Talk To Me About Dentals

[Guest sweetpea]

At Sweetpea's annual check up, vet said "We might want to think about a dental in the near future...."

 

Sweetpea's never had anything major done in the 5 years she's been with me, nothing requiring

anesthesia, so I don't know how she reacts. And yeah, if she needs a dental I'd rather do it now at 9 than have

things deteriorate and become problematic at 12 or 13.

 

It seems like every time somebody says, "Most vets know about greyhound anomalies...." another

greyhound has difficulties with a "simple" procedure. So I want to know what questions to ask.

 

What causes the hyperthermic reactions that some hounds have gotten, is that a specific medicine, or

group of medicines?

 

I don't know if there was any trouble with her spay, I think the group would have told me, but I'm not sure they

would have any record of it now.

 

So what would you ask your vet about scheduling a dental?

 

Thanks for any help!

 

Buzzy

[MP_the4pack]

When my girls got older, I broke down and had a dentist do the dental. The one I have here in NJ is extremely careful with the anesthesia and never lost a patient. She was recommended by Pearl's cardiologist because Pearl was such a high risk for anesthesia.

The price was 10 times what a regular vet would cost, but all my girls sailed thru fine, including my 15 and 1/2 yr old. (who succumbed to the ice just a month later)

 

But it's super expensive and insurance covers very little.

[greysmom]

There was a thread a few weeks (a month??) or so ago that outlined a good anesthesia protocol for greyhounds. You might look that up and take it in to talk with your vet.

 

One thing to ask about is opiates - some greyhounds have very bad reactions to them post surgery, so it's good to avoid if you can.

 

How do her teeth look? Just a little tartar? Bad breath? Icky stuff half way up her teeth? If it's minor, you might be able to take care of it by giving her raw meaty bones once or twice a week. If she's already getting lots of crunchy and chewy things, and still has issues, a dental will be needed to scale the tartar off and check for bad teeth.

 

Some have good teeth without much effort and some have bad teeth no matter what you do. Copper could have a full blown dental every 6 months, while Toni hasn't needed one since she came here four years ago.

 

Here it is

Anesthesia Protocol

[seeh2o]

My vet pretty much insisted on me using a veterinary dentist for Claire. She knew that the dentist had worked well with greyhounds, but just to be on the safe side, I checked with the head of our group. We did the blood work, she told me that she had worked with greyhounds sucessfully in the past and had never lost one. It did cost more, but she had their undivided attention, which made me feel a lot more comfortable. Claire is 9 and lost 4 molars and one incisor. the only problem she had was GI upset the next day from clyndamicin (sp?). Good luck!

[Guest BlackandBrindle]

Malignant hyperthermia (MH) is a rare inherited genetic disorder of skeletal muscle which results in the mutation of a calcium channel protein within the muscle cells. This mutation results in muscle contraction and increased metabolism which leads to the production of not only excess carbon dioxide but also excess heat which results in a life threatening hyperthermia (elevated body temperature). The hyperthermia, in combination with the other metabolic changes that are occurring, can result in cardiac (heart) arrhythmias and multiple internal organ failure. MH can be triggered by gas anesthetics (not injectable anesthetics), extreme exercise, and stress. The only treatment for true episodes of MH is an intravenous injection of the muscle relaxant Dantrolene in addition to supportive intravenous fluid therapy, immediate removal of the patient from gas anesthetics, external cooling and respiratory support. Even with appropriate treatment this disease can be fatal.

 

This is from this source

https://ckm.osu.edu/sitetool/sites/greyhoundpublic/documents/FAQ/AnestheticMalignantHyperthermia.pdf

 

Questions I'd ask my vet before a dental:

 

What are their greyhound anesthesia protocols?

How are they monitored? This seems really basic, but it's something definitely worth asking.

Do they give fluids?

Do they have dental xrays? Despite the added cost this will help give a more accurate picture (excuse the pun) of what's going on and let you deal with all the problems rather than continuing to put her under for procedures.

How long do they estimate her dental to take without complications?

Do they dispense antibiotics for after the dental?

How many dentals do they do in a week? How experienced is the tech who will be doing the dental?

If they find that Sweetpea needs an extraction, are techs allowed to do this (in some states they are) or will the veterinarian be doing the extractions?

 

Ask for an estimate that covers all the expenses (from catheters, to anesthesia, to fluids, etc)...

 

Ask what grade dental it is (or what grade periodontal disease they estimate her to be).

 

That's all I can think of right now

Sadie will be going in this year for her second dental (first was last year) so I understand your concern!

 

Oh and pre-op bloodwork is a must!!!! Some places include it in the price others do not, but at her age, it's money well spent! I'd be worried if they were willing to do the dental without doing pre-anesthesia blood work.