My pet has a broken
tooth and my veterinarian says not to worry about it. Is this
true?
No. A broken tooth usually exposes the sensitive pulp that consists
of blood vessels and nerves that become infected when the animal
grooms itself and eats grass or chews on wood in the back yard.
Untreated infected teeth will die: dead pulp putrefies, putrefied
pulp abscesses, and this can cause damage to the surrounding
bone or nasal passages. The process is painful to pets and people
alike. We can treat this tooth to eliminate pain and infection
and save the tooth.
How do I know if my
pet has a broken or damaged tooth?
It will have a different shape and will usually be shorter than
the same tooth on the other side of the mouth. A broken tooth
may have a jagged edge. A damaged tooth, whether broken or not,
may be discolored and be a pink, purple, grey or tan shade.
My pet broke its tooth.
Is it important to bring my dog in right away?
If you know the tooth was just broken, sometimes we can save
it from dying by treating it in the first 48 hours. Success
in saving the life of a broken tooth decreases dramatically
after 48 hours. If the exact time of injury is not known, then
it is important to treat the tooth before it abscesses. A tooth
may abscess in a month or 5 years from the time of injury, but
most will abscess and infect the surrounding bone.
Is my pet in pain
with a broken tooth?
Most likely your pet is not comfortable, whether or not you
can see it. The nerve within the tooth has been damaged and
your pet will experience acute pain at the time of injury. This
pain will become a dull ache after a few days. Pets often hide
their pain; others express their discomfort in various ways:
1. Refusing hard food or treats
2. Pawing at mouth
3. Frequent licking its lips
4. Moaning
5. Squinting from one eye
6. Being unsocial
7. Repetitive motion, such as circling in one direction (worrying)
8. Swelling or drainage on one side of its face or jaw indicating
an abscess, possibly from a tooth
What are the
symptoms of poor dental health?
The most common and important symptom of poor dental health
is bad breath. When a pet’s breath is worse than its bite, so
to speak, it is time to see the veterinarian.
How do I know
if my dog or cat has plaque?
Plaque is a soft deposit that develops into hard calculus (tartar).
Young dogs have whiter teeth than people, but their teeth, instead
of appearing white, will appear yellow or light brown with the
infection-laden deposits.
Can I brush
their teeth to prevent my dog or cat from having dental problems?
Yes, brushing your pet’s teeth can help prevent dental problems.
However, regular periodic examinations and treatment by your
veterinarian are also important, just as regular visits to the
dentist are important for people.
How often
do you recommend brushing pet's teeth?
When both people and pets leave the hygienist, they begin to
form plaque within 20 minutes. This plaque can become a hard
calculus deposit in as little time as one week. Therefore, a
young healthy pet should have its teeth brushed 3 times a week.
Daily brushing can make the difference between saving and losing
teeth once periodontal disease has become chronic.
What might
happen if I don’t brush my pet's teeth?
Brushing a pet’s teeth is not for every person or every pet.
The key to having the teeth last a pet’s lifetime is to have
the professional care interval set appropriately for your pet’s
needs. Many pet owners have more difficulty in providing home
dental care for smaller dogs and cats because the mouth is small
and often the pet is less willing to accept brushing.
If most animals have bad breath
anyway, is it really going to help to brush their teeth?
Dogs and cats don’t always have bad breath. It is a sign that
the pet’s mouth needs a veterinarians’ attention. In fact, when
dogs and cats receive the same level of dental hygiene as their
owners, they have the same pleasant sweet breath.
Does
it really improve their health in the long run?
When a pet has horrible breath, this often indicates dental
infection. Every time the pet eats, bacteria are shed into the
blood stream. If bacteria are constantly circulating in the
bloodstream and bombarding the organs, sooner or later the health
of the pet will be affected.
What
do I use to brush my pet’s teeth?
It is best to use veterinary toothpaste or gel and brush designed
for pets. Although some pets have no problem with some human
dentifrices, human toothpastes contain surfactants that often
irritate a pet’s stomach and cause drooling from the indigestion.
There are many veterinary dental home care products today and
they are supplied in pet-friendly flavors such as beef, poultry,
malt, mint, vanilla and seafood (for the cats of course). These
pet toothpastes can be swallowed. In fact, are so tasty that
it’s best to store them on a high shelf in a closed cupboard
so the pet can’t eat the whole thing, packaging and all.
Don’t
“milk bones” clean dogs’ teeth sufficiently?
Hard, digestible treats, such as "milk bones," clean
teeth by abrasion, but dogs and cats, as carnivores, break and
gulp their food. They may bite once, to reduce the size of the
item, but then they swallow it. The abrasion offered by hard
treats, though beneficial, is primarily on the crown of the
tooth rather than in the crevice between the gum and the tooth
where the odor and infection is concentrated.
How
often should my dog or cat get their teeth professionally cleaned
by a veterinarian?
Ideally, the first time a pet should receive a professional
cleaning is shortly after its adult teeth have come in. This
usually coincides with the time of neutering or spaying. At
this time a quick polishing and fluoride treatment will serve
to toughen the surfaces of the developing young adult teeth
and make them more resistant to infection. The adult teeth usually
complete their development by 18 months of age. Dogs and cats
should have their teeth professionally cleaned every year throughout
their lives.
Do
dogs and cats have to be under general anesthesia to have their
teeth cleaned?
In Dr. Eisner’s experience, in performing advanced level veterinary
dentistry for over 25 years, and in the opinion of his colleagues
in the American Veterinary Dental College, dogs and cats cannot
receive good dental care without the benefit of general anesthesia.
General anesthesia is the procedure that allows veterinarians
to safely use sharp, delicate curettes and ultrasonic scaling
equipment effectively beneath the gumline of both the outside
and inside dental surfaces.
What
happens when a dog or cat has its teeth cleaned by a veterinarian?
Once your pet is anesthetized, the teeth are again examined,
and a veterinary technician removes any heavy deposits with
an ultrasonic scaler. Bad breath and dental infection almost
always occur beneath the gumline. The areas between the teeth
and beneath the gumline are curetted by hand, and the teeth
are polished and the mouth and the delicate tissues rinsed.
Often, after the deposits have been removed, the teeth are discovered
to be infected, loose, chipped or eroded. X-rays are frequently
taken to discover the extent of the problem and to plan the
appropriate treatment. If necessary, tooth repair, extractions
or gum treatment is performed, including an oral soak of the
unhealthy gums. The entire procedure of a routine cleaning above
and beneath the gumline usually requires 20-30 minutes in a
cat and 40-90 minutes in a dog.
Is
it dangerous to use general anesthesia to have my pet’s teeth
cleaned?
Very few anesthetic deaths occur today during veterinary dental
procedures and this includes elderly and infirm patients. There
is a small risk, but it is certain that infection will occur
or worsen if professional care is not provided. Because of the
importance of continual dental care throughout a pet’s life,
we routinely perform pre-operative laboratory blood screening
tests to alert us of potential risks. We place a tube down the
windpipe of our anesthetized patients to protect their lungs
and heart. We have faster and safer anesthetics. We have developed
techniques for accurately monitoring blood pressure, oxygen
and carbon dioxide content of the blood, and other parameters
as well. We increase the safety and the speed of recovery for
our patients when we administer intravenous fluids for all patients
and especially during long or stressful procedures and for elderly
patients. Veterinary anesthesia, today, when used and monitored
with care, should be considered safe by the public. It is no
longer a reason to avoid providing for proper care for your
pet.
What
sort of dental care training do veterinarians and veterinary
technicians receive?
Veterinarians and veterinary technicians are taught basic dental
health and care and their knowledge is examined before they
graduate. As in many fields today, postgraduate training is
also available, both for technicians and for veterinarians,
in advanced level dentistry such as orthodontics (movement of
teeth), periodontics (treatment of the tooth supporting tissues),
endodontics (root canal therapy for damaged teeth) and oral
surgery (for developmental problems, injuries or cancer).
Do
other animals need dental care?
Horses need periodic dental care. Sometimes they have developmental
problems of the teeth or jaw or have broken teeth or teeth that
are worn abnormally and need professional evaluation and treatment.
Pet rodents, rabbits and ferrets sometimes have similar dental
problems and should be seen by your veterinarian. These problems
in the “little furries” are sometimes associated with nutritional
problems.
