Garrettsville Animal Hospital

Dental Health

Regular dental care is important to maintaining your pet's teeth and protecting your pets health.  Dental disease is the MOST common disease affecting pets.  By the age of three, the majority of dogs and cats are already suffering from dental disease.

Left untreated, dental disease causes pets to die an average of two years earlier than they could have lived with good dental care.

Of course, we all know that broken or decayed teeth, or infected gums are painful for your pet and can lead to feeding or behavior problems.  But, many people don't realize that an unhealthy mouth can also lead to an unhealthy body, causing life-threatening infections.  Gingivitis and periodontal disease (inflammation and infection of the gums) serves as a source of bacteria that can be spread throughout the body, causing potentially life threatening infections of the heart or kidneys.  Nearly all adult pets who are not receiving regular professional dental cleanings will have some degree of periodontal disease.

Dental disease causes:

  • pain
  • infection
  • bad breath
  • tooth loss
  • organ damage
  • death when the bacteria from the infected mouth travels to vital organs.
Just like people, cats and dogs need routing dental cleanings are care to protect their teeth, gums and their overall health.
In fact, dogs and cats accumulate tartar and calculus much faster then people do, so dental disease in pets can progress suprisingly quickly.    The AAHA Dental Care guidelines recommend annual professional dental exams and cleanings for all pets beginning at the age of two for large breed dogs and at the age of one for smaller dogs and cats.

An oral exam is part of every complete physical exam, so if your pet is due for an exam or vaccinations, come in and we will examine your pets oral health at that time.  During a dental exam, one of our Veterinarians will let you know if your pet needs a teeth cleaning and full oral assesment of all teeth and gums.   If so, a treatment plan and will be discussed with you, as well and a full estimated cost of the treatment plan.  Our animal care team will show you how to take care of your pets teeth at home, to keep them at their best between professional cleanings.

Keeping your pet's teeth healthy will give your pet a healthier, happier, longer life.  As an added bonus, clean teeth give your pet sweet breath!