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Dental Prophylaxis Process
June 26, 2010
This is a brief over view of the professional cleaning and dentistry process. If your pet’s teeth are in extremely bad shape, we may put him on antibiotics before performing the cleaning to help with the inflammation and infection. The day of cleaning your pet will not be allowed to eat before the process as cleaning requires that he be under anesthesia. Before anesthetizing him we like to do pre-anesthetic blood work. A pre-surgical exam will also be conducted.
Once anesthetized the teeth are scaled using hand instruments and scaling equipment to remove the tartar above and below the gum line. If the teeth are really bad and the plaque is especially thick and tough, a pliers-type instrument called a Rongeur may be used to break and scrape it off.
Next a periodontal probing is done to identify pockets and the extent of gum disease. The teeth are carefully inspected to identify any damaged teeth and if a tooth is too damaged to save it will be extracted.
Finally the teeth are polished using paste and an instrument similar to the one your dental hygienist uses on your teeth. Polishing evens out the tooth surface eliminating little pockets where bacteria can settle in.
At this point, if needed, an antibiotic injection may be given.
After the teeth are rinsed and then dried, the anesthesia is turned off and the dog or cat is monitored by a tech until he is safely awake.
One of the best reasons to have a regular routine of at-home dental care is to avoid having to have your animal go through this process. While it is a routine procedure, because of the time, equipment, skill and monitoring involved it is expensive. A canine toothbrush and toothpaste will cost you well under $20; a dental cleaning, polishing, and extraction can cost anywhere from $225 to $450. That's a big bite out of your wallet and an excellent reason to start that home program today.
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