Dental Health Month! August 2024

We take dental disease seriously and we think you should too!

By 3 years old 80% of pets have some periodontal disease and we know you’re asking “how do we prevent it?” and “what can we do?”. Read on!

Our clinic motto is “All the care you need for a happier healthier pet” & our mission is to make sure your pet keeps all their teeth for all their life. Why? Well that’s easy, because if your pet’s teeth stay clean, then they will live for longer and they’ll be happier & healthier! But if your pets’ teeth can’t be saved then they will do better with no teeth than with unhealthy, infected, painful teeth and that’s where our dental examinations & procedures come in.

Everything starts with a dental check by a nurse or Vet and your pet is given a dental grading.  We will see if we need to proceed further and give you advice on improving your pet’s dental care and how to keep your pet’s teeth clean after a dental.

If your pet has dental disease the only way to really clean their teeth and look at them properly is under a general anaesthetic. Even the best behaved pet won’t let you scrape or probe under the gum line or get right around the very back teeth and you certainly can’t take x-rays in a conscious pet!  The “unconscious examination” is a vital part of cleaning your pets teeth.

Here at Sumer Hill Village Vet we prefer to “stage our dentals” let me explain!

What is a Stage 1 Dental?

A stage 1 dental is recommended when the vet finds evidence of tartar build up, gingivitis and/or other evidence of dental disease such as infection. It involves booking in your pet to come for the day, they may undergo pre-anaesthetic blood tests, they will get pre-medication (to reduce anxiety & pain & make the anaesthetic smooth), general anaesthetic, a complete oral examination, scaling, charting, flushing and polishing, usually full mouth dental x-rays.

Sometimes we discover disease that requires the extraction of teeth. For safety and for accurate planning we allow the patient to recover for 2-4 weeks then we book the Stage 2 procedure. Your vet will provide a detailed plan of what is recommended at the time of discharge from the stage 1 procedure. Only some animals will require a Stage 2 plan.

What is a Stage 2 Dental?

A stage 2 Dental is a surgical procedure involving dental surgery by a specially trained veterinarian. We will let you know if we find dental disease requiring surgical extractions at the time of your stage 1 dental. We will provide you with a detailed plan including a chart of what teeth need attention, and costs involved. We discount this second procedure so that you don’t pay twice for the induction of anaesthetic, IV fluids or day in hospital, we don’t want it to cost you more, we do want to be able to plan your costs, plan our time, and keep to shorter anaesthetics for safety.

This is a cat with grade 4 dental disease

Points to remember

Periodontal disease in pets is always progressing, just like in us. And just like us, it can be slowed, prevented and managed through dental hygiene practises like brushing our teeth (mechanically removing the plaque) and through additives such as toothpastes or approved additives in food and water. However, just like us, a genetic component can be involved which means there will be problems however hard we work.  So regular checks at your vet are important.

Early detection is key. While higher grades of dental disease can not be reversed, the early stages can be if they’re detected.

We can recommend food & water additives, gels for the mouth, diets & treats that clean teeth and help you find a manageable plan to maintain your pet’s oral health.