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Dental cleaning next wk for toy poodle

9K views 43 replies 16 participants last post by  fjm 
I second all that has been said - get her teeth sorted, including any extractions needed, then as soon as your vet gives the all clear start brushing very regularly. Build up slowly, so it is something she accepts easily - at the moment her mouth will be sore, but once it has healed she will be much more comfortable. Sophy in particular disliked the feel of the brush, and it took several months to get from a touch to several dozen strokes. For one reason and another her teeth had got caked with tartar, but I still kept brushing regularly, and when she went in for a dental at a similar age to your dog - only the second of her life - the vet was surprised to find the teeth and gums completely healthy underneath the gunk, which he reckoned was largely due to the daily brushing. Poppy has never needed a dental - brushing alone has been enough for her, but she has better spaced teeth in a longer jaw.
 
Another personal tale here - I put off having a tiny gum boil attended to for a year or more - it didn't hurt, and the recommended treatment was an implant, so it took me a very long time to psych myself up for it! After the first op in a long series the infection began to clear and a week or two later I noticed that lots of niggly little aches and pains went with it. If she has any infection she is going to feel SO much better afterwards, and if there is no infection there will be no extractions and you will feel much better, so one or other or both of you win. And as others have said infected teeth can be very dangerous for general health.

Having said all that I cleaned my whole house when Sophy was in for a dental - I had to do something to distract myself from the anxiety!
 
Ouch - she must have been so uncomfortable. You were absolutely right to get them sorted, and I suspect you will be surprised at how much better she is once the gums have healed.
 
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