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Dental Care

Dental health is a key component to your pet’s health and vitality

80% of dogs and 50% of cats over the age of 3 years already show signs of gum disease.

Overview

Maintaining good dental health in your pet is a lifelong commitment. Dogs have 42 permanent teeth to chew on meat and vegetables, and they need to be well looked after. Dental disease is one of the most common conditions diagnosed in companion animals. 80% of dogs over the age of 3 years already show signs of gum disease.

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Dental Disease WILL ALWAYS worsen if we do not step in and improve the condition and management of the teeth when a dental problem is detected.

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Unfortunately, untreated dental problems can lead to serious problems in the mouth like painful abscesses, tooth loss and broken teeth. What many people don't know is that it also leads to systemic illnesses like kidney & bladder infections, and heart disease.

Signs of a dental problem

  • Decreased appetite

  • Unwillingness to eat hard food

  • Drooling

  • Bad breath

  • Swollen, red or bleeding gums

  • Missing or broken teeth

  • Weight loss

  • Pawing at mouth

  • Even Plaque or tartar on teeth can be covering a broken tooth or root problem

Bad breath - is it just dog breath?

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Book in for a FREE dental check

During your FREE dental check appointment, our experienced Veterinary Nurse will examine your pet’s dental health and offer advice on treatment options including preventative treatments like toothbrushing, chews, food or water additives and special diets.

If a teeth clean under general anaesthsia is recommended, we will create a personalised estimate tailored to your pet to find the best solution and outcome.

What’s included:

Bad breath is one of the most consistent signs of dental disease. Most of the time as soon as your dog's teeth have been cleaned, their breath no longer bothers anyone.

There are other reasons for terrible "dog breath", such as infection in the wrinkles around the mouths of flat nosed dogs, and moisture induced dermatitis from dogs who's beards and chin folds get wet or stuck in their teeth. 

But it is far more likely that the gum disease in your smaller breed dog is responsible for gum related bad breath, or that commonly seen overcrowding of teeth in so many of our favourite breeds has resulted in trapped food and bacteria and stinky breath, or that simply the buildup of bacteria laden tartar on the canines and back teeth of many of our dogs is the cause of the room clearing smell.  Dental tartar doesn't care which breed it attacks, so if your dog has bad breath, have a look for discoloured teeth or red gums, and if you are unsure, book in for a free dental check with our friendly nurses.

Bad Breath in Cats

Cats can actually have significant dental disease without bad breath at all.

Cats teeth are different to dogs. They can get cavities and destruction of the crown of the tooth due to dental disease.

This significant destruction will often be hidden under a thick layer of tartar, and it is impossible to know how diseased and painful the tooth is until it is examined while the cat is under anaesthesia.

They can also have healthy teeth and severely painful gum disease that stops them from eating.

Causes of Bad Breath - time to investigate

  • Dental disease such as gingivitis

  • Stomach problem

  • Eating malodorous food such as garbage or fecal material

  • Intestinal disease

  • Metabolic disease

  • FREE dental check

  • Dental Hygiene Plan & estimation of costs

  • Complimentary post-dental check with a Veterinary Nurse

  • Veterinary Prescription food recommendation

Management

To maintain your pet’s dental health, you need to keep their teeth clean.

Daily brushing with pet friendly toothpaste, Oravet Chews, food and water supplemets all help to keep your pet's teeth as clean as possible, and with diligent work, their teeth will remain clean and healthy.

Just like a yearly or 6 monthly scale and polish at the dentist for us, our pets often need the tarter removed with dental tools to prevent progression of disease. This also allows a much more thorough inspection of all of the teeth, gums and roots. 

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What may happen during a veterinary dental procedure:

Oral Health Examination & Treatment:

  • Pre Anaesthetic assessment

  • Blood tests to ensure anaesthetic safety

  • Calming medication on arrival

  • Relaxing with owners until sedation has taken effect

  • General anesthesia

  • IV fluid therapy

  • Oral examination

  • Radiographs (if elected)

  • Teeth scaling to remove tartar and plaque

  • Teeth polish

  • Gum irrigation to remove debris and  polishing paste

  • Application of anti-plaque oral sealant system

  • Assessment of abnormal gum pockets

  • Tooth and gum procedures depending on findings

  • Extractions if indicated, after local anaesthetic blocks and communication with owners

  • Administration of pain relief and antibiotics where required

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