Talk to me about dentals please.

I know this is a supject that has been talked about a lot.
Vivian needs a dental and I am scared to death about having it done.
What are the questions I need to ask them, do they need to do blood work ahead of time, type of anthesia etc?
Gert my forster also needs one, waiting to hear if the pug rescue pays for that.

I just had two fosters have dentals, have another going in tommorrow. Our vet always does a pre-op blood profile before dentals. They also use Isoflorine (sp) so is safe for the puglets.
One foster lost 10 teeth the other 5. They usually give us Clavamox for a week with alot of extractions and also Rymidal for any pain they may have.

I see no reason why the rescue would'nt pay for your fosters dental?? If the vet feels they need it.

Lilos Mom wrote:I just had two fosters have dentals, have another going in tommorrow. Our vet always does a pre-op blood profile before dentals. They also use Isoflorine (sp) so is safe for the puglets.
One foster lost 10 teeth the other 5. They usually give us Clavamox for a week with alot of extractions and also Rymidal for any pain they may have.

I see no reason why the rescue would'nt pay for your fosters dental?? If the vet feels they need it.

What are they looking for with the blood work?
I'm sure the rescue will pay, this is the first foster who has had to got the vet for anything.

I've been through dentals with all three of my own pugs, and one of my fosters. We (the rescue) pays for dentals on pugs that need them.

I did a pre-blood screen on all of my pugs before they went under. It's good to have, even if nothing is wrong, just so you have a comparison point for the future.

I have never regretted the dentals. It was hard to make myself go through with it, but I am so glad I did. The vet actually kept out the teeth they pulled (all of mine lost a few each), so she could show me what they looked like. Seeing those little rotten teeth made me feel HORRIBLE! I felt so bad that my poor pugs were having those bad teeth in their mouth.

The recovery was fine. They just slept most of the rest of the day and the next day. We had injectible antibiotics done, and some rymadyl for pain.

Don't forget - the anasthesia makes them cold very easily. I keep mine wrapped in blankets as soon as they get home. We didn't watch Ichiro close enough once, and he got too cold. Poor little guy was convulsing with shivers! I felt very bad about that.

Most dogs do just fine with whatever food you give them after the dental too. Soft food and bland is best. But, some don't even act like they had a dental, and just scarf down the food.

I also had the pre dental blood work done on Hooligan before we got his, and we do it for the pugs in rescue that need dentals as well. When my others need dentals, I'll also opt for the bloodwork. It's just to make sure everything looks ok.

Vivian is only six, that seems young to me, is it?

Donna wrote:Vivian is only six, that seems young to me, is it?

It just depends, some seem to have worse teeth than others. Indy is due for one soon and he is 6. Hooli was 8 when he had his first one but that was my fault because I was scared and kept putting it off.

Donna wrote:Vivian is only six, that seems young to me, is it?

Mine all had them done at 6 years old. It seems the right age to me. Some can go longer, and some have them done sooner, but, middle age is the average, I think.

It does depend on the dog. Chester's first one was just recently at age 9. But our vet says Leo is due soon and he is just a little over 6. Bruno will be 9 in February and doesn't need a dental yet.

We always get the pre-surgical blood tests before any surgery. I believe our vet said the blood test is good for a month. They just want to see that everything in normal range, particularly kidney function (I think that's what he said).

I had always thought Rupert would be first, he has dragon breath but the vet said his teeth are just fine.
I am going to wait till the holidays are over, I could not deal if something ever happened to her ever but more around the holidays.
The vet said I could wait but not to long.

It really does depend on the dog and not the age. Lucy had a dental at 4. She had a loose tooth and ended up having several extractions. Some pugs' teeth are just a lot crazier than others (but all their mouths are pretty crazy I think!) I was shocked when I saw the x-rays before Nell's last dental (she's 8 and has had 2 dentals). Teeth everywhere! Growing in all kinds of directions.

I don't think Vivian's too young for a dental -- Rhoda's first time was around age 6.

As everyone else said, getting bloodwork done beforehand is pretty standard. Rhoda did great with her first couple dentals and recovered really quickly. (And I gave her canned food for a couple days, which she LOVED.)

Makayla and Grace have both had dentals. Makayla probably won't ever have another one done unless it's really really necessary because her condition can be exacerbated by anesthesia. Grace, on the other hand, should have one done every year. Last year we didn't as money was tight with Kayla being sick right before the holidays. This year part of my Christmas bonus will go for Grace's dental. Grace is a poop eater, however, and poop rots their teeth, so that's the reason why she'll need one annually. (Yes, we do try to prevent the poop eating as much as possible - however the girl likes to poop in her bed at night so she can have a snack!)

Like everyone else, I always have pre-op bloodwork done for anything that requires anesthesia - checks kidney and liver function to be sure they're stable enough to withstand anesthesia.

Bella is 4 and she already has had a dental. In fact, when she was under they found a back tooth that needed to be extracted. Reggie is 6 and has had 2. He has a pre molar that we keep having to x ray and are trying to avoid pulling.

I know someone said Iso is safe for pugs. I'm sure your vet either uses Sevo (Sevoflurane) or Iso (Isoflurane). To be fully honest, I am not sure which is "better" and why. I will say most vets use one or the other, and that I have seen brachycephalic dogs do well on sevo.

Dentals are usually fair quick (unless there are many extractions). This is good because the dog has less time to get cold while under. At my vet's, we moniter sugeries at least every 5 minutes (take temp, check O2 stats, blood pressure...etc). We require pre op bloodwork and give fluids during every procedure (even dentals). IV fluids help keep blood pressure up.

The pre op bloodwork can tell a lot of things. Our "normal" blood panel consists of a CBC, IOF, and Diff. The diff is a blood cell differential. We smear a drop of blood on a slide and manually count the platelets and types of white blood cells. It can be inferred from here that we would see potential signs of blood related disorders (immuno, clotting, etc). We also run an immediate CBC, complete blood cell count, with a machine. The read out is similar, but more extensive. This shows everything from hematocrit (which would show if a dog needed a blood transfusion) to the break down of white blood cells, red blood cells, and some others. The final, an IOF, is an internal organ function screen. That is the big one for showing issues with livers, kidneys, and other major organs. This can show sympoms of things like Addisions/Cushings, Diabetes, simple clinical dehydration, liver shunts (a huge issue for puppies going under the first time...tends to be little white fluffy dogs or chis, and liver shunt dogs need very diff anesthetic procedures), and other abnormalities.

dieselsmom wrote: (Yes, we do try to prevent the poop eating as much as possible - however the girl likes to poop in her bed at night so she can have a snack!)

Sorry Rachel - this is hysterical!

Renee wrote:

dieselsmom wrote: (Yes, we do try to prevent the poop eating as much as possible - however the girl likes to poop in her bed at night so she can have a snack!)

Sorry Rachel - this is hysterical!

Renee, I woke up the other night and heard Grace eating - Josh rolls over and says, "She just shit and is eating it." And then he rolled over and went back to sleep. Gee, nothing gets past him, even in the middle of the night!!

dieselsmom wrote:

Renee wrote:

dieselsmom wrote: (Yes, we do try to prevent the poop eating as much as possible - however the girl likes to poop in her bed at night so she can have a snack!)

Sorry Rachel - this is hysterical!

Renee, I woke up the other night and heard Grace eating - Josh rolls over and says, "She just shit and is eating it." And then he rolled over and went back to sleep. Gee, nothing gets past him, even in the middle of the night!!

Well, at least he was able to get back to sleep! lol

So, I'm sure you've tried everything...diapers...so she can't get it once it comes out?

We've never tried diapers but I can't imagine that would work - you see Grace eats everything. I'd imagine we'd wake up to her eating the diaper if we diapered her. But it's not every night that she poops in her bed. I do make it a point to take her out with me once or twice through the night when I'm up with Kayla. But it's just Grace to keep me guessing as to when she might decide to have a poop snack.

Donna wrote:Vivian is only six, that seems young to me, is it?

Not necessarily. Wally has bad teeth, and had his first dental at 2 and lost all sorts of teeth; it hasn't slowed him down at all! He had dental #2 this summer at age 5 when he was under having some bumps removed. He lost 2 more teeth during that one.

Emmet, on the other hand, just had his first dental this month (8.5 years old) while he was under having some bumps removed. He had no extractions!

My vet typically does blood work for surgery if the dog is over 6, but we did it for Wally this summer, just because we hadn't done it in awhile, and he knows I'm willing pay the extra $ to be safe.

If your vet knows pugs and their anesthesia needs, try not to be too worried. Just like humans, it's good to have the teeth maintained, as other diseases can creep in if there is a problem in the teeth / gums.

Sorry Rachel - this is hysterical! [/quote]

Renee, I woke up the other night and heard Grace eating - Josh rolls over and says, "She just shit and is eating it." And then he rolled over and went back to sleep. Gee, nothing gets past him, even in the middle of the night!![/quote]

Yes that make me chuckle in a ewww kinda way.
I walked in to our living room the other day, saw poop on the floor, looked at my husband sitting in his chair and siad do you know there is poop on the floor, he just shrugged and said what else is new and did nothing about picking it up......men.......

Thanks for all the great advice, I will call my vet today and ask a few questions then maybe do it now instead of waiting.
Gert will go first, the rescue will pay for her then I iwll have Viv done.

The only thing I would add is consider X rays prior to having the dental done. Pugs often will have teeth that look fine, but the roots are over crowded, dying and possibly infected. There's nothing you can really do to prevent problems other than removing the teeth (that I know of), but it could prevent you from having a dental done, and then having more teeth that need to come out within a few months.

Rudy's 11 and has never needed a dental, but Kittie and Willy who are 9 have already had several, so it just depends.

Zoe's had 2 dentals. one last year, at 5, and one this year. it's like getting a teeth cleaning, should do it once a year. both times I had them do bloodwork ahead of time. we've been lucky so far with no extractions, but some of her teeth fall out on their own. she's got a big space on her bottom row from 2 that fell out right next to each other. poor girl.

Winston has had 2 dentals done. Once around 2 and the other one around 4 1/2. He's 5 1/2 now and from the smell of the dragon breath, he needs another one. He's just got really bad teeth and very badly spaced as well. Due to his neurological conditions, he needs special protocol for the anesthesia, but he's come through with flying colors both times. And he had 6 teeth removed the first and 5 the second one. We were sent home with antibiotics and pain relief both times. I don't think 6 is too young for having a dental.