The reason for both of these begins with plaque! Your pets don't brush their teeth on a daily basis like we do so they are not mechanically removing the plaque from their teeth like we do.
Sure many dogs and cats eat dry food but most dry foods crumble when chewed, cleaning the tips of the teeth but leaving the rest of the tooth covered in plaque.
Plaque accumulation then leads to tartar which is hard, full of bacteria and dangerous to teeth. The reason most people don't believe tartar is a problem is that; 1) we rarely get tartar accumulation because we brush our teeth twice a day and 2) tartar is unlikely to stop your pet from eating.
So if we brush our teeth twice a day and go to the dentist for a teeth scale and polish every 6 to 12 months then why should our pets be any different?
I can hear you screaming from here - "He's kidding if he thinks I am going to brush my cat's teeth!" Well I can't blame you! Not many people do and not many pets will let you do it if you haven't been brushing their teeth from a young age.
So then the answer must be to get your pooches teeth cleaned with a scale and polish every 6 to 12 months!
Now I can hear you groan - "That's going to cost a fortune!"
My answer is NOT ANY MORE!!!
Here is the kicker. We have decided to be proactive and offer preventative dentistry for pets rather than waiting for the teeth to be bad enough to warrant an expensive dental.
Why preventative? And when?
Firstly your pet's teeth need to be graded in order to determine the extent of the problem.
Grade 0 means perfect teeth! Unfortunately there aren't many pets out there with Grade 0 teeth.
Grade 1 means mild plaque & tartar with mild gingivitis (gum reddening) like these teeth...
Grade 2 means moderate plaque & tartar with moderate gingivitis like this dog's teeth...
Now luckily for everyone involved Grades 1 & 2 are both reversible! There is no permanent damage if the pet's teeth are cleaned at these stages but as soon as we progress to Grade 3 there is permanent irreversible damage to the teeth and the tooth (or teeth) may need to be extracted.
Here is an image of what happens in a Grade 3 tooth...
OUCH!!!As you can imagine Grade 4 is worse still!!! Grade 4 mouths will require multiple teeth to be extracted to relieve the dog or cat of chronic tooth pain.
So, from today we are offering significant cost reductions on Grade 1 and Grade 2 dentals - around 50% off!!
Why you ask? Preventative dentistry is good for your pets!
Here is a table of the relative costs of preventative dentistry (Grades 1 & 2) versus reactive dentistry (Grades 3 & 4) which often requires tooth extractions and oral surgery.
Grade 1 | Grade 2 | Grade 3 | Grade 4 | |
Cat | $175 | $225 | $450+ | $550+ |
Dog | $225 | $275 | $550+ | $650+ |
Now if that isn't an incentive to get your pooch or kitty's teeth cleaned on a regular basis I don't know what is!!!
