Dental Care

Dental hygiene is an important part of your pet’s health. Because dental disease can be associated with other serious health problems, such as heart disease and kidney disease, caring for your pet’s oral health is more than just for fresh breath and pearly whites. A professional dental cleaning is essential to your pet’s overall health. It’s a medically necessary procedure that can add years to your pet’s life. Bacteria in the mouth starts out as bad breath. Over time, that bacteria leads to plaque formation, then tartar buildup on your pet’s teeth. When your pet drinks or eats, it is ingesting the bacteria which is filtered through the major organs, therefore, can contribute to kidney or heart disease. Dental disease can cause reddened and painful gums, bad breath, infected teeth, loss of teeth as well as discomfort or pain while chewing.

Our staff of doctors and technicians can assess your pet’s oral health. We will examine your pet’s teeth and gums to help determine if there are any dental issues you should know about. After a brief visual examination, we may recommend a more detailed examination, which requires sedation, a professional dental cleaning, and in some cases, possible extractions. Dental cleanings are done under general anesthesia after the pre-anesthesia blood work is completed. We place great importance in this step as we can determine if there are any potential anesthesia concerns or long term health issues due to the possible result of the dental disease.

In some cases, dental cleanings are not necessary. We will make recommendations for products that can help support proper oral hygiene. Dental products that are as easy as sprinkling on top of the pet’s food, or dental chews treated with enzymes that break down plaque before it can harden into tartar, as well as pet friendly toothpaste and brushing tips. There are also specific diets that have benefits to your pet’s teeth.

We want your pet to live a long, healthy life, and we understand that maintaining a healthy mouth is part of that. Your pet’s health is important to us, so let us help you with this commitment. Dental health shouldn’t be taken for granted. Fortunately, many dental problems can be avoided or managed through at-home care. We want to help you with that through regular dental checkups and recommendations for what will be most successful for your pet’s oral health.