Dental Implants are used extensively used in human medicine to replace lost teeth. The reasons for performing implants in people include the following: maintaining the position of the remaining teeth, maintaining bone height, improving mastication of food, and cosmetic value. Dogs and cats have very different dental and facial anatomy compared to humans, and because…
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Fractured teeth are a common finding in veterinary medicine. Often fractured teeth go unnoticed unless the injury is directly observed. For that reason, veterinarians often identify the fractured teeth incidentally on general routine examination. What causes broken teeth? In dogs, fractured teeth are most often caused by chewing on inappropriately hard objects, such as elk…
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What is periodontal disease? Periodontal disease is one of the most common diseases diagnosed in dogs and cats. Simply put, it is a disease caused by the build-up of plaque along the gumline. Plaque is a sticky material that builds up on teeth and contains millions of bacteria that are protected within the plaque biofilm.…
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When it comes to signs of dental disease in dogs and cats, please think about the following: 1st– Cats and dogs are notoriously good at hiding signs of pain. That is their nature! They rarely show obvious signs of dental disease. 2nd– Eating is an incredibly strong drive for all animals, and our domestic dogs…
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Safety of anesthesia: Many dog and cat owners are extremely concerned when their furry family member has to undergo anesthesia. Of course there are inherent risks of anesthesia, which will be discussed below, but more often than not, the benefits of properly treating dental disease far outweigh the risks of anesthesia. There are two major…
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Why is anesthesia required for my dog/cat’s dental care? Diagnosis in human dentistry usually starts with what hurts. The dentist sprays cold water on a sensitive tooth and you say “Ouch!” A patient’s symptoms are critical to the diagnostic process. But because animals cannot tell us how they feel, veterinarians must look for other diagnostic…
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What is tooth resorption? Tooth resorption is a relatively common and painful condition in cats. It can be seen in dogs as well, although not as frequently. These lesions used to be referred to as “neck lesions” due to their common location at the “neck” of the tooth where the gingiva meets the crown. They…
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What is a veterinary dentist and how do I find one? Did you know that there are only about 160 Veterinary Dentists in the world? That’s because it is one of the newest veterinary specialties! Fortunately, it is a rapidly growing field and the number of veterinary dentists in the world will continue to increase.…
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