A general anaesthetic to clean her teeth? Overkill or common sense?

[Invizicat]

So Ddog is 10 and at her last check up the vet did his usual frowny face at the manky state of her teeth. They are very tartar-caked and she definitely has dog breath. (No symptoms of infection or pain). Vet said we should 'think about' having her teeth cleaned, requiring a GA.

I'm a bit anxious about putting an oldish dog under GA. Is it routine? Does anyone have any figures about the comparative risks of GA vs leaving her teeth to do their own thing?

(Her insurance doesn't cover dental treatment and there is/was no way on earth we could get a toothbrush near her mouth without said toothbrush being eaten.)

Advice, stories, criticism all welcome.

It's standard as far as I know...partly because it's more of a scale and polish than a brush and partly in case one needs removed while they're in there.

It's also pretty routine to offer a medical including bloods to test kidney function to older dogs as well, to make sure they're fit for it.

OK I see, thanks Tabulah.

I'm a vet.

Scale and polish under GA is much more effective than brushing is. Some groomers offer 'scaling' whilst conscious, but this only removes the most visible bits of tartar, won't be able to go the areas beneath the gum line, or on the inner areas of the teeth (the side next to the tongue), so superficially it looks better, but in reality it's only half (if that) of a job being done.

It is better to sort the teeth out when they are hopefully only going to need a scale and polish, rather than as many people do...and waiting until there are rotten teeth that need extracting, or the dog is off their food etc. Then we end up having to do a longer anaesthetic (extractions take longer) on a dog that is less ideal to be under GA if it is unwell/off food etc.

If pre anaethetic bloods are done, and are all ok, then the risk in an older dog isn't much more than a younger dog. You can request intravenous fluid therapy as well if you want, some vets will routinely offer it, some wont. It is ideal, but more expensive, so some clients won't go for it.

Definitely get it done. Dental disease has a dreadful and insidious effect on their general health.

If she has severe tartar then she will have gingivitis (inflammation of the gums) and very likely pain and infection too. You can't fully evaluate dental health until the teeth are scaled.
Dental disease is linked to infection in other organs (once the bacteria get through the gums they travel) if you don't treat her she will only become older, her teeth will get worse and can be incredibly painful, and the risksof other problems related to infection, increase.

There's no correlation between age and anaesthetic risk assuming she's otherwise healthy (no liver, kidney or heart disease).

Thank you. Looks like I bite the bullet then (or ddog does actually).

Just to add to the good advice you've already had, many owners tell me their DDog is showing no signs of pain or discomfort from their teeth. However, it's incredibly common for them to comment at the post-dental check up on how much brighter and more cheerful their dog is since having the procedure done.

Dental disease is insidious and tends to affect older animals, and rarely affects the dog's appetite (they have to eat). So it's not unusual for us to attribute dogs "slowing down" to ageing changes when in fact they are actually miserable with chronic infection and pain.