) If extractions are recommended, you authorize us to proceed without contacting you. We will call you after we have completed the procedures.               
• b)  If extractions are recommended, you request a phone call before we proceed.  If this option is chosen, it is imperative that you be easily available by phone because your pet will be anesthetized at the time of the call, and decisions must be made at that time. If you choose this option and we cannot reach you, we may need to schedule an additional appointment, at a future date, to complete further treatment.

Costs for dental procedures are dependent upon the severity of problems. Because it is difficult to diagnose the extent of dental disease in an unanesthetized patient, exact cost estimates are challenging. We will strive to be as helpful as possible in predicting what costs may be.  Please do not hesitate to ask us if you have concerns.

We look forward to working with you to keep your pet comfortable and healthy! 

To Make An Appointment for a dental exam or cleaning, call us at 920-725-8307.