Thursday, April 16, 2009

Whats the difference between cleaning and brushing a dogs teeth?

My vet wants to charge $75 for cleaning plus $20 for antibiotics ahead of time (not sure why)


Whereas my groomer will brush and clean his teeth for $10


Seems like a no-brainer, but Whats the difference? Any vet tech or groomer would be great, or someone who has had experience with getting dog%26#039;s teeth cleaned THANKS IN ADVANCE!

Whats the difference between cleaning and brushing a dogs teeth?
With a professional cleaning, your Vet will examine your dog%26#039;s teeth and be using a power tool to remove plaque and tartar, and after that polishing the teeth. Since dogs don%26#039;t sit still with their mouths open and that means liability or trauma for a dog that is scared by the sound of the equipment, most Vets anesthetize the dog before the procedure. The antibiotics are to make sure the dog doesn%26#039;t get an infection from irritated gums.


When you get your teeth cleaned by the dentist, it is somewhat similar in difference from brushing your teeth as it is a difference when brushing a dogs teeth and getting a professional cleaning done.


What most groomers use are these little finger brushes that are disposable, and they put a bit of doggie toothpaste on it and give it a brush. It%26#039;s very simple and it is not designed to remove plaque and tartar that is there already.
Reply:ty, and tks for choosing my answer. You can get those little finger brushes at PetSmart, a disposable kind, and some doggie toothpaste and shave that 10 dollars off the grooming bill! Report It

Reply:Groomer does the same job you can do yourself.


Your vet will remove the tartar under anesthetics.


If you give your dog a good bone once a week, he/she won%26#039;t need either.
Reply:When you are taking your dog to the vet to get his teeth cleaned they put him under anesthesia and clean his Whole mouth. They don%26#039;t brush his teeth, they scale off all of that tartar and calculus with an ultrasonic scaler, they use a hand scaler to get off any hidden tartar, and they polish his teeth. They also apply fluoride. They are able to see very part of the mouth, and tell you which teeth need focused on, and also if any teeth need to be pulled. These are things that can%26#039;t be done to a dog when they are awake, because they wouldn%26#039;t allow us to do them. And what your vet is charging for a dental procedure is actually a very reasonable price, any vet that I know of charges more than that for a dental procedure.





What your groomer is doing is just brushing your dogs teeth. Brushing a dog%26#039;s teeth will help slow down the build up of tartar, if it is done on a regular basis, but it is not going to get rid of all the built up tartar and hardened calculus.





If your veterinarian recommended a dental procedure that means your dog probably has pretty advanced dental disease. If this is the case, I would recommend that you have the dental procedure done by your vet, then have them show you how to brush his teeth to prevent tartar build up in the future, and possibly prevent him from needing another dental cleaning by the veterinarian. Good Luck with your dog!!
Reply:It%26#039;s the same as with us going to the dentist and having our teeth cleaned and then keeping it up everyday by brushing our teeth at home. It%26#039;s best to have your vet do a cleaning on your dog once a year and you can brush your own dog%26#039;s teeth at home to keep it up. All the best;~)
Reply:The vet may possibly use an anaesthetic and the antibiotics would be for infected gums. I would go with the vet cleaning as there may need to be some extractions depending on the amount of damage the periodontal disease has caused.





As a previous respondent suggested - feed your dog more bones. Raw Meaty Bones will keep your dogs%26#039; teeth and gums clean. The meat flosses between teeth and massages gums while the bones scrape plaque and tarter of the teeth. Nature%26#039;s toothbrush.



my cat

No comments:

Post a Comment