Dental Care for Your Pet
At Portland Vets, we recognise the importance of dental care for pets. Our aim is to educate owners on the importance of oral health and how they can help their pet at home.
At routine health checks and vaccination appointments, our vets will assess whether your pet needs extra dental treatment to make them comfortable. Our nursing clinics can also be used to check your pet’s oral health.
We also offer surgical tooth extraction and nerve block LA.
Following your pet’s dental examination, we have the facilities and equipment at our Edenbridge clinic to carry out a comprehensive scaling and polishing and also perform any extractions if required. These treatments are carried out under general anaesthesia for your pet’s comfort and our team will happily answer any questions you may have regarding the dental procedure.
Read our dental handout for more information about the dental procedures we perform and the costs involved.
Dogs & Cats
Both dogs and cats would benefit from regular tooth brushing at home, something our nursing team can advise and demonstrate for you. Each of our clinics sell a ‘dental pack’ including a pet toothbrush, finger brushes for sensitive gums and beef flavour enzymatic toothpaste, for £8.91. If you would like to purchase a pack then contact our reception team who will be happy to help.
Rabbits & Small Furries
Rabbits and guinea pigs’ teeth are slightly different to other pets because they do not stop growing as they get older. As well as routine health checks to examine incisor length and molar quality, our team also recommend chew blocks and roughage in your rabbit’s diet to help them grind their teeth down. Contact our nursing team for more advice or book your pet in for one of our nurse clinics to have them examined by one of our experienced veterinary nurses.
Dental problems in rabbits and small furries can become an emergency problem very quickly if their appetite and ability to eat becomes affected.
Normal Incisors VS Overgrown Incisors
More about dental problems & procedures for rabbits & guinea pigs
As rabbit and guinea pigs’ teeth continuously grow throughout life, if their teeth are growing at abnormal angles problems can recur multiple times.
Rabbits & guinea pigs keep their teeth in shape and at the correct level by grinding on grass and hay.
If the teeth are not aligned correctly or if there is little opportunity to grind, the teeth become deformed. The teeth form sharp spurs which then start cutting into the mouth and tongue causing ulcers and infection. This then leads to difficulty eating and severe digestive problems that may be fatal.
Indications of this problem are poor appetite, weight loss, salivation/dribbling, abscesses around the jaw/face, eye infections and matted droppings around the hindquarters.
What does dental treatment in rabbits involve?
Your vet will have recommended dental treatment if, on examination, your rabbit has overgrown incisors (front teeth) or has sharp spurs or abnormal growth of the back (cheek) teeth, that are causing your rabbit discomfort, or stopping them from eating due to pain.
Dental treatment for your rabbit requires a general anaesthetic in order to fully assess their mouth. As rabbits have sensitive guts we always give our rabbit patient’s medications which support healthy gut movement before, during and after any anaesthetic. We always recommend performing dental x-rays in order to assess what is going on below the gum line, to check for any dental abscesses and to assess the tooth roots. After performing the x-rays we then burr down any sharp edges or shorten overgrown incisors, depending on what is required.
