An intital assessment is needed to evalutate the teeth, and get a general idea of the level of periodontal disease. This is done during an office visit while the pet is awake.  If a dental cleaning is recommended, the next step would be to draw pre-anesthetic lab work to look for any diseases of the liver, kidney, etc. before placing your pet under anesthesia.

Once it is determined that your pet is a dental candidate, the dental cleaning consists of:

• Placing your pet under general anesthesia and performing a complete oral examination. Your pet is monitored by a technician throughout the entire procedure.
• Depending on the level of dental disease, dental radiographs may be warranted to get a better idea of what's going on beneath the gumline.
• Tartar and calculus will first be removed, then a technician will check the teeth for any abnormalities. Sometimes, after the tartar and calculus is removed, additional problems my be revealed that could not be seen prior to cleaning.
• Any teeth that appear abnormal will be noted and brought to the doctor's attention. The doctor will then examine the teeth in question, and properly address any problem areas.
• A final polishing will be performed on the remaining teeth that are now free of plaque and calculus.
• Your pet will then be woken up from anethesia by a technician.
• Your pet may be sent home with antibiotics and/or pain meds depending on your pet's needs.