Pet dentals – a day in the life of a dog dental
It’s dental day! As the pet parent, you go through a whole host of emotions from the night before having to starve your cat or dog to receiving the update call after the procedure – through to the moment you pick your pet up after the treatment and monitoring that evening.
What about your pet? What does their journey look like?
Ruby has shared her journey with us… in pictures for each part of her day, below.
You will both arrive early the morning of the surgery and you will be greeted by one of our nurses who will confirm the dental procedure and you will sign the consent form – ensuring we have your contact details through the day.
Your pet will go through to the back of the Practice with the nurse who will spend time settling your pet in and doing a thorough clinical exam.
We always try to keep patients as relaxed as possible, with plenty of cuddles and reassurance! Pets who are having pre-anaesthetic blood screens will have these now and all pets will be put on a drip.
Your pet will then go into theatre and be made comfortable, where they will be given an injection into a leg – this is the anaesthetic drugs, and why your pet comes out with a small shaved patch.
Once your pet is asleep, anaesthetic gas is given to keep them sleeping. Your pet will be monitored constantly whilst under anaesthetic; checking heart and breathing rate, as well as temperature.
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All the teeth and gums are checked, using a probe, and a chart of your pet’s mouth will be made (just like at a human dentist).
Missing, loose, broken, retained or rotten teeth will be identified, and where required dental x-rays can be used to examine deeper, checking the health of the tooth roots.
Any dental extractions needed today will be completed.
All healthy teeth are scaled (to remove tartar, scale and bacteria from the teeth and from under the gums) and polished to help smooth the surface of the teeth, discouraging plaque and bacteria from adhering.
Once your pet’s dental procedure is over, the anaesthetic gas is turned off and they will wake up over the course of a few minutes. They may feel groggy or disorientated, and their recovery is always monitored by one of our nurses.
Once they are fully recovered, they will be offered food and water – and not forgetting the all essential wee stop (for dogs in our lovely garden space at the back).
We will ring you to let you know how they are feeling and what we found in their mouth, as well as confirming or arranging a discharge time. Your pet will be cared for over the rest of their stay to make sure they are as comfortable as possible.
You will pick your pet up at the prearranged time, and our clinical team will talk you through aftercare, which will depend on what has been done. Part of the aftercare includes a post-operative check to make sure your pet is doing well. This is usually a few days after the procedure. Most animals recover quickly from dental work, but a re-check lets us make sure everything is as we would expect and identify any abnormalities early. Ongoing dental rechecks over the next few months allow us to check that preventative dental strategies are working.
We offer free dental health nurse clinics so we can keep an eye on your pets dental health – book in with the team now on 01653 618303.
And we are currently offering a free dental pack including a free trial bag of Hill’s Vet Essentials Dental Health.