Elderly dogs teeth
Discussion
Hello all, looking for some sound advice please. My Black lab is the wrong side of 12 now but still very fit and active. One thing I'm concerned about though is her teeth. She is quite smelly to put it politely and i have noticed that she is eating much slower and only on one side of her mouth.
Now the question is, do we risk having her sedated at her age to have her teeth looked at or are there other options. Although a decent age, she is still fit and active, something I think comes from her being bread from working dogs.
Any advice or experience greatly recieced.
Ben
Now the question is, do we risk having her sedated at her age to have her teeth looked at or are there other options. Although a decent age, she is still fit and active, something I think comes from her being bread from working dogs.
Any advice or experience greatly recieced.
Ben
Our staffie had some teeth out because they were so worn that their nerves were exposed. Like you I was concerned about the risk of sedation, having known of several people who died on the operating table. When I raised this, the vet assured me that an otherwise healthy dog was at little risk being under anesthetic.
It looks as though we may have to go though the process again though, as he is still reluctant to eat and the vet is advising some more teeth come out.
It looks as though we may have to go though the process again though, as he is still reluctant to eat and the vet is advising some more teeth come out.
Had similar with our lab. He was about 10 years old, but from working lines and in very good health at the time. He went under and ended up with 3 or 4 teeth removed, plus a proper clean and it made a big difference.
He was also sedated a year later to have a growth removed from his anal gland and bounced back quickly from that as well.
He was also sedated a year later to have a growth removed from his anal gland and bounced back quickly from that as well.
GliderRider said:
Our staffie had some teeth out because they were so worn that their nerves were exposed. Like you I was concerned about the risk of sedation, having known of several people who died on the operating table. When I raised this, the vet assured me that an otherwise healthy dog was at little risk being under anesthetic.
It looks as though we may have to go though the process again though, as he is still reluctant to eat and the vet is advising some more teeth come out.
Are you sure it's his teeth that are causing him an issue and making him reluctant to eat?It looks as though we may have to go though the process again though, as he is still reluctant to eat and the vet is advising some more teeth come out.
We've had several dogs over the years who's teeth have got so worn down the nerves are exposed but it's never seemed to cause them any discomfort and the vets have never raised it as an issue, in fact at his last check up the vet commented what excellent condition our 13 year old Retrievers teeth are in despite all the nerves being exposed.
I was under the impression that even when the nerves become exposed the nerve endings just die off?
mike74 said:
GliderRider said:
Our staffie had some teeth out because they were so worn that their nerves were exposed. Like you I was concerned about the risk of sedation, having known of several people who died on the operating table. When I raised this, the vet assured me that an otherwise healthy dog was at little risk being under anesthetic.
It looks as though we may have to go though the process again though, as he is still reluctant to eat and the vet is advising some more teeth come out.
Are you sure it's his teeth that are causing him an issue and making him reluctant to eat?It looks as though we may have to go though the process again though, as he is still reluctant to eat and the vet is advising some more teeth come out.
We've had several dogs over the years who's teeth have got so worn down the nerves are exposed but it's never seemed to cause them any discomfort and the vets have never raised it as an issue, in fact at his last check up the vet commented what excellent condition our 13 year old Retrievers teeth are in despite all the nerves being exposed.
I was under the impression that even when the nerves become exposed the nerve endings just die off?
His breath does smell a bit sometimes, and it appears something might be causing him pain. When he's resting, at times he shudders with every breath, plus he has joint and spine problems when walking. He falls over quite often when walking or turning around, yet he still wants to go out for walks three or four times a day. I walk him off the lead, go at his pace and let him decide when he's had enough. If he stops or falls, I carry him for a bit, although he's soon wriggling to be put on the ground so he can carry on sniffing things.
The vet did a blood test on him when he was there last, a few weeks ago, for a check over. That came back all clear, although they said if he does go in for more teeth out and is anesthetized, they would like to X-ray him to see if there are any internal problems.
All the time that he still wants to go out for walks, sniff around and meet other dogs, I feel he has some quality of life.
GliderRider said:
No, I'm not sure. Our Staffie is also 13 and he's funny about food. Some days he will eat tinned dog food, but on others he will only eat sausages or mince that my girlfriend cooks for him. This isn't ideal as I'm pretty sure the sausages have a lot more salt in them than he should really be having.
His breath does smell a bit sometimes, and it appears something might be causing him pain. When he's resting, at times he shudders with every breath, plus he has joint and spine problems when walking. He falls over quite often when walking or turning around, yet he still wants to go out for walks three or four times a day. I walk him off the lead, go at his pace and let him decide when he's had enough. If he stops or falls, I carry him for a bit, although he's soon wriggling to be put on the ground so he can carry on sniffing things.
The vet did a blood test on him when he was there last, a few weeks ago, for a check over. That came back all clear, although they said if he does go in for more teeth out and is anesthetized, they would like to X-ray him to see if there are any internal problems.
All the time that he still wants to go out for walks, sniff around and meet other dogs, I feel he has some quality of life.
His breath does smell a bit sometimes, and it appears something might be causing him pain. When he's resting, at times he shudders with every breath, plus he has joint and spine problems when walking. He falls over quite often when walking or turning around, yet he still wants to go out for walks three or four times a day. I walk him off the lead, go at his pace and let him decide when he's had enough. If he stops or falls, I carry him for a bit, although he's soon wriggling to be put on the ground so he can carry on sniffing things.
The vet did a blood test on him when he was there last, a few weeks ago, for a check over. That came back all clear, although they said if he does go in for more teeth out and is anesthetized, they would like to X-ray him to see if there are any internal problems.
All the time that he still wants to go out for walks, sniff around and meet other dogs, I feel he has some quality of life.
In my experience most dogs get more fussy and finicky about what they will or won't eat the older they get without anything actually being wrong with them, no different to a stubborn cantankerous pensioner really!
Yours sounds to be at a very similar stage to our 13 year old Retriever who also still enjoys 3 gentle strolls a day, a couple of things for the joint issues I'd recommend are Green Lipped Mussel supplements and we also use a neoprene ankle brace for his back left leg which is particularly weak, it seems to work well at supporting and stabilising the joint when he's on a walk.
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