A 16-year-old Sheltie has left nostril pus for 6 months - canine tooth abscess Pt 1
Channel: Dr David Sing
Date: 17/04/2016

16 April 2016
A left nostril discharge of pus persisted in this 16-year-old Sheltie for at least 6 months. 2 months ago, Dr Daniel prescribed antibiotics. But the left nose still discharge pus. I prescribed better quality antibiotics 10 days ago, but the nostril still discharge pus. My hypothesis that this dog had a "canine tooth abscess", the equivalent of the common carnassial tooth abscess of premolar 4th in the upper jaw.

This video shows the dog waking up from anaethesia alive and will be going home to a happy owners. No injectable sedation was given. Only isoflurane gas by mask and then intubation. The red blood leaked out from the left nostril on extraction of the loose left upper canine is now not obvious in the video.

The owners are worried about the anaesthetic deaths in old dogs as they have heard of deaths on the operating table. So they had earlier today decided not to proceed with the dental extraction.

This dog is 16 years old and had been prescribed antibiotics. The dog had normal 4th premolar teeth on both left and right upper jaw. So, there is no carnassial tooth abscess in the upper jaw. Overall, the dog is alive and will go home to a happy owner. She adopted the dog at 12 years of age as the other owner asked her to adopt this Sheltie.

This couple is very kind to adopt 12-year-old dog and give her a very good home and care. No anaesthetic death in 16-year-old dog is possible if the vet uses isoflurane gas carefully and give IV drips and furesimide as supportive treatment.  

This video documents a very rare case of canine tooth abscess in old dogs. I have been in practice since graduation in 1974 and had never encountered such a case. Carnassial or malar tooth abscess in old dogs and cats are commonly encountered by all vets all over the world but I doubt many will have encountered this case. The presenting sign is a persistent purulent left nostril discharge in old dogs. This would have been written off as a nasal infection but the primary cause is the bacteria from the infected root of the canine tooth penetrating into the nasal passage.