[pstinard]

Bella is in for her dental today, and the vet called a few minutes ago with bad news. Bella has several extractions, but the most complicated one is her first molars. Bella's first molar roots go down to within a few millimeters of the bottom of her jaw line, and then they hook back upwards. To remove them would risk breaking her jaw and leaving her jaw in a permanently weak state that would risk future breakage. Bella will get a referral to the dental department at the University of Illinois Veterinary Hospital where the procedure can be performed more carefully by specialists, and the missing teeth can be replaced with artificial bone tissue that will strengthen her jaw. In the meantime, the vet will remove the other teeth than can be easily removed, and Bella will need to heal for 4 to 6 weeks before her University of Illinois appointment. The vet reassured me that the University of Illinois veterinary dentistry department is one of the best in the country. I still feel bad for poor Bella, because the vet said that she will still be in pain until she gets the other molars removed.