Dental Care

At Happy Pets Veterinary Center in Santa Clarita, CA, we understand that your pet's oral health is a vital component of their overall well-being. Our dedicated team is here to provide comprehensive and compassionate dental care for your furry family members.

Why Pet Dental Care Matters

Dental issues are a common concern for pets and can lead to discomfort, pain, and even more serious health problems if left untreated. However, Most of the time owners are not aware of what is going on in their pet’s mouths until these symptoms arise. Therefore, regular dental care is essential for maintaining your pet's quality of life and preventing dental disease. Did you know that the Veterinary dental association recommends pets getting their first anesthetic deep cleaning done at age 3?

Our Pet Dental Services:

• Oral Examinations:Our veterinarians perform thorough examinations of your pet’s oral cavity to assess your pet's oral health, by examining the gums, probing around each tooth looking for pockets and looking for oral tumors.
• Dental Cleanings: We use a professional ultrasonic cleaner that helps to remove tartar and plaque buildup especially along the gumline border along the tooth, thus preventing the progression of dental disease.
• Dental X-rays: We utilize advanced dental radiography to detect issues below the gumline, ensuring a comprehensive assessment of your pet's dental health. Each dental gets full mouth radiographs done. This allows us to look at the structures underneath the gums which is where periodontal disease occurs. We can see bone loss, tooth root abscesses and even pick up on fractured teeth where the tooth root was left behind. Dental radiographs are now considered standard of care with Veterinary medicine, it is not just about removing the tartar anymore!
• Tooth Extractions: When required, our proficient team can conduct tooth extractions with meticulous attention and expertise. Following Dr. Vega's pain-free protocol, local anesthetics are administered, mirroring the way humans receive them. Despite the pet being under anesthesia and unable to feel the extraction, our goal is for them to awaken without any discomfort.
• Oral Surgery: We offer a range of oral surgical procedures such as oral growth removals, however we may refer if the doctors feel a specialist may be the better option for your pet.

Preventive Dental Care

We believe that prevention is the key to a healthy smile. Our veterinarians will work with you to develop a personalized dental care plan for your pet, including at-home dental care tips and recommendations for dental-friendly diets and treats. Did you know that it is recommended to brush your pet’s teeth DAILY?

The Happy Pets Difference

Many clients ask us to please not remove too many teeth, how is their pet going to eat? We always tell them we only remove the teeth that need to come out because they show disease on x-rays or are already loose. Teeth extraction is a complicated procedure where we look at the tooth on x-rays, we probe around the tooth, we look for a pain response (yes even under anesthesia some pets will respond if a tooth is painful), we compare the same tooth to it’s opposite partner on the other side, before we decide it needs to be removed. If we decide a tooth needs to be extracted, a lot of thought and decision making has taken place, we do not just remove teeth. Once we decided the best option is to remove the tooth, we do a local anesthetic block, remove the tooth, add in more local anesthetic block and suture the extraction site with dissolvable sutures. A post extraction x-ray is taken to make sure the entire root was removed.

Don't wait until your pet experiences dental discomfort. Schedule a dental examination today and ensure your furry friend enjoys a lifetime of happy smiles. Contact Happy Pets Veterinary Center in Santa Clarita, CA, to book your pet's dental appointment.