Can you clean my pet’s teeth without an anaesthetic?

Without an anaesthetic we cannot perform a thorough examination of your pet’s mouth, and there is simply no way we can diagnose or treat dental problems while your pet is awake. When it comes to gold standard dental care, we can’t just ask your pet to sit back and ‘open wide.’

You may have seen anaesthesia-free dentistry advertised but it is often performed by people who lack appropriate training and qualifications.

It can also have a negative psychological impact on your pet and might cause your pet unnecessary pain (plus it also puts us in danger of being bitten).

It’s also important to realise that a thorough dental examination requires a patient to be completely motionless for procedures such as radiographs and probing.

An anaesthetised patient allows us to look for any root problems and potential sources of pain. We can clean under the gums, which cannot be done correctly if your pet is awake. Removing only the calculus that is visible on the tooth is ineffective because it does not fix the source of the problem or enable healing and reversal of the dental disease.

Anaesthesia-free dentistry can potentially mask serious underlying disease and can cause your pet unnecessary pain. You can read more about this on the Australian Veterinary Association website.

If it’s been more than a year since your pet’s last dental check, please give us a call.