Taking Care of Aging Cats: Advanced Dentistry in Dartmouth
When it comes to providing quality care for senior pets, your veterinarian will very likely offer advice with regard to feline dental care. Taking care of your pet’s teeth should be done throughout their lifetime to prevent a lot of the problems that can happen as a result of poor dental care. However, if you have adopted a senior pet whose dental care has been neglected or if your pet suddenly has issues with their teeth, our Southeastern Massachusetts veterinarian can offer advanced dentistry in Dartmouth to help get them on track. In addition to dental services, changes in nutrition, activity, and veterinary care can also help your senior pet to live a long and healthy life.
Why Feline Dental Care?
As pets age, the prevalence of periodontal dental disease increases. Without intervention, tooth loss can occur, resulting in mouth pain and making it difficult to eat. Other diseases can also be common at this time, in many cases as a result of the periodontal disease, including diabetes and renal disease in senior pets. Advanced dentistry in Dartmouth isn’t just about checking your pet’s teeth and performing professional cleanings; it’s also about addressing common issues before they become big, painful, and expensive problems.
Our team offers a combination approach of dentistry and blood work to ensure a comprehensive diagnostic screening. For pets that are age seven or older, we encourage a pre-anesthetic blood screening. This is an excellent tool that we can use to be aware of any potential problems that your pet may have and plan accordingly. Screening also helps us to provide proper pain relief according to your pet’s specific needs and ensure the smoothest recovery possible. Our goal is to deliver feline dental care that addresses every aspect of your cat’s health to maximize the benefits of treatment.
What to Expect
When you bring your senior cat to our veterinary clinic in Dartmouth for dental services, you can expect a routine cleaning of every single tooth. At the same time, we probe each tooth and chart them to keep an eye out for tartar, gingivitis, mobility issues, and other pathology. This can help us to spot out small issues before they become bigger problems. We also recommend that your pet receive a full mouth digital radiograph at every dental procedure. This helps our team to observe the sub-gingival health of your cat’s teeth. Approximately 70 percent of the tooth exists below the gum line where it cannot be seen, but radiographs allow us to get a better look at potentially diseased or decaying teeth that require treatment.
In addition to traditional dentistry options, we also offer laser therapy, which can help to increase the health of your pet’s mouth. Therapy lasers are used to reduce inflammation, which is common with gingivitis. They can also be used to reduce any inflamed tissue after extraction and to help speed up the healing process. Some pets can benefit from monthly maintenance treatments, which have been proven to slow down or even reverse painful gingivitis. This also works to slow down the formation of tartar for an even healthier and fresher mouth. The more you can do to prevent serious dental issues with advanced dentistry in Dartmouth, the easier it will be on your pet.
Does Your Cat Need Dental Care?
Veterinary studies show that approximately 70-80 percent of cats have some degree of dental disease by the time they are just three years old. That percentage goes even higher for senior pets. Dental disease can increase health risks for your senior pet, leading not only to bad breath and tooth loss, but a painful mouth, difficulty eating, and lethargy. If left unchecked, many dental disease-related issues can result in complications to other conditions, such as kidney and heart disease.
While it might sound like a difficult proposal, most pets will allow at-home brushing in between visits if you create a positive experience. Ask our veterinary team for tips on how to brush your cat’s teeth properly to slow down the development of plaque and other dental issues that could become a dental disease. Routing check-ups with a Southeastern Massachusetts veterinarian at our veterinary clinic in Dartmouth can help to spot out problem areas that may require more extensive cleaning and observation.
Schedule an Appointment at Anchor Animal Hospital
If you have a senior cat and are looking for new ways to help them to stay healthy in their golden years, give us a call at 508-996-3731 and schedule an appointment for a veterinary check-up. We have a wide range of services available for feline dental care based on your pet’s needs and your budget. Call today and get your cat on the path to a long and healthy life.