Small Animal Dentistry
Dogs and Cats
It is often very easy to forget about your pet’s dental care. In an ideal world, all animals would have their teeth brushed daily, just like people! Some breeds, e.g. Yorkshire Terriers are particularly prone to dental problems and bad breath.
There are a number of preventative steps you can take to keep their teeth healthy:
- Regular brushing with a toothbrush or a finger brush
- ‘Toothpaste’ which can be brushed on (ideally) or squeezed in to the mouth
- Feeding a high proportion of biscuits in the diet and/or feeding a specific ‘dental’ diet
- Regular check ups with a vet or vet nurse and possibly dental treatment under anaesthetic
Please do not use human toothpastes or mouth wash as our pets may swallow them.
If your pet has a significant amount of tartar build up, they may benefit from a scale and polish under anaesthetic. We often recommend this as a first step in a dental regime for pets that have had no treatment before, as brushing and toothpastes work better if the teeth are cleaned mechanically first.
If tartar is allowed to get out of control, the teeth and gums are damaged, and may result in the teeth needing to be removed. This is obviously quite painful for your pet, so prevention is better than cure!
Rabbits
Unlike dogs, cats and humans, rabbits’ teeth grow throughout their lives and so require different dental treatment. As a rabbit eats it will grind its teeth down, which keeps their teeth nice and short. It is very important to provide hay or grass as the main component of a rabbit’s diet to help with this.
Sometimes, particularly in domesticated rabbits, the structure of a rabbit’s jaw may be such that the teeth are not worn down correctly, and sharp points may form. These points can cause painful ulcers in the check and tongue, and you may notice a reduction in food intake. When the incisors of rabbits do not meet, they can grow erratically and may grow in to the gums. This is very painful, and you may only notice when your rabbit stops grooming itself or eating. The incisors then need to be mechanically shortened, or sometimes removed completely. You can keep an eye on your rabbit’s incisors just by lifting their lips at the front of their mouth.