| Ask The Vet -
Q&A |
Question
Do you consider it safe for an owner to try to de-scale
a dog’s teeth themselves?
Janet Truman - Derby, England |
Answering questions:
Susie Samuel MA VetMB MRCVS from
Vet
Help Direct |
| Answer |
Hi
Janet,
Thanks
for your question. I would say no, it is not safe, for three reasons:
Firstly
scaling a dog’s teeth is a skilled job. An unskilled person
could cause serious damage to the teeth and gums and cause the dog
a considerable amount of pain.
Secondly
99% of the time a general anaesthetic is required to do a thorough
job safely. Few dogs will tolerate an ultrasonic scaler in their
mouth when they are awake and, unlike humans you can’t tell
a dog to ‘open wide’. Without an anaesthetic, it is
virtually impossible to get to the back teeth, which is often the
worst affected area. A detailed examination of the mouth under general
anaesthetic is an important part of the procedure. Problems such
as periodontal disease or caries can be detected with a probe, something
that is only possible under anaesthetic.
Thirdly
scaling the teeth can release bacteria into the blood stream and
often antibiotics are indicated. This is something that a veterinary
surgeon will need to judge.
I
would recommend going to a vet to get your dog’s teeth checked.
They may be able to reassure you that brushing will be sufficient
for the moment. If scaling is necessary it is much better to get
a professional job done. This will leave the teeth with a shiny
surface which will be easy for you to keep clean with regular brushing.
This should reduce the likelihood of your dog needing its teeth
scaled in the future.
Kind regards,
Susie Samuel MA VetMB MRCVS www.vethelpdirect.com
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to help you decide. Any opinions given in the answers to these questions
are Ms Samuel's, they may not necessarily reflect the views of the
veterinary profession in general or any other individual veterinary
surgeon. |
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