Why are Dental Cleanings so Important for Your Dog or Cat?

This post today is meant to expand on your cat or dog’s dental health. If you haven’t already read my post on teeth brushing, you can find it Here. Your pet’s dental health is EXTREMELY important. I tell all my clients that their pet’s mouth is the portal to their body.  Dental disease can lead to renal failure, liver failure, and can allow bacteria to travel through the bloodstream to the valves in the heart causing Endocarditis.  Simply brushing your dog or cat's teeth or scheduling a dental cleaning with your pet's Veterinarian can help prevent these devastating consequences of dental disease.  I'll share a number of before and after pictures of dog and cat dental procedures throughout this post.

We often don’t think twice about brushing our own teeth twice daily. We were taught to do that as children and it became a good habit, and therefore we do it every day.

Most of us also go to the dentist once or twice a year. Why? Because it is healthy to do so. You know that if you don’t brush your teeth you get bad breath and calculus (tartar) starts to build up on your teeth. After that, you develop gingivitis, or red and swollen gums. Next you get cavities or tooth root abscesses. Not a pretty picture.  Twice daily brushing removes this bacteria from our teeth that cause bad breath and infection.

So why should we not do the same things for our pet’s teeth? Without daily brushing they develop bad breath, tartar, periodontal disease, and tooth root abscesses.

They aren’t that different from us! One striking difference is that pets don’t often develop cavities. Yes, it can happen and I’ve seen a few of them, but it’s much more likely that they develop periodontal disease. This is where the tartar builds up on the tooth, travels to the gum line, weakens the gum attachment to the tooth, then loosens the tooth attachment to the bone, causing the tooth to become loose or infected. This I see ALL THE TIME.

Small breed dogs develop tartar on their teeth at a much younger age than large breed dogs. By the age of two I will often find receded gums, a lot of tartar, and loose teeth in breeds like Chihuahuas, Yorkies, Bichons, and Shih Tzus to name a few. They are just very prone to dental disease at an early age. In comparison, often the Labs, Goldens, and other similar larger breeds of dogs may not have much tartar at 8 or 9 years of age. Years ago there was even a vaccination developed for small breed dogs, called the Porphyromonas vaccine, to help with dental health. It was a great idea, but didn’t work as well as hoped, and was discontinued after a couple years.

Courtesy: Canyon Pet Hospital

So, you’ve already read my post about brushing your dog’s teeth. What can you do if the brushing isn’t enough, or you found that post a little late and your dog or cat already has a lot of tartar on their teeth? The best place to start is by calling your Veterinarian and scheduling a dental cleaning under anesthesia. This will give your dog or cat a fresh start, allowing you to start brushing to prevent that tartar from coming back.

Courtesy: Oakland Hills Veterinary Hospital

Let’s discuss what all a dental cleaning under anesthesia entails. You see that I’ve included the words “under anesthesia” a couple times. Yes, your pet MUST be sleeping for this procedure.

There is no way we can do a quality job as your pet is chewing on our equipment or trying to bite us during the procedure. While the thought of anesthesia can be scary, I assure all my clients that I do everything in my power to make sure my patients are healthy enough prior to anesthesia and that they are monitored very closely while sleeping. While anesthesia on a 14-16 year old pet is not my favorite, with the correct pre-anesthetic testing and close monitoring, I have successfully helped many pets with dental disease in this age range as well.

Once your pet is safely anesthetized, the first thing we do is an ultrasonic cleaning of the teeth below AND above the gum line. We clean not only the visible tartar below the gum line, but also clean the tartar hiding under the gum line. After the teeth are clean, we measure the pocket depth around each tooth in the mouth. Have you ever heard your dental hygienist saying “2, 2, 4” or similar as she goes around each tooth? We do the same thing. This lets us know which teeth to keep an eye on in the future if there is a larger pocket depth around the tooth (meaning the gum tissue is pulling away from the tooth in that location).

As the Veterinarian completes his or her oral exam, we also are assessing for loose teeth at this point. It might be normal for those little incisors up front to move a tiny bit, but if a premolar or molar toward the back of the mouth is mobile, that tooth needs to be extracted.

Courtesy: Covetrus

These loose teeth are often painful for your pets every time they are chewing. Leaving that tooth in your pet’s mouth can lead to infection in a short time, requiring another anesthetic procedure. Many practices are now using digital dental x-rays as part of your pet’s dental procedure. Just like when we go to the dentist, these x-rays provide valuable information about the overall health of the tooth and the tooth roots. If teeth need to be extracted, we often close the gums with suture in that location. Some areas are left open to heal on their own. The mouth is pretty amazing in how fast it heals. We will often recommend soft food for your pet for one week after their procedure if teeth were pulled to help those areas heal as well as possible.

Hopefully once the teeth are cleaned and the oral exam is done, we have found no teeth that need to be extracted. My goal is always to let pets keep their teeth! We finish the procedure by polishing your pet’s teeth, often with a mint polish to add some extra fresh breath boost. Once your pet returns home from their procedure, give them a few days prior to starting your new brushing routine with them. Their gums may be a little tender for a few days, just like ours after a trip to the dentist.

Courtesy: Gladesville Veterinary Hospital

I hope you’ve enjoyed some of the before and after pictures in this post. If any of the “before” pictures look like your dog or cat’s teeth, call your Veterinarian to schedule a dental cleaning today! Your pet’s overall health is counting on it!