[Britster]

Glad the vet visit went well!!

Originally Posted by SirTeddykins

The vet confirmed that dental sticks were good for entertainment, as dogs have an inherent need to chew, but dental sticks and/or brushing do not assist with dental care. In fact, brushing is an “ineffectual waste of time” for small breeds, and Yorkshire Terriers (YTs) in particular, due to the size of their mouths and the resultant alignment of their teeth. Therefore, the vet recommended that Teddy have his teeth professionally cleaned in the office under gas and local anesthetic.

Jackson's very well experienced veterinary dentist would highly disagree with this. Brushing is not a waste of time if you are doing it every day and correctly. It would be a waste of time if... say, you are brushing the teeth only once every 15 days. At that point, it seems it would be pretty pointless. Yes professional dental cleanings under anesthesia are important but if you can prevent other issues in between and lengthen the amount of time between professional cleanings- why would you not?

Booster-

Upon gemy’s advice (thank you x), I queried the necessity of the

Leptospirosis injection. He advised that the bacteria is rare but this is due to the efficacy of the vaccination. He confirmed that the incident rate and chance of infection is extremely low but still recommended the vaccination as per the current medical standard. He is very much an advocate of preventative vaccinations. The

Leptospirosis vaccination was included in the Parvo booster and the brand of the booster is Vanguard.

I am also not against preventative vaccines, but I would be sure this vet is not giving yearly vaccinations. Lepto is definitely something that should be dependent on individual dog and location. I find there to be more cons than pros personally, but understand why some give it. Jackson nearly died from lepto vaccine and a lot of small dogs have terrible reactions to it, so I likely won't ever get it again for another dog.

Microchipping-

Due to Teddy’s size, coloring, breed, etc. he would recommend chipping. He advised that YT theft is on the rise in England as a dog of Teddy’s standard (which is not show standard) is worth about 5000 Euros in Spain and other parts of Europe. He did advise that chipping would be extremely painful for Teddy due to the size of the injection which is needed as a result of the size of the chip. He did not recommend that we chip him on the day of the visit simply because Teddy was very quiet during the visit and the vet advised that his behavior suggested that Teddy had “gone beyond fear”. So, he felt that he’d had enough exposure to the vet’s office (including the booster) for one day and we will schedule chipping for another day soon.

Never heard of microchipping being any more painful than a vaccine.