Dog owners: Teeth cleaning?

[KathyTX]

Have you had your dog's teeth cleaned by the vet?

We need to have Sam's teeth cleaned. Our vet, whom we trust very much, has been recommending this for her health.

But they have to do this under general anesthesia, and this just makes me a little nervous.

She's a 12.5 year old lab and in pretty good health for an old gray-muzzled girl. She has a history of occasional seizures, but these have not been too bad for the past couple of years, and she's not on any medication. Her teeth are pretty grungy now, and we have "doggie breath" issues.

Can anyone tell me what to expect, especially regarding the after effects of anesthesia on an older dog?

I just want to do the best thing for my sweet old girl. She has lots of life and love left in her, and I want to keep her healthy and happy.

 

[hercamore]

Hi,

We had our Sam's teeth cleaned last fall. He is 8 yo.

I was SO worried about him, but the vet said he uses the lowest amount of anesthesia (sp) he can (depending on weight of dog) to knock him out.

OUr Sam did great. It was a good thing he went in, cuz the vet found two loose teeth that he removed and he said had probably been bothering the dog.

Sam was at the vet most of the day. When I picked him up, he ran down the hallway to the outeroffice like nothing happened at all! No side effects from being knocked out. I am glad we did it.

herc.

 

[dianeschlicht]

As long as the vet is aware of the siezure issues, I don't think you need to worry too much. AS noted, they don't use heavy anethesia for this process, and the infections that can come from bad tooth plaque can be deadly. I would have it done.

 

[mckryan]

I know exactly how you feel, and my vet also hooked up an EKG to my dog while he was under and stayed there with him the entire time. He wanted to be there in case he needed to be brought out quickly due to a heart murmur. It's really worth it to get it done because the gums are the first entry point for bacteria that can be very harmful to your dog. It will definitely help the breath issue! My mom has started using a product she got at Petsmart from PetSweet called Breath Freshener. I cannot believe how much better her dog's breath is these days. It's a liquid you add to their drinking water. My dog has been gone 2+ years now, but it wouldn't have worked for us since he only liked to drink out of toilets! LOL

Christa

 

[dianeschlicht]

Originally posted by mckryan
I know exactly how you feel, and my vet also hooked up an EKG to my dog while he was under and stayed there with him the entire time. He wanted to be there in case he needed to be brought out quickly due to a heart murmur. It's really worth it to get it done because the gums are the first entry point for bacteria that can be very harmful to your dog. It will definitely help the breath issue! My mom has started using a product she got at Petsmart from PetSweet called Breath Freshener. I cannot believe how much better her dog's breath is these days. It's a liquid you add to their drinking water. My dog has been gone 2+ years now, but it wouldn't have worked for us since he only liked to drink out of toilets! LOL

Christa

LOL! You didn't want "toiletsweet"?

 

[mckryan]

Ha! No, didn't need any sweet toilets! Plus, I would have had to add some in there every time we flushed. I tried and tried to get the dog to drink out of a bowl, but he just wouldn't. If the lid was closed, he would stand there and scratch at the bowl until someone came in to lift it. I had the cleanest toilets in town, that's for sure!

Christa

 

[mrsstats]

My dog is 15 years old. I have had his done twice, once just recently. My concern was the same with putting him under. The vet would only do it after doing rountine bloodwork to make sure everything appeared normal (which it did). He did fine. Also had teeth pulled. The breath is so much better.

 

[adamak]

My Sheltie is 9, adopted him 2 years ago, and I had done this teeth cleaning twice. I was concerned, but the first time was a must. His teeth condition was really bad, and they pulled out 2 teeth. 2nd time was a year later and a choice (really bad breath still). He doesn't like it. He woke up feeling very dizzy and I can tell he's in "shock". I hope we don't have to go through it the 3rd time. He's a senior afterall.

 

[janette]

We had our new dogs teeth cleaned not long after we got her. Since we had adopted her from the pound and weren't sure of her health history the vet gave her a check-up and did blood work before putting her under. She did fine, although her teeth look much better it didn't seem to help her doggie breath much though. I'll have to try the petsweet. Her water dish is my Tree of Life water fountain so hopefully it will be okay to put in that.

 

[nativetxn]

Our Sassy girl is 14.5 years old. We had her teeth cleaned every year...<i>until</i> she became insulin dependent diabetic (this past May). Now the vet doesn't want to clean her teeth because he worries that she will have some sort of shock syndrome.

I respect his judgement. However, he tells me that keeping her teeth cleaned all these years has helped make it possible for her to live to this age. This is an old age for a dog of her breed lines (german shepherd/golden retriever mix--weighing about 75 pounds).

 

[mckryan]

Originally posted by janette
I'll have to try the petsweet. Her water dish is my Tree of Life water fountain so hopefully it will be okay to put in that.

I'm sure it would work, but ideally you put in a certain amount of Petsweet according to how much water. That might be hard to do with the fountain unless you dump it out every day to put in more Petsweet.

Christa

 

[lisajl]

Kathy,
Hi! I work for a vet and we always do bloodwork before surgery (or teeth cleaning) on any pet over 7 years old.

It checks their liver and kidney functions to make sure they can filter the anesthesia through their system.

We have had a couple with liver problems, and the owners decided not to go through with the procedure.

Ask for the bloodwork, and I am sure he will be okay.

Usually by the time we get done cleaning the teeth, the pet is almost awake.

Lisa

 

[skuttle]

Maggie, our Yorkie, is having her teeth cleaned tomorrow for the first time. She's 4 1/2 years old. Our vet said they'll do bloodwork tomorrow morning. She also said that maggie will have to eat soft food for a couple of days.

 

[KathyTX]

Thanks for the advice and reassurance, everyone!

I've set up the appointment. Sambuca will have her bloodwork done and those teeth shined up all purty next week.