DENTAL CARE

Of all the preventative health measures you can take, perhaps nothing is more important than maintaining your pet's dental health. Tartar and gum disease produces more than just "bad breath," it can also lead to disease of the heart, liver, lungs and kidneys. This page offers some details about how you can keep your pet's breath fresh, as well as maintain optimum health and longevity. To help promote dental health in our patients, our staff is ready to answer any questions you may have. We can provide advice on preventative dental care, as well as a variety of reading materials.

Dental Prophylaxis (dental cleaning)

As part of ABQ PetCare's comprehensive Wellness Program, we recommend that every pet be evaluated at least once yearly to determine if he or she is a candidate for a Dental Prophylaxis (dental cleaning). Routine dental prophylaxis usually consists of scaling, polishing, and fluoride treatment, but may also include tooth extractions and antibiotic therapy when indicated.

With recent advances in veterinary medicine, it has become increasingly obvious that good dental care is perhaps the single most important thing you can do to add years and quality to your pet's life.

Good dental care is important because:

1. If your pet now has halitosis, or "bad breath", just imagine what it must be like for him to have to live with that odor in his mouth 24 hours a day!
2. Diseased gums and teeth can lead to other diseases such as endocarditis (heart valve infection) and pyelonephritis (severe kidney infection).

 While the equipment we use to perform the actual cleaning and polishing is the same type of equipment your dentist uses, there are often several additional steps involved in the practice of veterinary dentistry. The biggest difference between human and veterinary dentistry is our routine use of General Anesthesia.

Since a pet will not "open wide", the only way to do a thorough dental prophylaxis is to use anesthesia. With your pet's utmost safety in mind, your veterinarian will choose the most up-to-date anesthetics as dictated by age, weight and physical condition.

Dental disease progresses naturally with aging, so most patients who require dental care are middle-aged or older. We recommend that any animal over the age of eight receive at least a Complete Blood Count and Biochemical Screen to assess the safety of anesthesia in that pet.

Since many so-called "old age" diseases such as kidney failure or liver disease may not be apparent until they are in the final stages, blood and urine tests are the only way to catch these conditions early and thereby take steps to minimize any anesthetic complications. These precautions aren't usually standard procedure in human dentistry simply because anesthesia is not usually needed.

Possibly the most critical step in maintaining the clean teeth and healthy gums — and thereby lengthening the time until the next cleaning is needed — is Home Dental Care. While not all pets will allow routine brushing, we have several products and suggestions for how you can add this to your pet's routine health care program. This includes a diet specifically formulated to limit the buildup of tartar.  

If you have any questions about dental prophylaxis, or any aspect of your pets health care program, please feel free to ask your veterinarian or other staff member. You can call anytime at 505-299-VETS (8387).

STEPS IN PROPHYLAXIS

1. SCALING
2. POLISHING
3. FLUSHING
4. ANTIBIOTICS
5. FLUORIDE TREATMENT, the final step in the dental prophylaxis, strengthens the enamel and decreases the rate of plaque buildup

What We Recommend and Why:
ABQ PetCare believes in practicing the best recommended medicine available following the AVMA (American Veterinary Medical Association) endorsement which means pets should be examined twice a year: Once for urinalysis and blood work and once for vaccines. Since pets age 7 years on average for each 1 human year, change can happen extremely fast resulting in serious conditions occurring very rapidly and in order to prevent and detect conditions early we feel examining twice a year is necessary.

During an exam we frequently run blood work and or ultrasounds to be examined by a certified Radiologist if need be and then have the interpretation to discuss with owner during the appointment. To prevent disease we vaccinate yearly because immunity is uncertain on the length vaccines last. ABQ PetCare recommends having blood work done on your pet to determine if there is anything serious going on. The earlier we can detect problems, the more we can do to minimize the effects of those problems. In addition to the quality and length of life issues, the monetary cost of prevention is much less than the cost of treating conditions once they occur.

• Full Blood Screen—Checking for liver and kidney function, as well as diabetes and electrolyte problems
• Urinalysis—Check for kidney function, diabetes and infection
• Complete Blood Count—Check for anemia and infections
• Thyroid Screening—Check for common hormonal conditions

CAPSULE HEALTH RECOMMENDATIONS

CANINE

 FELINE

As a client of ABQ PetCare, at some point you might have noticed the phrase "Emphasizing Wellness and Geriatric Care" on some of our literature.

This is more than just a slogan - it is our long-standing and successful philosophy of practicing veterinary medicine and surgery.

We feel the most important thing we do here at ABQ PetCare is to promote preventative care - or "Wellness Care" - beginning with your puppy's very first visit.

Puppy Wellness Program
In fact, in an ideal situation we would like to talk to you before you get your puppy to help you choose a breed which fits your lifestyle. Since this rarely happens, we feel our guidance can be a crucial part of your puppy's first few months, while he or she is rapidly becoming a cherished part of your family. In most cases, you will be visiting us several times during your puppy's first few months so we would like you to feel comfortable asking questions - just remember, that's why we're here! You'll soon learn there is a lot for us to talk about during your puppy visits. This summary of our routine Puppy Wellness Program is designed to give an overview of the following topics

KITTEN WELLNESS PROGRAM

As a client of ABQ PetCare, at some point you might have noticed the phrase "Emphasizing Wellness and Geriatric Care" on some of our literature. This is more than just a slogan - it is our long-standing and successful philosophy of practicing veterinary medicine and surgery. We feel the most important thing we do here at ABQ PetCare is to promote preventative care - or "Wellness Care" - beginning with your kitten's very first visit.

Kitten Wellness Program
In fact, in an ideal situation we would like to talk to you before you get your kitten to help you choose a breed which fits your lifestyle. Since this rarely happens, we feel our guidance can be a crucial part of your kitten's first few months, while he or she is rapidly becoming a cherished part of your family.

BEHAVIORAL COUNSELING With Dr. Kerry

You might be surprised to know the number one cause of animals being euthanized in the United States every year is not cancer, heart disease or “old age”. In fact the number one cause is often related to behavioral problems.

Behavior problems can take many forms, from mild problems such as jumping up on strangers to more serious conditions such as self-mutilation and separation anxiety.

Diagnosing and treating behavior problems can be frustrating for pet owners and challenging for the veterinarian. But meeting the challenge and helping the pet live a happier, healthier life is very rewarding. Diagnosing a behavior problem first means conducting a thorough physical examination to make sure the problem isn't related to some type of physical abnormality or medical condition. The second step often involves a thorough history and sometimes a home visit to evaluate the pet's home environment.

The veterinarians at ABQ PetCare have many years of interacting with animals and learning what is "normal" and what behaviors can be best treated using which of the various methods we have available. In addition to giving advice on standard behavior modification techniques, we can also offer referrals to behavior specialists as well as advice regarding the use of natural herbal remedies.

If you have any questions about the behavior of your pet, please feel free to contact us anytime.

HOME AGAIN MICROCHIP SYSTEM

ABQ PetCare is very excited to offer the very latest in lost pet protection and recovery, the new Home Again Microchip System. Developed from years of thoughtful planning and extensive research, Home Again has several advantages over previous identification systems such as tags or tattoos.

Permanent, lifelong identification is provided by a tiny chip approximately the size of a grain of rice, programmed with a unique unalterable code that is identified with a hand held scanner.

Do you know that about 10 million pets get lost every year and do not have any proper ID, and that 90% do not return home.  Over the years, Home Again has reunited 400,000 lost dogs and cats with their owners.

The New System is advanced with technology that is combined with a powerful network that helps and makes recovery simple and easier than before.  A few insights about the new system is that it enables your pet to have 24/7 Medical Emergency Care while we are closed, lost pet insurance and much more.

One single phone call (505-299-VETS) and our staff will be ready to answer any questions and make that appointment for you to have your pet Microchipped.  For more information on the New Home Again Microchip, please click on the link www.HomeAgain.com.