|
Pet Dental Care Myths....
Top 5 Pet Oral Health Care Myths
1. My parents had pets and they never had dental cleaning or worried about their pet?s dental health
Dental care of dogs and cats is one of the most commonly overlooked areas of pet health care. In fact, a recent veterinary study showed that approximately 2/3rds of pet owners do not provide the dental care that is recommended as essential by veterinarians. What's more, the American Veterinary Dental Society reports that 80% of dogs and 70% of cats show signs and suffer from oral diseases by age three. With advancement of Veterinary dentistry, early demise of pets due to dental infection causing valvular endocarditis (heart disease) etc can be prevented by regular preventive dental care.
2. Oral disease is not a serious problem
for pets
Dental disease doesn't just affect the mouth. It can lead to more serious health problems. Periodontal bacteria can enter the bloodstream and travel to major organs and begin new infections. Research suggests this may contribute to the development of heart disease, increase the risk of vascular diseases and pose a serious threat to animals with other disease conditions like diabetes. This is why many in the field refer to poor dental hygiene as "the silent killer of pets!"
3. Doggie breath is likely caused by
pet food
That bad breath you smell isn't only from what your pet is eating. Periodontal disease is an infection of the tissue surrounding the teeth that takes hold in progressive stages and can cause bad breath. It starts out as a bacterial film called plaque. When the bacteria die they can be calcified by calcium in saliva. This forms a hard, rough substance called tartar or calculus, which allows more plaque to accumulate. Volatile sulfur gases are produced by this process, and they are very irritating to the gums and have the characteristic smell of doggy breath.
As plaque and calculus develop below the gum line, professional cleaning will be needed to help manage it. If the plaque and tartar buildup continues unchecked, infection can form around the root of the tooth.
4. Dental cleaning is enough for my pet?s
oral care
In addition to dental cleaning every six months to twelve months, a good home care is very important. This may include an oral rinse, daily brushing, a dental gel, dental diets and treats.
The main factor that contributes to the lack of dental compliance is due to the lack of knowledge of the importance of dental cleaning by the owner.
5. Occasional brushing is good enough for my dog?s teeth
Veterinary dental specialists recommend that you brush your pet's teeth daily in order to maintain their oral hygiene. Most pet owners are not very good about this, and try to brush their pet's teeth infrequently. Although any oral care is better than no oral care, brushing once in a while is not as effective.
The combination of brushing, oral rinses, oral care diets and professional veterinary dental cleaning will give your pet the best chance of maintaining optimum oral health. The younger your pet is when he or she is introduced to tooth brushing, the more easily the animal will accept the procedure!
Brushing your pet's teeth regularly is the best way to fight dental disease and we have the perfect tool to do so at our hospital.
CAUTION ABOUT ANESTHESIA FREE DENTISTRY: It will be impossible to ask your pet to keep their mouth wide open for over 30 minutes and scrape below the gum line to remove subgingival tartar that causes the periodontal disease without the discomfort/pain, that we all go through when we under go teeth cleaning ourselves. Remember that the anesthesia free dentistry is a simple cosmetic cleaning above gum line and it will be impossible to take the required dental x-rays to detect the hidden dental disease and to perform sub gingival plaque/tartar removal. Remember your pet will not benefit from this non anesthetic dental. Most of us who try to brush our pets know how difficult it is to do simple tooth brushing and imagine how difficult it will be to do deep cleaning below gum line while your pet is awake.
The advances in modern inhalent anesthetics and modern anesthetic monitoring equipments have made the modern anesthetic dental procedures much safer. Testing your pets blood and ECG screening and IV fluid therapy will further minimize the ansthetic risks.
It is very important to provide your pet with pain free dental procedure that will help the veterinarian to take dental X-Rays to detect hidden dental pathology/disease, clean and remove all subgingival plaque and tartar from oral cavity and polish teeth, in addition to applying fluoride and dental sealant. Only this proper dental procedure by a Veterinarian will benefit your pet.
Closing Thoughts
Remember dental disease can be reversed with proper dental cleaning, root planning, periodontal surgery etc., and you can help your pet to live long healthy oral pain free life. Unfortunately many of us have gone through the same oral pain due to our own teeth and can empathize with our pets.
Take care of your pets before they develop valvular heart disease, Kidney disease, and or Liver diseases.
HEALTHY TEETH - HEALTHY PET
To help you to keep your pets healthy, we recommend regular dental prophylaxis and exam. Please call us at 561-439-7900 to make your appointment today.
| 
Processing ....