Veterinary Dental Services Now Available for South Coast Pets
One of the best ways to protect your pets and keep them healthy for many years is to start early with dental care for cats and dogs. Simple teeth-brushing exercises with puppies and kittens can help begin a lifelong pattern of care that can prevent many dangerous dental diseases and conditions. In addition, annual dental cleaning for pets is highly recommended, as it can spot minor issues before they become significant and serious problems. Veterinary dental services and advanced dentistry services for pets are available at Anchor Animal Hospital in Dartmouth, which serves pet owners throughout the South Coast area, including Southeastern Massachusetts, Cape Cod, and Rhode Island.
3 Reasons to Start Early
There are many benefits associated with performing veterinary dental services early on in your pet’s life. The first is that it can become easier to brush your pet’s teeth later on as an adult if they get used to the activity during their formative weeks and months. Find a comfortable way to brush your puppy or kitten’s teeth and reward them with playtime afterward. They will look forward to it and get excited when they see you get the brush out for them. Speak with your vet regarding any type of dental care for cats and dogs – at home or an annual dental cleaning for pets. They can recommend the best products for you to use and create a schedule that can help you avoid advanced dentistry services, such as extractions and gum treatments, in the future.
Another reason to start early is that studies show approximately 70-80 percent of all cats and dogs have some degree of dental or periodontal disease by the time they are just three years of age. We don’t have long to begin preventive treatment before dental issues begin to occur. The third reason is a directly impacted by these statistics. Pets who have dental disease won’t just have bad breath but can have a lifelong issue with a painful mouth, difficulty eating, lethargy, and it can affect serious conditions, like kidney and heart disease, causing further complications. If you have a pet that won’t allow you to brush its teeth, speak with your vet at Anchor Animal Hospital about what is involved in an annual dental cleaning for pets. This can help to address minor issues before they create advanced dental disease and keep your pet healthy and happy for many years to come.
Advanced Dentistry Services
The doctors at Anchor Animal Hospital have experience in veterinary dental services, including oral surgery, and have received advanced dentistry services training at the Animal Dental Training Center. They are able to perform advanced services that can require a surgical approach, such as removing infected, broken, or otherwise bad teeth to decrease post-operative pain and improve healing time. Our facility is equipped with a state of the art digital dental X-ray unit, which produces extremely high-quality images in less than five seconds. Our doctors can use the X-rays to look for problems underneath the surface, which allows them to resolve complex cases, such as abscessed roots or painfully retained root issues.
Our team can assist you in establishing a home dental care routine. Daily brushing with pet-specific toothpaste and dental rinses, a tartar control diet, and CET dental chews can go a long way toward keeping your pet’s mouth healthy between annual dental cleaning for pets. As part of our yearly routine exams, we examine each patient’s mouth and teeth. If you have never gotten dental care for dogs and cats, your annual checkup is a great time to discuss your options with a trusted veterinarian. If you are interested in scheduling an appointment or would like to talk about veterinary dental services and options with our staff, give Anchor Animal Hospital a call at 508-996-3731. We can answer any questions you might have about general and advanced dentistry services, schedule regular appointments, and help you provide your pet with comprehensive dental and veterinary care services to ensure a long and healthy life.