What's New at
BARNSIDE VETERINARY HOSPITAL
BARNSIDE VETERINARY HOSPITAL
February is National
Pet Dentistry Month!
Pet Dentistry Month!
What if you didn't brush your teeth for most of your life? Most dogs and cats, by four years of age, have developed significant tartar and dental disease. Dental disease can allow oral bacteria into the bloodstream. This can negatively affect overall health. Because most owners don't look at their pets molars on a regular basis, dental disease is the most overlooked and underdiagnosed disease in companion animals.
Some preventative care can be done by you at home. However, more significant tartar or other dental problems require veterinary intervention. Appropriate, professional, dental care is much more than just "scraping off" some tartar. Scroll-down to see all the steps involved when we care for your pet's teeth.
Teeth are initially evaluated in the exam room to estimate a dental plan; however the true extent of dental disease is often not known until the patient is under anesthesia and some of the tartar has been removed.
Since thorough dental care can only be accomplished under general anesthesia, we perform bloodwork to evaluate overall health and organ function prior to anesthesia. We can run bloodwork here at Barnside and have results within an hour.
During general anesthesia, monitoring equipment is used to track heart-rate and respiration. IV fluids are accurately administered to maintain hydration, blood pressure and organ function.
Each tooth is individually evaluated and charted. The teeth are evaluated for tartar, gingivitis, damage, abscess, looseness. If a tooth is rotted or loose, the decision needs to be made whether or not the tooth can be saved.
We use the same equipment that human dentists use for cleaning and polishing teeth. Appropriate modern equipment helps prevent microscratches during the cleaning process and facilitates tooth removal when necessary.
If there are suspicions about the health of a tooth, if there are broken teeth, or if other abnormalities are found, x-rays are performed to evaluate hidden problems below the gum-line.
If a tooth requires extraction, the veterinarian will remove the tooth. Tooth roots are 1 & 1/2 times as long as the visible tooth! Pre-molars and molars have multiple roots which can make extraction difficult.
As you can see, although the teeth above the gum line look “OK”, these teeth were loose from having rotted tooth roots.
If a tooth is slightly diseased, long-acting Doxirobe antibiotic gel, may help strengthen root ligaments. Consil helps bone form in the pockets were tooth roots were and strengthens the jaw bones after extractions.
Teeth are polished to smooth any microabrasions and to help prevent tartar from re-accumulating. OroVet gel is applied to electrostatically repel bacteria. We recommend owners continue to apply OroVet at home weekly.
If there is tartar, gingivitis, infection or extractions, injections of antibiotics and pain medication may be given. Oral medication will also be dispensed to continue at home.
Please continue to check both the “Home Page” and the “What’s New!” sections of Barnside Veterinary Hospital’s web site. Information will be added and updated regularly.
BARNSIDE VETERINARY HOSPITAL
"Veterinary Excellence through Education, Knowledge and Compassion"
"Veterinary Excellence through Education, Knowledge and Compassion"
Proud to serve the Veterinary needs of Southern and Eastern Monmouth County, NJ
Howell, Colts Neck, Farmingdale, Freehold, Wall, Tinton Falls, Brielle, Manasquan,
Sea Girt, Spring Lake, Spring Lake Heights, Lake Como, Belmar, Avon,
Bradley Beach, Neptune, Neptune City, Ocean Township, Asbury Park
Howell, Colts Neck, Farmingdale, Freehold, Wall, Tinton Falls, Brielle, Manasquan,
Sea Girt, Spring Lake, Spring Lake Heights, Lake Como, Belmar, Avon,
Bradley Beach, Neptune, Neptune City, Ocean Township, Asbury Park
© Copyright 2006-2011 Barnside Veterinary Hospital. All rights reserved.
