Non-anesthetic dental cleaning
We have yet to meet a doggie or kitty who will sit in a chair, tilt their head, hold their mouth open and be still. Dental x-rays are absolutely necessary to evaluate teeth and are impossible to obtain in an awake pet. The most important area to clean teeth is under the gum line. Cleaning under the gum line is impossible in an awake patient. In addition, it is impossible to perform an adequate oral examination in an awake patient.
Unfortunately, there are people who advocate that cleaning the teeth of an awake patient is beneficial and effective. One should consider non-anesthetic dental clean the same as grooming. It makes the mouth look and smell better, however it does nothing to aid in the health of the mouth and teeth. In our opinion non-anesthetic dental cleaning is worse than doing nothing because it creates a false sense of security. Pet parents think they are doing good but in fact are doing nothing to benefit the health of the mouth and teeth. As dental specialists we have seen countless examples of pets that have had several non-anesthetic cases that require multiple extractions that could have been avoid by proper dental cleaning. The quality and safety of anesthesia varies from practice to practice. Some practices rely on a nurse to administer, maintain, and monitor the anesthesia. Doctors at Carefree Dentistry and Oral Surgery for Animals are intimately involved with every anesthesia. Our doctors have specialized training in anesthesia and customize each anesthesia protocol based on our patient’s needs. In addition, we have years of experience in successful anesthesia in high-risk patients and we have state of the art anesthesia equipment. Generally, the risk of not resolving oral or dental disease is greater than the risk of anesthesia. For more information click here https://afd.avdc.org/.
Anesthesia
Anesthesia can be stressful for pet parents, not so much for their fur babies. General anesthesia is necessary to perform quality dental and oral care. The quality and safety of anesthesia varies from practice to practice. Some practices rely on a nurse to administer, maintain, and monitor the anesthesia. The doctors at Carefree Dentistry and Oral Surgery for Animals are involved in every step of your beloved pets’ anesthesia and are never more than a few steps away from your baby. In addition, your baby will have a nurse assigned to him/her that stays with them from the time of sleepiness to complete recovery (awake).
Prior to every anesthetic procedure you pet will be examined by the doctor. Laboratory results will be review. If lab tests are needed, we will obtain a blood sample and perform a complete blood count and a biochemical profile immediately prior to the procedure. The doctor will create a customized anesthetic protocol for each patient. Your baby will be given a mild sedative. An IV catheter will be placed, and IV fluids will be started. A preanesthetic EKG and blood pressure are obtained. Your baby will then be administered IV medications to induce sleep by our doctor. An endotracheal (breathing tube) will be placed to establish and protect the airways. Your baby will breathe pure oxygen and the safest anesthetic gas available. Our patients will be wrapped in warmed blankets and heaters (Bair Huggers & circulating warm water blankets) to maintain proper body heat. The blood oxygen saturation, heart rate, breathing rate, core body temperature, exhaled carbon dioxide and blood pressure will be monitored continuously and recorded in the anesthetic record ever five minutes. After the procedure our patients start to wake very quickly. Typically, within five minutes. They are usually standing in 10 to 15 minutes and go home in an hour or two. For those high-risk patients and/or for those pet parents who desire we can arrange to have a board-certifiedTM veterinary anesthesiologist manage the anesthesia.