Dental Care
Pet Dental Care in St. Paul, MN
Imagine if you never brushed your teeth or had them cleaned. Pretty frightening, right? As you can imagine, things would eventually start to go very, very bad inside your mouth: teeth would rot and decay, gums would become inflamed and infected. Bacteria from those rotting teeth would eventually travel into your bloodstream and could cause other serious health problems. And we haven’t even mentioned the daily, debilitating pain.
It’s the same scenario for your dog or cat. While some people might laugh at the idea of brushing their pet’s teeth or taking them for a pet dental cleaning, the fact is that by age three, 80% of dogs and 70% of cats have some evidence of periodontal disease. Periodic dental exams help maintain proper oral hygiene and prevent future problems.
Life Care Animal Hospital offers complete pet oral health services, including COHATs (Comprehensive Oral Health Assessment and Treatment). A COHAT consists of:
- Dental exam
- Thorough oral exam and dental charting under anesthesia
- Cleaning of the teeth with an ultrasonic scaler and hand instruments
- Polishing all tooth surfaces
- Digital dental X-rays
- Extractions as needed
- Discussion of home care options to help keep your pet’s mouth healthy
Following American Veterinary Medical Association guidelines, Life Care Animal Hospital only does cleanings and dental work on anesthetized pets. To ensure your pet is healthy enough to undergo anesthesia, we do require a routine blood test before the procedure.
At Home Dental Care for Pets
Brushing your pet’s teeth several times per week is the best way to prevent plaque and tartar build-up. Interested in learning how to brush your pet’s teeth? Just ask and our veterinarians will be happy to help you get started. If you have a pet that won’t tolerate brushing, our veterinarians can also recommend products that will help keep your pet’s mouth healthy in between cleanings.
Contact Us About Pet Dental Cleaning in St. Paul
To Request an appointment for a dental exam or dental cleaning, call us at (651) 774-6063.
