Houndstooth Pet Dental Cleaning/Non-Anesthetic

[katie_n_me]

Does anyone have any first-hand experience with this service?

I have read about it and it sounds good, but would like to hear from anyone who has used the service regarding its effectiveness. Apparently, they travel to various locations throughout the year to do the anesthesia-free dental cleanings. But are they any good?

[TLC]

I would really like to know too!

[dwerten]

my friend uses them and really likes them alot. It is for interim cleanings though so you still need to get below gum line and get xrays with toy breed dogs as they have a small bone to tooth ratio so anything below gum line can cause bacteria and thus affecting bone loss

[katie_n_me]

Houndstooth finally* responded to my e-mail request for a schedule of the upcoming clinic locations for the Northeast.

My subsequent e-mail to them requesting available schedules for other regions (if any exist) as well as inquiring as to the cost of their service, remains unanswered.* I will post upon receipt. The last link listed below mentions that the cost ranges between $150-$250; however, the article is dated 12/2007.

As stated below, “in some locations, there may be a small, one-time new patient fee.” Maybe the locations know the current fee for the procedure. Based on what I’ve read, I’d bet they charge according to the condition of the teeth and the pets behavior; I am unsure.

Here is their contact information if you’d like to contact them directly:

Houndstooth Non-Anesthetic Pet Dental Service
Dali Shafer - 818-592-0383
e-mail: HoundstoothPetDentals@yahoo.com
(*fyi, it took them over 1 week to respond to me, they are VERY slow)

In addition to their website, you can check them out here and here.
Northeast Region 2010

Thank you for contacting Houndstooth Non-Anesthetic Pet Dental Service.
Below is our 2010 list of locations for the Northeast region. Additional new locations are added regularly.
Some clinics are scheduled for multiple days, several times per year. Others are on a 6-9 month or as- needed schedule.
Please contact the host locations directly to schedule an appointment. In some locations, there may be a small, one-time new patient fee. If you are an existing Houndstooth client who has been seen within a year, please be sure to mention that to the facility. If you need assistance in scheduling an appointment or have any questions, please contact me via phone or email. We’re looking forward to seeing you soon.
The locations are:
NY

Vet at the Barn, 1070Chestnut Ridge, NY (845)-356-3838 (40 mins. north of NYC),every 3 mos . Next 4/15-17 & 4/22-24/10
Steves Pet Supplies, 168 Center St, Levittown NY( Long Island) 516-579-0258 Next 4/10,11/10
Bark Avenue, Locust Valley ( Long Island), NY (516) 277-2161 spring & fall Next 5/2,3/10
Greyhound Rescue NE/Ellen Goodman ,Tarrytown, NY (914)-592-5414 spring & fall Next 4/25/10
Critter Outfitter, 210 Pinehurst Ave. (212) 928-0342 –scheduled approx. every 3 months Next 3/5,6,7/10
Just Cats Animal Hosp, Guilderland, NY, (518)-869-5779 (Albany) scheduled as needed No date
NJ

American Animal Hospital, Randolph, NJ (973) 895-4999(20 mins west of NYC) spring, summer & fall Next 4/12-14/10
Little Silver Animal Hospital, Little Silver, NJ,(732) 842-8266 (Jersey shore), spring, summer & fall Next 4/19-21/10
Your Pet’s Pantry, Lenore Cotler-Union NJ, (908)-687-7289, spring, summer & fall 4/29/10
CT

Dr Jeff Feinman, Weston CT (203)-222-7979 ( 30 mins from NYC) 4/26,27/10
Pampered Pets, Old Saybrook, CT (860)-388-1862 spring, summer & fall
Pets Choice, Deep River CT (860)-526-5700 spring, summer & fall
Leila & Libbies, Niantic CT 860-739-3344 , spring & fall
MA

Bensdotters, Sheffield, Ma (413)-229-2277, (western MA, 1 hr from Albany NY& Hartford, CT) spring & fall
Allen Hts. Animal Hospital, Pittsfield, MA (413)-443-4949 (western MA,1 hr from Albany& Hartford, CT), spring & fall
OH

Dr. Pamela Fisher, North Canton OH (330)-266-2500, spring & fall
GarrettsvilleAnimalHospital, Garrettsville,OH( 330)-527-0722, spring & fall

PA
to be announced

[TLC]

hmmm...I may call to find out the price

[dwerten]

Here is a video of it

YouTube - K9Author's Channel

[TLC]

Originally Posted by dwerten

Here is a video of it

YouTube - K9Author's Channel

Thanks...forget it - hahahahaha

I am searching for the best place for my sister to bring her two little ones to, they are a Morkie and Silky (both 4.5 lbs).

She is a on tight budget, but they really need dental. She went to the Humane Society of NYC, they had bloodwork (all is good). And there dental is $130 (not bad). They use Isoflurane... But, it is done by a Certified Dental Tech....
The Humane Society Of New York

[kalina82]

bumping this back up. anyone else have any opinions on this non anesthesia dental cleaning?

[107barney]

I saw this link a while back and just got around to looking into this service. I am wondering if anyone has tried it? I just got done reading some bad reviews, including some persuasive comments about this amounting to unauthorized practice of veterinary medicine. I would like to hear some good things if anyone has tried it.

[DvlshAngel985]

I had a non-anesthetic dental done on Kaji a few months ago. One of the meetup groups I belong to organized a discount for us since it was a lot of dogs for one day. I was amazed how wonderful, professional, and great quality work they did at Tustana. Kaji's teeth were so white, and they did a full analysis of his mouth. They graded his gums, all of his teeth, and they did everything with no anesthesia. I am definitely going to be doing it again when Kaji needs another teeth cleaning.

[daeyeore]

Originally Posted by katie_n_me

Does anyone have any first-hand experience with this service?

I have read about it and it sounds good, but would like to hear from anyone who has used the service regarding its effectiveness. Apparently, they travel to various locations throughout the year to do the anesthesia-free dental cleanings. But are they any good?

Hi I live in NY and have used this service at least three times. The woman I dealt with was Dolly and she was very gentle with my Yorkie. I would definitely recommend them. Joanne

[107barney]

I've been advised by my veterinarians that this service is not safe or medically beneficial.

In addition, the American Veterinary Dental College has a position statement about this which states this procedure amounts to the unauthorized practice of veterinary medicine and is inappropriate.

Here is the position statement.
http://avdc.org/Dental_Scaling_Without_Anesthesia.pdf

[Britster]

Originally Posted by dwerten

Here is a video of it

YouTube - K9Author's Channel

Jackson would never allow that! LOL. Unfortunately. Because I'd be interested in non-anesthetic. Oh well.

[LDMomma]

The vet that did Roxy's spay does anesthesia free cleanings. We had Riley's done. Her teeth look wonderful. She only had a minor bit of build-up (very little) though.

[Ellie May]

I think we all have to do what we feel is right for our pups, but that decison should be made with our licensed veterinarian.

When talking about scraping teeth and assessing gums, that is something is supposed to be done under the supervision of or by a vet. It made very well turn out that this is declared illegal.

I know a vet who does this, but I also know several others who wouldn't. It's not as good as it sounds. If it was, more vets would do it. Most of them don't like anesthesia and will only use it when necessary.

This is generally considered a cosmetic procedure. The visible surfaces of the teeth will be white, but it would be too hard and too dangerous to get as close to the gums as is needed. There is risk of injury if the dog moves. A licensed professional is not assessing the mouth. Somebody is doing a medical procedure on your pups who is not qualfied to do so. It tends to be safer for a dog to be intubated during a dental.

I will risk the anesthesia even in my liver compromised dog before I would do this.


BTW, while watching a dental once, a very small dot/whole in the gums indicated that there could be something going on. A trained tech found the spot and xrays were taken. It was a problem. An abscess I think.. Probably wouldn't have gone that way if the dog wasn't at a veterinary hospital receiving care from a vet qualified to do dentistry and her staff..