Stage 4 Periodontal Disease
 

Hello everyone,

My yorkie's name is Bengie and I took him to his annual exam a couple days ago and the vet told me he has severe stage 4 dental disease :(

I feel really bad because i love my yorkie so much, he is my life and I did not mean for him to have dental disease :(

All I ever wanted was a dog, so when I was 8 my parents were getting a divorce and they decided to buy me a dog. I was so happy :):aimeeyork My parents did not know how to care for a dog and neither did I, but we learned. We feed him, walked him, vaccinated him and gave him so much love, but cleaning his teeth never really crossed my mind. My family was poor so my mother would only get the essentials done. During Bengie's annual exams I was too young to understand what the vet would speak to my mother about so I did not know Bengie's teeth were starting to get diseased.

Now that I am older, 21, and have a job to pay for Bengie's visits, I have taken responsibility for my dogs health. So this annual exam he got all his vaccines no matter what the cost (it was about $250 but it didn't matter to me bc I wanted my dog to be healthy) and I spoke to the vet instead of my mother during the exam. But then the vet viewed my dogs teeth and she told me about his severe stage 4 dental disease and how he needs a teeth cleaning bc some of his teeth need to be removed :( She gave me an estimate of $600-$1000 for the cleaning and again I will do this for my Bengie's health. But after reading stories about what happens after dental cleanings I am scared bc I do not want to lose my Bengie :(

Therefore, I am asking if ppl can tell me what to expect after a dental cleaning. Especially if they had a 13 year old yorkie with stage 4 dental disease. :aimeeyork

I am scheduling the cleaning for next weekend no matter what, but I want to know what I will expect after the cleaning and if anyone has information for me. Anything will help. I am very thankful for any responses I get. :animal-pa

Hi and WELCOME to YT! So glad you found us :).

Tons of people here have had dogs go through dentals, so I'm sure you'll get some informative and helpful responses.

Things you might want to consider for afterwards is how to prevent any further damage and this might be something to also talk to your vet about. Some people use things like Leba III, Petzlife, Plaque Off, Healthy Mouth etcetera. Chewing/gnawing on chews/bones can be very helpful for cleaning teeth. Also, brushing helps - I admit, I do not do it - but many people here do.

Please keep us posted on how the cleaning goes - your kiddo will be in my thoughts for a safe procedure :)!

Welcome to Yorkie Talk, so sorry about Bengie.

Stage 4 periodontal disease is very serious. The bacteria can end up spreading throughout the body and damaging organs, so just be assured that by taking care of this you are prolonging his life. Just be sure to follow the antibiotic schedule before and after the surgery (they did give you some antibiotics for him to take beforehand I hope) and get pre-surgical bloodwork done.

They can bounce back pretty quickly and do very well without the teeth. In fact, those diseased teeth are probably painful so Bengie will fell MUCH better after they are gone.

You are doing a very good thing for him.

Wylie's Mom: Yea I am glad I found a forum all about yorkies :aimeeyork Thank you for the information I will ask my vet about what I can I use or do after Bengie's dental cleaning :D Thank you for the support :):aimeeyork

OwnedByJezebel: Thank you for the support and information :):aimeeyork I will call his vet tmrw to schedule his dental cleaning and I will ask them about the antibiotics before his cleaning. Again thank you for the support :aimeeyork


I will put my Bengie's picture up after this so you guys can see him :) We both are thankful for your support :animal-pa

Very excellent advice above!:thumbup:
Another thing I wanted to address...is Bengie getting yearly vaccines? Maybe discuss w/your vet about stopping his vaccines (unless you're in a high risk area) since he is older & has immunity. Only do rabies since it's the law. The new guideline for vaccines according to AAHA are: immunity lasts at least 5 years for distemper and parvo, and at least 7 years for adenovirus.

The Best Part About the New Dog Vaccination Guidelines

http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/yor...-overview.html

Welcome. It sounds like Bengie is in good hands.
My Pixie has had 3 dental cleanings in the past 7 years. I always get the pre surgical blood work ( a must) and my vet gives her IV fluids during the procedure due to her being so small. When I pick her up later that day, she is pretty tired, but hungry. She usually has to have a couple teeth removed as well as the cleaning. By the next day she is back to her old self. My vet usually charges about 300.00 for the dental, but you may be in a higher cost area. Good luck and keep us posted.

Welcome to YT! First off, don't blame yourself for any of it. Yorkies are notorious for these issues and the bottom line is that you are taking care of it. As for how he will be after...he should be just fine and will feel so much better!

The price your vet is giving does sound high, but that is because of the extractions that will be needed. Does she do xrays? If not, I highly recommend that you at least do a consult with a board certified dentist. Some teeth when extracted can be problematic and I have seen yorkies end up with fractured jaws. Best to avoid that if at all possible.

The dentist I use swears by Ora Vet sealant and I am totally impressed an a believer. She used it on one of my pups who always has had issues with is teeth. He had a dental in Sept. and looks better than ever. I have to apply the sealant weekly...and I am brushing his teeth daily.

Board certified dentists do cost more and it may be an issue and if so, I would look for a vet who did xrays. Hopefully your vet does.

Good luck! Please let us know how things go.

Thank you everyone for your great advice, information, and support :):animal-pa you all are really helping me through this so i thank you all :)

Bengie's appointment is for next tuesday. He will get dropped off at 7:30am and then they will call us around 5pm to pick him up. The blood work is included in the cost so I hope Bengie's blood work is good and there are no complications :)

After Bengies cleaning I will be with him to keep an eye on him to make sure nothing out of normal happens. My family will be there too BUT the next day we all work so no one will have their eye on Bengie :( that makes me worry bc I don't want anything to happen while we are gone :(

So everyone, how were your yorkies the day after there dental cleaning?
Bengie and I are very thankful for all your response :) :animal-pa :aimeeyork

After a dental, mine have always been a bit groggy from the anesthesia for the rest of the day but then normal the next. They bounce back really well.

But, how will YOU do? Even though Bengie is going to be in good hands and it's a routine procedure, I can tell you from experience that isn't going to make you worry-free. Try to stay busy, you will have a lot of nervous energy, but you will feel very relieved when you get that call when it's over and even better when you bring him home.

UPDATE ON BENGIE'S DENTAL CLEANING! :):aimeeyork:animal-pa

Bengie's dental was today at 7:30am-6pm. They extracted 3 teeth and the rest of his teeth are white and beautiful like they use to be when he was a puppy :) There were no complications during the dental cleaning :) The bill was $404 which also included his 2nd Lyme disease shot and nail trimming. My mother and I were so happy when they told us it was $404 :')

Once Bengie saw us from far away he couldn't stop wagging his tail. he was so happy :) he was calm in the car and when we got home he was jumpy so we took him to the room to calm down. Now he is sleeping :)

Thankfully, the doctor I work for allowed me to take off tmrw so I can keep an eye on bengie. Everything came out better than I ever expected :)

Again, Bengie and I am thankful for all your responses and support :) :aimeeyork

Excellent update! Yayy for Bengie!

Wonderful news!!! Thanks so much for letting us know! :)

That is awesome! I am so happy for both of you!

Hi! I see you're close to me, in Columbia. I'm in Annapolis area. So glad to hear Bengie's teeth are taken care of. :)

That's great!