A Clean Mouth is a Healthy Mouth: February is National Pet Dental Health Month!

        By: Loren W. Noblitt, D.V.M., M.S.

I just love the Orbit gum catch phrase, “Got a dirty mouth?  Clean it up!”  Unfortunately, dogs and cats don’t/can’t chew gum sooooooo – we need to talk about how to best “clean it up” when it comes to their mouths!  Once again, February is upon us, and as you may or may not know, February is National Dental Health Month, in both human beings and animals.  What does this mean for you and your pet(s)?  The benefits to your pet are numerous (and subsequently elaborated upon below) and the benefits to you are a more active, healthy pet and a pet that will, on average, live 2-4 years longer!  PLUS, if you schedule a full dental cleaning with us this month (February), you will receive a 15% discount, JUST BECAUSE IT’S FEBRUARY!  That’s pretty cool!  Keep reading on for more information regarding the many, many benefits your pet will experience from a full mouth dental cleaning…

Dental Disease:

Image courtesy of http://www.avma.org

            Periodontal disease is defined as disease of the periodontal ligaments, gums, and tooth sockets of the jaw that hold teeth in place.  It occurs from plaque that grows on the enamel surface of teeth which then anchors-in bad, anaerobic bacteria.  These bacteria secrete degradative toxins that destroy these supporting structures.  Dental disease is a progressive disease, but can be reversible if caught early enough.  Dogs and cats do not show pain the same ways that we do, and are unlikely to stop eating from mouth pain, even severe mouth pain.

 

Common signs of dental disease in small animals include halitosis (bad breath), crying when mouth or teeth are touched (or chattering in cats), and stained teeth.  Consequences of an infected mouth are not just isolated to the mouth, but can be far-reaching and can include downstream infection in virtually every organ in the body, most commonly the liver, kidneys, and heart.  For this reason, your pet, on average, will live 2-4 years longer with regular dental cleanings and good at-home preventative care.

 

The Dental Procedure:

           Although not mandatory, the staff at ZionsvilleAnimal Hospital prefer to have relatively recent blood work (routine CBC and Chemistry panels) performed to be reasonably sure that your pet is not a risk for anesthesia.  A physical exam is also important in making this decision.  While your pet is under general anesthesia, he/she will have an intravenous catheter placed and fluids hooked up to that catheter from start to finish, as well as a Veterinary Technician monitoring vital parameters such as blood pressure, heart rate, and oxygenation.  Your pet’s teeth are then cleaned with an ultrasonic scaler, focusing on removing not only the debris seen with the naked eye (supragingival calculus and tartar) but also that which lies underneath the gum-line (subgingival calculus and tartar).  Polish is then applied to all teeth.  Your veterinarian will be examining every nook and cranny of the oral cavity and making meticulous notes throughout the procedure.  This is also primetime to make sure that there are no infected, broken, or otherwise worrisome teeth that need extracted, root canal therapy, or some other form of T.L.C.  We also have the ability to take dental x-rays to allow us more incite into the severity (or lack thereof) of every tooth.  Sometimes we find growths in animals’ mouths (i.e., on the tongue or base of the tongue, inside cheeks, gingiva, etc.) that nobody knew about and there is no better time than the present to diagnose and treat these.

 

Preventative Care:

After your pet’s teeth have been professionally cleaned, the focus immediately shifts to preventative care by discussing things like at-home daily tooth brushing (the gold-standard), water additives, Kong toys, and Veterinary Oral HealthCommission (VOHC)-approved products (i.e., products scientifically proven to prevent plaque and tartar formation by 60-75%).  As a general rule, excessively hard toys should be avoided because they are prone to breaking teeth which leads to dental root canal exposure which leads to local and systemic infection.

 

Summary of Key Points regarding Dental Health in Pets:

It's not just about the teeth -- There is plenty of documentation not only in the veterinary field but in human dentistry proving that infection within the mouth will spread to other organs in the body, particularly the liver, kidneys and heart.

Periodontal Disease is more common than you think -- Periodontal disease which affects the gums and supporting structures of the teeth are present in 85% of all patients older than 4 years of age!

Your pet will live longer -- Cleaning your pets teeth and treating dental conditions can result in your pet living 2-4 years longer!

Dental disease is uncomfortable -- Remember, dogs and cats do not show pain the same way that we do. Very rarely, will an animal stop eating because of oral pain. What we do see is that after a dental cleaning/treatment, the pet may become more energetic and playful as the dental cleaning has removed all the harmful bacteria from the mouth and limiting its spread throughout the body.

 

If you’d like to schedule a full dental cleaning, or suspect that your pet may need a dental cleaning, call Zionsville Animal Hospital at 317-873-1833 to make an appointment or schedule a consultation.  If you do so before February is out, you’ll receive a 15% discount – but regardless of when you and your pet come in, he or she will likely be more energetic and systemically healthy as a result!

 

 

Sources:

1. The Veterinary Information Network: www.vin.com
2. The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA): https://www.avma.org/Events/pethealth/Pages/February-is-National-Pet-Dental-Health-Month.aspx