[Kerryn915]

My older yorkie is 13 years old and weighs about 9.5 lbs. It seems his teeth are bothering him as he is not able to enjoy his treats like he used to. I feed him wellness core grain free kibble for small dogs in the morning and he gets a little boiled chicken and sweet potato in the evening. I've noticed that some mornings he won't eat the dry food even though he seems interested at first. Im taking him for a check up today to see if he needs to have some teeth extracted which is concerning bc he is older. The vet does do blood work prior to any procedure to make sure his heart and other organs are functioning well enough to handle anesthesia. Besides the teeth issue he is in perfect health and still enjoys his daily walks. Has anyone dealt with teeth issues at this older age? I do regret not having his teeth cleaned when he was younger but we didn't know much about how progressive periodontal disease can be in yorkies. Is it safe? Also his last rabies vaccine was a little over 3 years ago and he had an awful reaction to it. He was panting for 3 days as though he couldn't breathe. So I am concerned giving it to him now that he's older and not in perfect health with his teeth issues. Any advice??