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March Pet of the Month
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 Congratulations to Chrissy, our
March Pet of the Month! Chrissy is a
13 year old miniature poodle who came in for a routine dental cleaning under
anesthesia, but in the end it turned out she needed to have twelve teeth
extracted due to advanced dental disease.
During a routine tip- of-her- nose
to tip-of- her- tail wellness examination Dr. Forbes noted that Chrissy had
excessive tartar built up on her teeth- not hard to believe for a dog that has
not brushed her teeth for a lifetime. Dr. Forbes proceeded by talking to Chrissy's owners about the importance
of a dental cleaning under anesthesia where the health of her mouth could be
evaluated more closely and the tartar could be removed and the teeth cleaned
under the gum line. Having this procedure
done would not only help with the appearance of Chrissy's teeth, but more
importantly, it would allow us to remove the tartar and infection in the mouth
to help stop the progression of periodontal disease and it would allow us to
examine the teeth more closely to evaluate them for additional disease.
BEFORE  BEFORE
Chrissy's owner scheduled her for a
professional cleaning. Before putting Chrissy under anesthesia we checked a
blood screen to make sure Chrissy's body was healthy enough to metabolize the anesthesia;
especially important in our older patients. Chrissy passed her blood screen with flying colors, which gave us the
okay to proceed with her dental cleaning. After Chrissy was anesthetized, Dr. Forbes removed the tartar from her
teeth and checked for deep pockets, loose teeth and any other abnormalities. After physically checking all of her teeth,
we took dental x-rays of Chrissy's mouth to check for other signs of disease
that we cannot see from the outside. It
turned out that the excessive tartar buildup on Chrissy's teeth was hiding a
lot of problems in her mouth. Chrissy
had a lot of loose teeth, as well as evidence of periodontal disease. After two hours of surgically removing the
diseased teeth in Chrissy's mouth, we woke her up and let her recover in the
hospital before sending her home later in the evening. Chrissy was put on antibiotics to keep the
surgery sites healthy and to remove any residual bacteria in her mouth and pain
medications to keep her comfortable. She was also put on a diet of canned food for two weeks following the
procedure so she could eat comfortably and to prevent damage to the surgery
sites.
Two weeks after the procedure we
had Chrissy's owners bring her in for a recheck. Chrissy had a great recovery with no trouble
taking her pain medications, and with no hesitation on being switched to the
canned food diet. Her mouth healed up
beautifully and the remaining teeth in her mouth- all twenty-seven of them-
were pearly white from having the tartar removed and then being polished. Chrissy had been doing a lot of mouth licking
before her dental procedure. This stopped
after having all of the diseased teeth extracted which tells us that she was
experiencing discomfort from her periodontal disease. Her breath also improved since we cleaned out
the pockets and removed diseased teeth in her mouth that were harboring the bacteria
that causes bad breath.
AFTER    AFTER
Chrissy's story is a reminder that
even if your pet is not showing outward signs that his/her mouth is hurting (or
maybe subtle signs), routine dental cleanings under anesthesia can find hidden
disease and make your pet happier and healthier. | 
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