If your vet is any thing like me the have been talking to you more and more about your pets Dental Health. By the time your pets is 2-3 years old we are seeing tarter on their teeth. The suggestions range from brushing daily to various dental treats. Owner compliance is my biggest hurdle. When animals come in at 5-6 yrs of age I need to start worrying about gingivitis / halitosis / cavities and rotten teeth. Now I need to recommend a thorough cleaning under general anesthesia to remove painful teeth and clean up under the gum line. Prior to the dental I need to do Pre surgical blood to see if their kidney or liver has been damaged. Often they have to be started on antibiotics … lost is now hundreds of dollars and the animals health is at risk.

At the Cannondale Animal Clinic we are now in our 3rd year of Specializing in non anesthesia dental. I believe we are able to do about 70% of our dental without the added risk of anesthesia. Our anesthesia – free  dental cleanings  for dogs and cats are  safe, gentle  and cost effective way to have  your pets teeth cleaned. They  generally take  any where from  20- 40  minutes, depending  on the amount of calculus build up and how cooperative  the animal is. While not every animal will cooperate with the process a surprising majority do.  Most pet owners are amazed to see how readily their pets tolerate the procedure.  If you have a friendly mild mannered dog or cat with moderate tarter build up this is ideal. By slowly introducing them to the ultrasonic scalar which shatters off the tarter quickly and easily most of these pets with a little convincing will let us clean their teeth.  After scaling we are able to polish the teeth and apply fluoride. Of course a dog or cat that needs teeth extraction's or has deep pockets to scale would not be a good candidate and would need to be anesthetized to maintain their comfort level. That is why a veterinarian should always evaluate the patient's mouth prior to scheduling the dentistry.

A non anesthesia dental is an excellent way for us to do more frequent maintenance cleanings on your dog or cat. Especially, pets that tend to build up tarter or calculus quickly like small poodles or yorkies that have tiny teeth and jaws and seem to get more teeth problems sooner in life. I also have some dogs like my old cocker who has excessive tarter build up and benefits from my cleaning her teeth every 3 months.  This can be a great help for the dog that is older or has certain medical conditions the would make them not tolerate anesthesia dentals for medical reasons.

Clean teeth are so important to the health and comfort of our pets mouths. Dogs and cats  are so stoic that they rarely tell us  how much their teeth hurt.  Often a  cavity or rotten  root goes undiagnosed until a veterinarian checks their mouths, but that does not prevent the undiagnosed infection from spreading bacteria to the  heart, liver, kidney or lungs  It can be a "silent killer" of our pets.   How does this happen?  Periodontal (gum) disease is one of the most common conditions seen in pets today. The problem begins when plaque and tarter are allowed to build up on your pets teeth. Plaque harbors the bacteria, which can infect the gum tissue and the roots of the teeth resulting in disease and tooth loss.  Besides the negative impact on the oral health,  bacteria  enter the blood stream  through  the large vessels located near the gums and teeth.  At this stage the organs with the highest blood flow are most susceptible to infection i.e. the lung, heart, kidney and liver. Damage to these organs caused by infection can shorten the lives of our pets.

When  we do our  dentals  we begin by removing  all the plaque  above and below the gum line.  When we are finished removing the build up we polish the teeth and often apply fluoride to help strengthen the teeth later in life. The whole procedure is typically a third of the cost of a typical anesthesia dental which can range from $300 - $400 and up. The great thing is we are doing younger animals before they get rotten or loose teeth that need to be extracted.  The ultimate benefit is cleaner teeth better breath and less damage to internal organs like the liver or kidney.

Why don't all veterinarians do this? Well, I think most vets including myself until very recently didn't believe you could take a water spitting, high pitched ultrasonic instrument up to a dogs mouth without them going berserk and trying to bite you.  I first tried it on my own dogs and cats. When I discovered how tolerant they were I opened it up to my clients. Last week my technician Lynn did a complete teeth cleaning on a Bichon by herself without anyone even holding the dog. Who would have thought it possible?

Some frequently asked questions:

Q: How can you effectively perform cleaning on a dog or cat while it is squirming around and under stress?

A: We use a variety of holds to maintain control while keeping our patient calm and comfortable. Pets are never forced or bullied into submission. Most vets are totally amazed at how compliant dogs and cats become during the procedure.

Q: Are you able to do a thorough cleaning both above and below the gum line?

A: Absolutely! We know the importance of removing all of the plaque from both above and below the gum line.

Q: Don't most pets become frightened and panic when you attempt to use a scalar or a motorized polisher?

A: We treat our patients much like a dentist treats a young child during a first-time dental visit. We use patience in our approach, and slowly introduce each phase of the procedure. As we build trust, almost every dog and cat we treat will allow us to use all of the exact same tools used in traditional veterinary dentistry.

Q: Have you found this technique to be effective with high-risk patients?

A: Yes, Non-anesthetic dental cleanings are usually a much better alternative for older pets, and for pets with chronic kidney, liver or heart disease who might not be a candidate for general anesthesia.

Q: Can a properly trained non-anesthetic dental technician perform a cleaning on virtually any dog?

A: No. While the vast majority of dogs and cats will benefit greatly from non-anesthetic dental, there are some for whom it is not appropriate. Examples of pets who are poor candidates for non-anesthetic dental include pets with: severe gingivitis, cavities, fractured teeth or stomatitis. We are aware of the limitations of our drug-free technique. Whenever we discover a loose or fractured tooth, sever gum disease, tumors, epuli, abscess or any other condition that is going to have obvious sever pain associated with it, then we are going to have change  to a traditional anesthesia dental. In these cases pet owners are much more receptive to traditional dental methods because they know we have tried the drug-free approach first.

Q: What do you do if a patient is completely uncooperative, overly fearful, or demonstrates highly aggressive behavior?

A: We can usually tell within a few minutes whether the patient's temperament will allow for a successful procedure. In some cases, we are able to calm fearful pets enough to allow for a partial cleaning. After they realize that they are okay the next time they come in for a cleaning we are often more successful.  Other times, though, we will determine that the patient's temperament simply is not conducive to anesthesia-free treatment and we will recommend an alternative treatment approach