Pet Health Care Article by Dr. Erika Carrillo, Center-Sinai Staff Veterinarian
Want To Know More About Your Pet’s Teeth?
Below you will find some important information about your pet’s oral health. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions or concerns, or would like to schedule an appointment for a dental exam and cleaning. Our veterinarians and staff are here to assist you with anything you or your pet may need.
How do I know if my pet has dental disease?
Some of the most common symptoms one sees with our pets having dental disease include bad breath, difficulty chewing, painful mouth, bleeding gums, loss of teeth, and facial swelling. Once these signs have appeared, dental disease has already progressed significantly in your pet. Preventing dental disease is the best way to make sure your pet’s oral hygiene is in tip-top shape! However, when these signs do become present, visiting your veterinarian becomes essential for proper medical and/or surgical treatments. All pets are prone to having dental disease, but especially small and toy breeds. Older pets also tend to have more severe dental problems, so having regular senior health exams are critical for your pet’s wellbeing.
Why should I have a dental cleaning done on my pet?
Pets need dental care! Performing good hygiene for ourselves is essential to having good teeth. We achieve this by brushing our teeth, flossing, and using mouth wash, but we still need dental cleanings every 6 months! Imagine your pet’s oral hygiene condition without the same level of prophylaxis! Proper dental prophylaxis can prevent many problems in our pets. Some of these include bad breath, loss of teeth, tooth root abscesses, teeth fractures, oral bleeding/ulcerations, decreased appetite, weight loss, etc. Some more severe problems associated with dental disease can include multiple organ disease involving the heart, kidney, and/or liver due to the bacteria and inflammatory products involved with dental disease.
What type of services do you offer to help prevent and treat dental disease in my pet?
Here at Center Sinai Animal Hospital, our veterinarians and staff are well trained to help your pet achieve the best dental care. We provide dental prophylaxis that includes pet cleaning — cat teeth cleaning, dog teeth cleaning — and preventing dog gum disease and cat gum disease. Our services include dental scaling and polishing, both anesthetic and non-anesthetic. When necessary, we perform dental extractions in order to alleviate further pain and disease. Pets can manage very well without some or all teeth! Doing anesthetic dental cleanings allow us to do a thorough examination of all teeth, probing all pockets around the teeth to evaluate for bone loss, and perform any necessary surgical procedures (i.e. gingival flaps, extractions, mass removals, etc.). Our veterinarians can help you determine the appropriate antibiotic treatments and pain management for your pet’s health and comfort. We also offer oral hygiene kits, oral care products, and prescription dental diets to help keep your pet’s dental health at its best.
Which is better for my pet, an anesthetic dental or a non-anesthetic dental?
Every pet is different, meaning your pet may or may not be a good candidate for an anesthetic dental cleaning. Having a general checkup by your veterinarian will allow us to evaluate your pet’s health and physical well being. It is always a good idea to have a general exam prior to a dental cleaning in case your pet is recommended to have medical treatments done prior to the procedure and/or any pre-anesthetic blood work, if warranted for your pet.
NOTE: We offer special discounts at Center-Sinai Animal Hospital at our ongoing Dental Clinics every Thursday! Every February, in celebration of Pet Dental Health Month, we offer an additional Pet Dental Health Care Clinic on Tuesdays at our discounted clinic rate. This is good for dental cleanings and other dental services your pets might need.
P.S. In the photo on this page, you can see our pro vet assistant Josh cleaning his dog Uno’s teeth. Would you be shocked to know Uno doesn’t mind one bit? Ask Josh how he taught this great big canine the importance of letting Josh mess with his mouth.