The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1896-03-28
DENTISTRY FOR DOGS.


Anew Yofkde1Aiatmalkes . specially
Of filling the teeth Of dogs. His prac-
tice,pit i said, i qnitelarge.~
The extraction OF the decayed teeth
Of dogs has been common for years, but
the filling of them is q new branch OF
the business. The teeth Of, 4 dog are
meant to be exercised on tough meat
and hard bones, but when he is fed on
chicken, pate de foie .gras and such
deticaeies the teeth do not get enough
work, and consequently decay. My
lady's pet dog then begins to howl with
pain. Formerly the only remedy was
tosyank out the offending tooth. Now
the sufferer is taken to the dog dentist
and goes away smiling with q polished
gold filling in the TOOTH,
The operation is comparatively sim
pie, except with vicious or unman-
ageable dog. The dentists assistant
holds the animals head while his chief
examines the decayed tooth and de-
cides upon the best way tofih it. When
he has reconnoitered the ground he
takes a hand excavator, very much like
the instruments of the dentist with
which most OF us nre painfully familiar,
and cuts away the decayed part. The
following operation is exactly the same
as putting in amalgam filing in q hu-
man tooth.
He fills up the cavity with amalgam
and holds the dogs mouth open until it
has had time to set. The animal comes
down next day. The rough edges are
filed Oh and the filing FURNISHED. In-
stead of the aching molar there is then
a serviceable tooth in the dogs mouth.
The filling requires renewing every two
years, sometimes oftener. Many wealthy
owners insist that only the best ma
terial is fit to go in the dogs precious
mouth, and gold must be used. The
dentist sighs resignedly and complies.
but the operation is very tedious and
can only be performed on quiet dogs.
Gold has to be hammered in with &
great deal of care, and the process is
,engthy-almost as lengthy as the bill,
which is very high for gold filings. A
vicious dog has to be chloroformed be-
tore his teeth can be filed. Back teeth
are, of course, much harder to fill. A
wooden gag is employed to keep the
mouth open.
'How do you manage with q big
dog?' the dentist was asked.
Iwear thick gloves, and if the animal
is vicious l put him under an anaes.
thetic. It's mighty strange, though,
how often my opinion and that of the
owner differs upon the disposition of
the dog. Gentle as a lamb doesn't
mean much to me, can tell you. am
a pretty good judge of a dog, however.
and take no chances. If l see any
trouble in sight chloroform the beast
before operating upon it. There is no
reason why q dog should lose its teeth
any more than human being if they
are properly looked after. OF course,
if dog eats bones and good, hard,
food, that filing would not
stay in week. But, then, if he were
fed that way his teeth would not de-
cay, so there you are. Dealers often
wedge dogs teeth with little wooden
wedges when it is q puppy in order to
shape the teeth and make them set
even. This is prohibited, but cannot be
detected when properly done. Very
,ften fine dog is overshut or under
sLut-that is, the top and bottom teeth
10 not meet. In such a case little ju-
licious wedging will add largely to the
;alue of the animal. Chicago Journal.
10