Hi everyone.. My first post here on the forum. Unfortunately my little doggie has some dental work that needs to be done. My little one is about 8-8.5 pounds, and she's just over 12 years old, so I've been scared to death about this for quite some time. She was never neutered and has had no reason for anesthesia before, so I have no idea how she will react. We've been at our current vet for almost 2 years (just moved clear across town a couple of years ago, so driving to our usual vet wasn't a very good option), but we only see them once or twice a year for shots, so I'm not very familiar with them. She's needed the cleaning for a while (first recommended by our vet about a year and half ago, but she had teeth fall out almost three years ago), but up till now it was never my call to make (I'm a college student, so it was hard to demand for my parents to pay for a $400 elective procedure). I have all the details of the procedure from the vet clinic's website.
--------------------
Routine Dental Cleaning Package includes:
Before Dental Exam and Cleaning
In-house Blood Testing—including Blood Chemistries and manual PCV, blood clotting time for cats and dogs and Heartworm testing (dogs only).”
IV catheter and fluids during the procedure
General Anesthesia—using Isoflorane, a commonly used gas anesthesia
Vitals monitoring—prior to and during anesthesia and at recovery
Free oral exam while your pet is under anesthesia, so we can more accurately evaluate the status of your pet’s oral health
Dental X-rays (as needed)
After Dental Exam and Cleaning
Scaling and polishing your pet’s teeth with a ultrasonic scaler and high-speed polisher
Antibiotic injection
Nursing care by our trained and caring technicians
Daytime hospitalization (Pets are admitted in the morning and typically released by mid- to late-afternoon. We close at 6pm.)
Free dental products to take home
*You can’t always see dental problems when they occur UNDER the gums. This is why Dental X-Rays are an important diagnostic tool.
* For health and safety reasons, current vaccinations and a current exam that has been done here are required.
* Extractions, additional services, or procedures than what is listed above and extra medications are NOT included in our Routine Dental Cleaning Package; thus will be an additional expense and not discounted.
Veterinary Pet Hospital - University Pet Clinic
--------------
I also noted they use Isoflorane, which I gather is preferable for yorkies. I called the vet today to ask for more details (who will be monitoring my dog, should I wait till she loses some weight, ), but they were busy and never called me back, so I will be calling again tomorrow.
I was wondering if there was anything else I should ask or be aware of? Does anyone here have any experience with overweight yorkies and dental procedures?
Also, I'm looking to switch my dog to a heathier food. She's currently eating moist and meaty, or Ol'roy moist which I read is total crap in terms of nutritional value. Any recommendations? Preferably something I can buy at walmart or petsmart, that's not terribly pricey and is soft, rather than kibble.
So sorry for the long post! Thank you in advance for any advice!