How much do you pay for your dog's teeth cleaning?

[Huntertwo]

I had one of my cats teeth cleaned on Monday and it came to $375.00. They also had to pull two infected molars, but didn’t appear to be on the invoice. Maybe included in the cleaning fee???

This also included Rabies vacc. , Clavamox. and pre-surgical blood work.

[allintexas]

I guess I’m getting ripped off, because it seems liks mine are 500-600 every time!

[nevertoolate]

I guess I’m lucky! Just had my 13 y/o lab-beagle mix at the vets last month. Vet tech raved about her teeth - said they were the best he’s ever seen for a dog her age, and we should breed her for her teeth!! :lol::lol:

[JER]

[QUOTE=Wayside;5727045]
I should mention that our Collie was most emphatically not a chewer. No interest in any kind of rawhide or bones, and he would get horrible diarrhea anytime he ate anything other than his regular dog food, or a few limited types of treats. So the rawhide/bone/dental chew approach was really not an option for him. Perhaps for that reason, he had really bad teeth, and dentals were a necessity for him. [/QUOTE]

Your collie didn’t have bad teeth, he had collie teeth. They’re very prone to mouth issues.

[Wayside]

[QUOTE=JER;5735262]
Your collie didn’t have bad teeth, he had collie teeth. They’re very prone to mouth issues.[/QUOTE]

Interesting, I hadn’t heard that before, but it was definitely true of Jet. He had kind of a rough start to life, so I’d always sort of assumed that was the main contributing factor, but it could easily have been genetics. Or both.

He was a great dog, though, so it was well worth springing for the extra dentals.

In any case, while the chewing may be great for dental health, for some dogs it just isn’t enough. Or you can’t convince them to try it :lol:

It’s funny though, after having Jet, I’m always amazed when I take Tessa the wonder mutt (Lab/Schnauzer) to the vet and she doesn’t need her teeth done :lol:

[mjmvet]

I would say 3-600 is typical. Most of the cost involves critical care monitoring, (BP, EKG, Pulse ox, apnea alert, CO2 level) anesthesia, IV catheter/IV fluid administration, a designated technician/nurse monitoring vital signs, hospitalization, preanesthetic blood testing, and a designated nurse monitoring recovery. $85 dollars wouldn’t even cover the COST of the medications needed (including inhalant gas through an endotracheal tube). There are additional fees for extractions based on how much time they take, if a gum surgery is needed to remove them etc. Then there are post op medications , typically antibiotics and antiinflammatories if extractions were needed. Intraoral radiographs are essential for diagnosing dental problems. If your veterinarian doesn’t have them, find someone who does.

This is truly a case of ‘you get what you pay for’. I have heard of people doing dental cleanings with injectable only anesthesia (no endotracheal tube). You should ask if your vet does this (especially the ones charging $85) because it puts your pets life at risk. I have heard of people not using IV catheters - which would jeopardize the pets life as well, should anything happen during the procedure that required emergency medications or fluids.

Ask a LOT of questions, and satisfy yourself with the answers before having your pet treated. If your vet doesn’t use one of the procedures above, ask why. I would be very wary of anyplace that was charging less than $300, and I wouldn’t have my pet treated there. There are veterinary dental specialists - maybe you could talk to one in your area, and ask what general practitioner they would recommend for routing cleanings. (or ask what the specialist charges for the same)

Then do whatever you can with homecare to try to prevent the need for frequent cleanings. “Healthy Mouth” water additive has the veterinary dental seal of approval, meaning tests were done that showed benefit. Brushing is great, if you can do it. Bones are ok, but some dogs do break their teeth on them. Genetics play a huge role too, so some of it really is out of your hands.

Good luck!

[Foxtrot_s]

We had two greyhounds - same age, same diet. One had an excellent mouth, the other had a putrid mouth a few weeks after each cleaning. Eventually they all came out and she was never healthier.