Dog dental work

[craigcd]

Not sure where this belongs but looking for some information on dog dental work. We noticed our dogs(9 year old Cocker Spaniel) breath has been really bad lately and she has been drooling.

We took her to the vet and she requires some dental work, specifically around the gum line, build up on teeth and maybe an extraction. I assume once they get in there they will find more, regardless they advised it was more than a cleaning that was required.

I know there is some preventative stuff that could have been done like brushing, bones, different diet etc that might have helped this out.

All of that aside does anyone have recommendations on where to get this type of work done. Our vet quoted us $1500.00(i assume that would only go up), we trust them and they are honest and do good work however if there was a cheaper solution that offered the same standards I would be inclined to take a look. From reading online dental work in Calgary is a complete cash grab and looking outside of the city might be an option.

I really dont want to shop around at 10 different places but if someone has a recommendation or recent experience that would be great.

TIA

[JustinMCS]

I find that going out of town yields a better result price wise

[drtoohotty1]

check out beddington animal clinic mother in law took her dog there for work and 5 extractions i believe is way under 600 all in really good reviews for them as well i think there is a reddit thread about them.

[CompletelyNumb]

Beddington. Only vet in town that won't rob you.

[Minimalist]

I've been through this (dog chipped teeth on a raw bone), you need to take the dog in first thing in the morning and pick up in the late afternoon once they are certain the animal is awake and good to go. So using a vet in Okotoks (example), might involve four trips unless you're staying there for the day. Something to consider.

My dog was $900 for three teeth at a $$$$ vet in Marda Loop. Not sure they even did a cleaning, as cleaning lengthens the procedure and it increases the risk of complications like a dead dog. I'm saving thirty percent by purchasing monthly dog meds from a different vet in the city than my usual expensive/highly skilled vet. Buying some meds from the USA as well for 1/3 the price.

So yes, call around and you'll chop hundreds off the project.

Dogs and cats need their teeth brushed, special toothbrush and special toothpaste like Oxyfresh Pet Gel. Even every second day makes a huge difference.

[craigcd]

Thanks for the replies. We have checked pricing in both Nanton and Crossfield and both are WAY cheaper, 50 % cheaper. Both vets have awesome reviews and I actually know people that have used both just by chance. It sounds like beddington might also be a good option, I will check them out.

Crossfield is reasonably close as I am on the North end but Nanton is a bit of a trek!

[blitz]

Originally posted by CompletelyNumb
Beddington. Only vet in town that won't rob you.

Truth. Extracted 26 teeth from my 13 year old dog and we were around $600 all in.

[craigcd]

Sounds like Beddington dental is similar price wise to out of town vets and has good reviews. This is at least 50% less than our current vet. I am going in later this work for blood tests and the cleaning and extractions should follow.

I will post up a small review after the work is done, I am hoping they stay at least close to their quoted price which is about $500 all said and done. Not to bad compared to $1500!!

Thanks for all the input!

[craigcd]

Just an update.

We took our dog into Beddington this week, they were awesome.

They saved us a TON of money.($1000 plus for sure)

Blood work: $80
Dental work: $275
Total: $355

They stuck to their quoted price 100%, it would have increased slightly based on extractions if required but even that was reasonable. This included all drugs after surgery.

[nzwasp]

Hmm I wonder how much they do cleanings (or was this a cleaning?) - I got a quote from my vet and the cleaning cost was going to be $800 and thats with some special offer. According to our vet they only need to have their teeth cleaned once in their life, I hear you can also brush the dogs teeth every single day for the rest of its life if you don't want to cough up for a specialized cleaning.

[jabjab]

Beddington is awesome. Charging me 175 to get my puppy neutered this weekend.

[bjstare]

+1 for Beddington. We go there for almost everything.

Also, if there's something they won't handle (for us it was cherry eye surgery), 17th ave vet clinic was great in all respects. Price, bedside manner, etc.

[phreezee]

Good to know! I spent $1k for xray/extraction/cleaning in Cochrane at Big Hill not too long ago.

[01RedDX]

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[craigcd]

Originally posted by nzwasp
Hmm I wonder how much they do cleanings (or was this a cleaning?) - I got a quote from my vet and the cleaning cost was going to be $800 and thats with some special offer. According to our vet they only need to have their teeth cleaned once in their life, I hear you can also brush the dogs teeth every single day for the rest of its life if you don't want to cough up for a specialized cleaning.

This ended up just being a cleaning.

With the amount of drool, not eating, and general bad shape she was in I was expecting several. Pretty sure she had an infection which they gave her a antibiotics shot for and meds to go home with.

[craigcd]

Originally posted by 01RedDX
No extractions? Seems odd, they almost certainly need some extractions at that age, especially when they show symptoms.

I agree- she was in terrible shape. Wouldn't leave her kennel etc. We pushed hard to get her in early because we were worried.

2 days out and she is 90% back to normal.

[Kloubek]

Just for future information for anyone looking at this thread at a later date, I consistently bring my dog to Crossfield. Not sure if they do this kind of dental work on dogs, but for general vet prices I found them to be extremely reasonable.

[Squishy]

Wow that's a crazy good price you ended up with!

I took my 11 year old bichon/shih tzu/yorkie/poodle (Maybe she was 10 at the time?) to get her teeth cleaned, ended up removing one tooth and removed a mass under her tongue and it cost me just under $1,200 I believe.. That was at Big Rock Vet in Okotoks. The guy was really nice and I just had to drop her off the night before and pick her up the following evening when they were done monitoring her for the day.

My younger dog will probably need a teeth cleaning soon so I will probably go the same route you did at Beddington! That's a great price.

[craigcd]

Originally posted by Kloubek
Just for future information for anyone looking at this thread at a later date, I consistently bring my dog to Crossfield. Not sure if they do this kind of dental work on dogs, but for general vet prices I found them to be extremely reasonable.

Just to add to this I checked out Crossfield also and they were on the top of my list. Just so happened that we could get into Beddington quicker.