Common Diseases – Dental Disease

Periodontal disease, or ‘dental’ disease, is a very common problem we deal with in Veterinary practice. If left untreated, it can lead to debilitating pain or discomfort, and even go so far as to impact the health of internal organs such as the heart, liver and kidneys.

However, in most cases dental disease can be prevented or reversed with regular dental checks, ongoing home dental care and dental procedures.

Dental disease is caused by an over-accumulation of plaque. To start with, it can generally be removed by feeding your pets dental-specific food and brushing their teeth. However, if given enough time without intervention, this build-up eventually hardens and turns into tartar, which is a hard calcified layer made up of rotten food, saliva, bacteria and debris that forms over the surface of the teeth. At this point it generally cannot be removed without a dental procedure.

When this tartar forms, it can build up so much that it begins to form underneath the gum line, and destroy the supportive tissue around the teeth including the gum and bone. This is what causes the gingivitis component of dental disease, and what contributes to the pain and discomfort your pet may experience.

It is imperative that your pet receives regular dental health checks. This is generally done during a vaccination appointment, or you are welcome to book in a standalone dental check if you notice any of the above symptoms showing.

Due the nature of dental procedures, one of our Veterinarians must perform the dental check before your pet can be booked in. The severity of dental disease can vary so widely among each individual patient, so we need to know what to expect before starting the procedure; for example, your pet may need to go on pre-emptive antibiotics or have blood tests done too.

During a dental check, the Veterinarian will grade your pet’s teeth and gums, and, if applicable, recommend a dental procedure. Moving forward, our friendly staff will generate an estimate based on the clinical exam findings during the health check. Things like the grade of dental disease, your pets age and health status can affect the final outcome of the estimate.

and should be kept safe and warm during this time. If your pet seems hungry, offer some soft food and water to start with to ensure proper swallowing is occurring before leaving unattended with food. Sometimes the patient may have a slight cough for a day or two following an anaesthetic procedure.

If your pet has had extractions, for the next few days you need to feed small cubes of meat or chicken, that can be swallowed whole, as this will allow gum pockets to settle. Preferably not dry food or mushy canned food during this time. After 4-5 days, you can begin to re-introduce normal dry biscuits if that is the preferred diet. Sometimes, as with human dental procedures, Veterinarian’s will place sutures in the gum to close some of the larger holes left behind after a tooth removal. There is no need to get these removed – over time they will simply fall out as the hole closes over.

Three months after your pet has had a dental procedure we invite you to return for a complimentary dental recheck. During this review our qualified Veterinary Nurse’s will discuss ongoing home care with you.

There are several options to help maintain optimal dental health. The gold standard is to introduce a teeth-brushing program gradually and early. Training may take several days or weeks. At first, dip your finger into beef stock for a dog or tuna flavour for a cat, and rub your finger over the pet’s mouth and teeth. Make these initial sessions brief and positive. Introduce gauze on your finger with the same beef or tuna flavour and begin rubbing the teeth in a circular motion. Before graduation to a finger brush or soft-bristle toothbrush, place a small amount of toothpaste on your finger and allow the pet to taste it. Finally, apply a small dab of pet toothpaste onto moistened finger brush or toothbrush and begin bushing gently at a 45º angle away from the gum line. Toothpaste designed for people contains ingredients that may make your pets sick so only use pet-friendly paste at all times. Brushing should be done at the same time everyday so it becomes a part of your pets daily routine.

You can also feed raw as another option to assist in dental care. However, this will need to be introduced with care as bones are not suitable for all dogs and cats. Allow your pet to chew on a bone, not through it. Dispose of chewed bones promptly. Bones should always be bigger than a dog’s head so they cannot be swallowed. Whole bones are the safest. If a marrow bone has been pre-cut along its length, use a spoon to remove all of the central bone marrow. Ideally bone chewing should not be started until kittens or puppies are at least 6 months.

If bones aren’t your thing, there are a large range of dental products and specially formulated food available to also help maintain healthy teeth. We recommend brands like Prozym and Greenies that have dental chews and enzymatic mouthwash available, and food such as Hills t/d or Royal Canin dental. These are all available from the clinic and are a great substitute in lieu of teeth-brushing and bones.