Teeth Extraction

[MaryJane]

Recently, Lucy was scheduled for teeth cleaning (January) and the vet stated that quite a few teeth might have to come out because it looks like the gums receded. I've had years of issues with gum problems myself so, this statement caught me by surprise. After a long discussion with the vet, we decided that the teeth will be cleaned and x-rays will be taken but, no teeth will be extracted. It turned out that one tooth has a cavity and a few other teeth had enough recession of the gums that those teeth have to be watched carefully. I've been using a canine dental rinse with the sponge brushes DAILY and it seems like her teeth are being maintained OK with maybe some improvement - the vet also thinks that Lucy's mouth is healthier as she stated herself during Lucy's visit last month. So, at this point, it doesn't look like we have had any negative impact from not pulling the teeth.

 

My questions to others here:

 

1. How many other people here have had x-rays done of their dog's mouth during the dental and if necessary, planned to do additional work later rather than during the cleaning and therefore, faced the risk of additional anesthesia

2. Has anyone fixed a cavity in their dog's tooth

3. Has anyone gone through this path of not pulling teeth and instead maintaining gum recession and what was your experience

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest Sportingfields]

My instructions to my vets has always been, if you see something that needs to be taken care of or will probably 75% cause a problem, take care of it at that time.

I've never worried about anesthesia at any age or existing medical condition, even if needed twice in one year, due to the protocol that my vets use.

If my dog had a cavity I would have had that tooth pulled. I have had 2 dogs with horrible teeth but we only pulled those necessary, ie damaged or loose, receding gums would just be monitored and cared for similar to what you are doing.

[racindog]

yeah I have left them in with significant receeded gums and have never encountered ANY problems as a result of it. No discomfort to the dog or anything else. In days gone by there were NOT many tooth extractions done-was even a rarity for an extraction while cleaning. A few years ago I noticed that rather suddenly quite a few dogs were having teeth extracted at cleanings. Now it has mushroomed to where it is commonplace. Why is it so necessary to have certain teeth extracted in 2016 and it was not in 2000? Personally I think it is just a cash cow the vets discovered and decided to exploit. Sadly I have learned that vets can't be trusted so I don't believe them all the time anyway and therefore I don't play the new tooth game and it has not had ANY negative consequences for any of my dogs. In fact I feel fairly confident that I have probably saved my dogs from needless pain and procedures and my pocketbook from needless expense in so doing. I do have very proactive home dental care protocol as well.

[claudiav]

I don't know how much pain dogs have from receding gums..... but i can tell you how AWFUL it is for me.... the roots are exposed and anything touching them is excruciating!!! cold water, hot water, cold air, food, etc... i have had countless root canals because of my receding gumlines... that is the only way I can cope with leaving the teeth in... Again, I don't know how it translates to dogs... but if they are in pain, i would pull them... they are already under, so why not, if it makes them feel better? Dentists here in NY charge a nominal sum for each extraction, but it is definitely not a cash cow... the whole procedure alone is $1000, so what difference does another $50 make for pulling a tooth?

Edited June 15, 2016 by claudiav

[MaryJane]

My instructions to my vets has always been, if you see something that needs to be taken care of or will probably 75% cause a problem, take care of it at that time.

I've never worried about anesthesia at any age or existing medical condition, even if needed twice in one year, due to the protocol that my vets use.

If my dog had a cavity I would have had that tooth pulled. I have had 2 dogs with horrible teeth but we only pulled those necessary, ie damaged or loose, receding gums would just be monitored and cared for similar to what you are doing.

 

I worry about Lucy because she is a seizure dog and right now is under control with meds. Going under anesthesia and even being left at the vets could potentially cause her to start seizing - luckily, her regular vet lets me stay with her until they start the sedative which really makes a big difference in how she reacts to the whole procedure. This was also a concern with how long she was going to be under and I wanted to keep it as short as possible.

[MaryJane]

yeah I have left them in with significant receeded gums and have never encountered ANY problems as a result of it. No discomfort to the dog or anything else. In days gone by there were NOT many tooth extractions done-was even a rarity for an extraction while cleaning. A few years ago I noticed that rather suddenly quite a few dogs were having teeth extracted at cleanings. Now it has mushroomed to where it is commonplace. Why is it so necessary to have certain teeth extracted in 2016 and it was not in 2000? Personally I think it is just a cash cow the vets discovered and decided to exploit. Sadly I have learned that vets can't be trusted so I don't believe them all the time anyway and therefore I don't play the new tooth game and it has not had ANY negative consequences for any of my dogs. In fact I feel fairly confident that I have probably saved my dogs from needless pain and procedures and my pocketbook from needless expense in so doing. I do have very proactive home dental care protocol as well.

 

 

You mention something I have also noticed - the amount of extractions being done has increased significantly with the amount of dental cleanings being done. It seems that cleanings can result in some root exposure as the gum has receded from the plaque buildup and if a vet is faced with this, they may elect to remove the teeth . I've personally had root exposure from having countless gum operations and the gum grows back a little to come back over the tooth.

 

What other dental care protocols do you follow?

[MaryJane]

I don't know how much pain dogs have from receding gums..... but i can tell you how AWFUL it is for me.... the roots are exposed and anything touching them is excruciating!!! cold water, hot water, cold air, food, etc... i have had countless root canals because of my receding gumlines... that is the only way I can cope with leaving the teeth in... Again, I don't know how it translates to dogs... but if they are in pain, i would pull them... they are already under, so why not, if it makes them feel better? Dentists here in NY charge a nominal sum for each extraction, but it is definitely not a cash cow... the whole procedure alone is $1000, so what difference does another $50 make for pulling a tooth?

 

Lucy does not appear to be in pain - maybe there is some sensitivity to cold and hot. I personally did not have pain from my gum issues although, the surgeries were tough and that was very painful.

 

My vet was talking about removing many teeth, not just 1 and it would have added hundreds to the bill. I wasn't concerned about the money, my concern was with removing teeth that may not need to be removed. I think the vet and I ended up striking a good balance by having the x-rays done and going forward from there. Only time will tell.

[Guest Sportingfields]

 

I worry about Lucy because she is a seizure dog and right now is under control with meds. Going under anesthesia and even being left at the vets could potentially cause her to start seizing - luckily, her regular vet lets me stay with her until they start the sedative which really makes a big difference in how she reacts to the whole procedure. This was also a concern with how long she was going to be under and I wanted to keep it as short as possible.

Your concern is totally understandable, now knowing she is seizure pup. Very happy that you've a wonderful vet! I truly think you did the right thing to pull the one and monitor all the others and keeping up with good dental care at home.

[tbhounds]

Exposed roots are porous and they hurt. Dogs will often be asymptomatic regarding oral pain. It isn't until after the procedure do most clients understand how awful their dogs felt prior. I must have heard 100 times-I wish I didn't wait.

Also, dogs don't get cavities-what your vet is most likely seeing is enamel resorption -treatment of choice 99% of the time is extraction.

With resorption pets under anesthesia will still react by jaw chattering when the affected area is probed-they hurt.

Honestly, I would have the dental done, do the intra-oral rads so you may check the pathology of the roots, extract that diseased tooth and go from there. The rads will determine your next course of action.

[MaryJane]

Exposed roots are porous and they hurt. Dogs will often be asymptomatic regarding oral pain. It isn't until after the procedure do most clients understand how awful their dogs felt prior. I must have heard 100 times-I wish I didn't wait.

Also, dogs don't get cavities-what your vet is most likely seeing is enamel resorption -treatment of choice 99% of the time is extraction.

With resorption pets under anesthesia will still react by jaw chattering when the affected area is probed-they hurt.

Honestly, I would have the dental done, do the intra-oral rads so you may check the pathology of the roots, extract that diseased tooth and go from there. The rads will determine your next course of action.

 

 

I think you may have misinterpreted what I said - I did have the dental performed on Lucy with the dental x-rays back in January which is how we knew that she had a cavity (cavities are rare in dogs but, they do get them). I was just not comfortable with removing so many teeth because of gum recession at the time of the procedure. In all probability, she will go in to have the cavity tooth removed eventually but, I did want to check to see if there was any other treatment that could be done as Angel/Tufts in the area are progressive with doggie dental care.

 

So far, I'm OK with the path that we went down with Lucy. After talking to the vet, we plan to do the same with Adam (my younger boy) when he goes in for his dental next year he will also get x-rays but, no extractions.

[tbhounds]

yeah I have left them in with significant receeded gums and have never encountered ANY problems as a result of it. No discomfort to the dog or anything else. In days gone by there were NOT many tooth extractions done-was even a rarity for an extraction while cleaning. A few years ago I noticed that rather suddenly quite a few dogs were having teeth extracted at cleanings. Now it has mushroomed to where it is commonplace. Why is it so necessary to have certain teeth extracted in 2016 and it was not in 2000? Personally I think it is just a cash cow the vets discovered and decided to exploit. Sadly I have learned that vets can't be trusted so I don't believe them all the time anyway and therefore I don't play the new tooth game and it has not had ANY negative consequences for any of my dogs. In fact I feel fairly confident that I have probably saved my dogs from needless pain and procedures and my pocketbook from needless expense in so doing. I do have very proactive home dental care protocol as well.

More teeth are being extracted because they need to be. Veterinary dentistry has advanced and now we are much more proactive about dental care. It's considered standard of care now to have each dentistry patient have a complete set of intra-oral radiographs done. The rads are finding so much more pathology then we ever knew. Sorry you are so bitter towards vets but, I find your comments rather hurtful. We (iworkers in the veterinary profession) are honest hard working, caring individuals. Believe me when I tell you we are not in it for the money.

If I had a dime everytime I heard a client say -I wish I didn't wait so long to address those bad teeth-"Fluffy" is acting like a new young dog now.

Dogs live healthier, happier lives with clean, free of diseased teeth mouths.

[MaryJane]

On a positive note, I may have found someone that fills cavities in dog's teeth ..... need to get more information.

 

Tufts does not do cavities but, their dentist does root canals and they run 1 to 2K depending on tooth and to complement that, there is another dental vet that does caps (about 2K).

[claudiav]

On a positive note, I may have found someone that fills cavities in dog's teeth ..... need to get more information.

 

Tufts does not do cavities but, their dentist does root canals and they run 1 to 2K depending on tooth and to complement that, there is another dental vet that does caps (about 2K).

 

why would anyone spend the money to do that, when they can simply pull the teeth and pain is gone? I don't understand this. Cosmetic reasons? there is no reason at all for dogs to get root canals and caps... pull the teeth... if they could talk, they would thank you... i have seen proof of dogs being 180 degrees turned around simply by ridding the mouth of diseased teeth... keeping them is pointless... they can eat perfectly well without them...

More teeth are being extracted because they need to be. Veterinary dentistry has advanced and now we are much more proactive about dental care. It's considered standard of care now to have each dentistry patient have a complete set of intra-oral radiographs done. The rads are finding so much more pathology then we ever knew. Sorry you are so bitter towards vets but, I find your comments rather hurtful. We (iworkers in the veterinary profession) are honest hard working, caring individuals. Believe me when I tell you we are not in it for the money.

If I had a dime everytime I heard a client say -I wish I didn't wait so long to address those bad teeth-"Fluffy" is acting like a new young dog now.

Dogs live healthier, happier lives with clean, free of diseased teeth mouths.

 

100% agree with you!!

[MaryJane]

 

why would anyone spend the money to do that, when they can simply pull the teeth and pain is gone? I don't understand this. Cosmetic reasons? there is no reason at all for dogs to get root canals and caps... pull the teeth... if they could talk, they would thank you... i have seen proof of dogs being 180 degrees turned around simply by ridding the mouth of diseased teeth... keeping them is pointless... they can eat perfectly well without them...

 

 

I can't say why someone would do a root canal or a cap on a dog as I'm not planning to do that. But, from talking to these facilities, they are quite busy so I guess people have reason to do it.

 

From my perspective, I am looking at what it would cost to do a filling and if it is the same as an extraction, I would probably try filling the tooth. My reasoning, Lucy is a seizure dog and also has IBD and because of this, I try to keep pain and stress to a minimum in all procedures she is subjected to. With a filling, she would not have the extraction pain (concern of seizures) and she wouldn't need additional antibiotics (IBD concern).