Imagine how your teeth would look and feel if you didn’t brush them daily. The same applies to your pets’ teeth. Bad breath and stained teeth are unappealing, but many pet owners aren’t aware that these may be symptoms of serious gum disease. Unless you are regularly providing some form of dental care for your pet, you are neglecting an important factor in their overall health. 

Dental care can be performed under general anaesthesia at a vet clinic, but as with all general anaesthesia procedures there are risks involved. This extends particularly to aged dogs or dogs that have other health issues. 

Our anaesthesia-free dental care service is suitable for dogs with tartar-encrusted teeth who exhibit any of the following:

- ​Poor kidney and/or liver function (detected with a blood test)

- Congenital heart defects (including murmurs), impaired heart function (such as congestive heart failure) or arrhythmia

- A recent injury or infection of any kind (even skin infections, including “hot spots,” are good cause to delay scheduling any procedure that requires anaesthesia)

- A history of seizures (some preanesthetic sedatives can lower the seizure threshold)

If your dog has one of the conditions listed here, or another health problem that concerns your vet, he may be a good candidate for anaesthesia-free dental care. But you should understand that the procedure is not a walk in the park; it can be hard on the dog, and the cleaning is necessarily less thorough than one conducted with the dog asleep.

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