Dentals

Before your pet has a dental, they are examined to assess their overall health. Any pet five years of age or older must have pre-anesthetic bloodwork performed before a dental. This is done to help ensure that they are healthy enough for anesthesia. The pre-anesthetic bloodwork can detect if a pet is anemic, has an infection, or has any liver or kidney problems.

While your pet is anestitized during a dental, they are monitored very closely. We are able to monitor their heart rate, breathing, pulse, ekg, and the oxygenation level of their blood. Some pets may be given extra fluids to help keep them hydrated during anesthesia. We place an IV catheter in all pets which is used to easily give any needed drugs or fluids during anesthesia.

In a dental, the teeth are cleaned using a dental scaler. The scaler thoroughly removes all the plaque and tarter from the teeth. The scaler is also able to clean the area between the tooth and the gum where plaque likes to hide.

Any teeth that are loose or infected are removed during a dental. An infected tooth often causes pain, and most often the only way to clear the infection completely is to remove the tooth. A loose tooth is a sign that the tooth and the gum surrounding the tooth is unhealthy. If not removed the loose tooth can cause further problems such as pain, infection, and additional damage to the tissue surrounding the tooth. Sometimes owners are surprised when their pet has several teeth removed during a dental. In reality, a dog or a cat with just a few healthy teeth can eat their food easier and have less harmful bacteria in their mouths than a dog or cat with a mouth full of unhealthy teeth.

After a dental, the pet usually goes home that same day with oral pain medication, and antibiotics if needed. Most pets do very well after a dental, and have no problem eating their normal dinner that evening.

A healthy smile equals a healthy pet

We all know how it important it is to take good care of our teeth, we are constantly preached to brush twice a day, floss daily and visit the dentist regularly. What most of us dont know is that taking care of our pet's teeth is just as important. About three quarters of dogs (especially small dogs) and cats show signs of oral disease by 3 years of age. The signs of oral disease include persistant bad breath, tarter buildup along the gum line, and red, inflamed gums.

Oral disease begins when bacteria combines with food and saliva in the area between the tooth and the gum leading to plaque development. The plaque combines with more bacteria and calcium deposits leading to the buildup of tarter. The plaque and tarter create an ideal environment for continued bacterial growth. The bacteria and bacterial by-products lead to the damage of the perdiodontal tissue that provides structure and support to the teeth. Then the immune system attacks the bacteria, but this only causes more inflammation and damage. Eventually periodontal disease develops which causes bad breath, pain, red and swollen gums, bleeding and recessed gums. This then leads to loose teeth. But it doesnt stop there, the inflammed gums allow bacteria to enter the bloodstream. The bacteria then travel and infect other organs such as the heart, liver and kidneys. This is why a healthy mouth can help your pet have a healthier, longer life.

You can help prevent oral disease in your pet by taking your pet to the vet for annual check-ups which include a dental exam. You can also help prevent oral disease by brushing your pet's teeth routinely. If you are concerned that your pet may already have oral disease, make an appointment with us to have your pet's mouth examined. This is especially important if your pet is showing signs of oral disease such as bad breath, changes in eating or chewing habits, or pawing at their mouth. We may reccommend a dental prodecure to clean the teeth and remove all the plaque and tarter. Below is a picture of Bat, our clinic dog, showing off his "smile".

Chihuahua with a contact lens

We had an older chihuahua mix come in that had an ulcer on his eye. An ulcer is a scratch on the surface of the eye, also known as the cornea. We originally treated the eye with an antibiotic ointment to help prevent infection and to moisturize the eye to allow it to heal. The ulcer did respond to treatment at first, but then the ulcer on the eye stopped healing and the scratch on the eye actually became deeper. Sometimes if an ulcer does not heal, you can actually take tissue from underneath the eyelid and sew it onto the eye to cover and help heal the scratch. However, since this dog was a little older and had a few other health problems, we decided to look into alternative methods to treat the ulcer that did not involve surgery. We did some research and found that you can place a contact on the eye to cover and protect the eye to help it heal. So that is what we decided to do in this case. We actually used a human contact and placed it on the dogs eye. Below is a picture of Dr. Cowan preparing to put the contact in the eye. Unfortunately, the contact did not help the eye to heal completely. But we did learn a lot from the case, and hopefully can try this method again in the future. We thank Dr. Kevin Walker for providing us with the contact lens. 

Sick little guinea pig

We had a guinea pig that came in because it was congested and had a decreased appetite. The guinea pig was about a year old and had not any previous healthy problems. We examined the guinea pig and found that it was slightly underweight, and we also heard some abnormal sounds when we listened to its lungs. We then took an x-ray of the guinea pig. The x-ray showed a lot of fluid and inflammation in the lungs, indicating a respiratory infection. We treated the guinea pig by first giving it fluids to help rehydrate it and make it feel better. Then the guinea pig was started on two medications. One of the medications, lasix, is a diuretic and was used to help get the fluid out of the lungs to help the guinea pig breathe better. The other medication was Baytril, an antibiotic that was used to clear the infection. Both of these medications came in tablet form so they had to be crushed and mixed with water in order to be given to the guinea pig. We sent the guinea pig home with instructions for the owner to continue the medications for a week. The guinea pig is now doing much better.

Blue Heron

Last Thursday, we had the opportunity to work with a blue heron. The heron was found in a cold creek, and appeared very weak. It did not fly away when approached like a normal, healthy heron. The people that found the heron were able to use a towel to catch it and bring it in to us. While we worked with the heron, we had to make sure we had control of its beak at all times. Even a weak, injured heron could strike at us with its long beak. When we examined the heron, it was weak and underweight, but we did not find any injury or cause of the problem. Our next step was to do an x-ray of the bird. The x-ray showed some abnormalities in the lungs and air sacs (extensions of the lungs present in birds). We came to the conclusion that the heron most likely had a respiratory infection. We gave the bird an antibiotic shot and some fluids. The fluids were given underneath the skin (SQ fluids), just like fluids are often given in dogs and cats. The next day, the heron appeared more lively, so we sent the heron to a bird rehabber. There are two pictures of the heron below. The first picture is when we first examined the bird, and the second picture is from the next day when the heron was doing better. We will post any updates from the rehabber on how the blue heron is doing.

Winter weather!!!

We have already had our second occurence of icy, snowy weather. I just wanted to go over a few things to remember on wintry days like today. Keep your pets indoors if at all possible to help them stay warm. If they are outside, keep them in a safe, confined area with access to shelter where they can go to stay warm and dry. Do now allow them to run loose. When there is inclement weather, pets are more likely to get injured or even lost. Dogs have more difficulty finding their scent in winter weather making them more likely to get lost. Be careful of the salt used to melt snow and ice. It can be harmful if your pets licks or ingests the salt. It is always beneficial to check your pet's feet for any cuts after being outside in snow and ice, and to wipe off any snow or salt that they may have collected on their feet. It you have any concerns about your pet in this winter weather or are interested in boarding your pet here during winter weather please give us a call.

Christmas Parade!

We hope you will join us for the Walnut Cove Christmas parade on Saturday, December 11th at 2pm.  Dr. Cowan will be driving her VW van, and Bat, our clinic dog, will be riding in the van to help navigate down the parade route. Many of the staff members will be walking their own dogs, ranging from a little chihuahua, to a standard poodle to a 120+ pound german shepherd mix. Starting around 10am the morning of the parade, we will have a booth set up at the town house (located across from the Walnut Cove fire department, next to CVS). Dr. Slivka and some of the staff will be at the booth availiable to answer any questions you may about veterinary medicine. We will also be selling raffle tickets for two pet gift baskets worth over $250 dollars each. The baskets contains items ranging from a free exam, to free boarding for two nights, to a scroll saw fretwork picture of a dog and cat. Raffle tickets are $1 each, and the drawing will be held at the end of the month. We hope to see you there!