February 11, 2013 Dentistry

Brush Up on Your Bicuspids: A Dog and Cat Tooth Tour

Brush Up on Your Bicuspids: A Dog and Cat Tooth Tour

February is National Pet Dental Health Month. According to the American Veterinary Dental College, your pet needs daily toothbrushing and annual dental cleanings to keep their pearly whites white. Just like your visit to the dentist, where x-rays are taken to find periodontal disease or tooth abscesses, x-rays are a critical component of an annual dental cleaning for your dog or cat. Since most pet owners don’t get a chance to see their pet’s dental x-rays, I thought I would show you some from The Animal Medical Center.

Above, you see Spanky the cat’s six normal front teeth (incisors) flanked by his big fangs, also called canine teeth, even though he is a cat. Based on x-rays, the rest of Spanky’s teeth were normal and he did not have to have any teeth extracted during his annual dental cleaning.

In this x-ray you see one of Rhett Butler’s big molars. Both roots are surrounded by a dark area, instead of normal white bone. The dark area represents a periapical tooth root abscess which was the cause of his reluctance to eat and his swollen face. Once the tooth was extracted and he was treated with antibiotics, he recovered quickly.

Here you see dental x-rays of the right jaw of two different cats – Spanky on the left and Willie on the right. At first glance, the two look the same. If you look closely you will notice the third tooth in Willie’s x-ray appears moth eaten, especially on the left side of the tooth. The appearance is characteristic of a feline odontoclastic resorptive lesion (FORLS) or root resorption. Teeth with root resorptions need to be extracted as they can be painful and are prone to fracturing. The American Veterinary Dental College recommends cats affected by FORLS should be evaluated twice annually to detect and treat these lesions early.

Despite daily tooth brushing by her owner, Pippa has developed periodontal disease. You can see a pocket of bone loss around the two adjoining teeth. Both teeth had to be extracted during her annual dental cleaning.

Since I shared pictures of pets’ pearly whites, you might want to share yours!
On Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/groups/pearlywhitepets
On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/121936134646100/
On Twitter: Use the hashtag #pearlywhitepets

Tags: animal medical center, ann hohenhaus, bicuspid, canine, cat, cats, dental, dentist, dogs, national pet dental health month, pet health, pets, toothbrushing, veterinarian, veterinary,

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