Tooth extractions (including surgical)

What it involves

An extraction is the removal of a tooth together with its entire root. In dogs and cats most teeth have two or three roots, so they often have to be divided and removed separately — this is a surgical extraction: with an incision in the gum, removal of part of the bone and suturing of the wound. A simple extraction applies to single-rooted teeth or teeth that are already loose.

We remove a tooth when leaving it in place means chronic pain or infection: with advanced bone loss, a fracture with exposed pulp, resorption in cats, a root abscess or a retained baby tooth. An animal without a diseased tooth eats better than one with a painful tooth — a missing tooth does not get in the way of eating, chronic inflammation does.

Every extraction ends with a check X-ray to make sure that no fragment of root has been left in the bone. A retained root can cause abscesses for years, so we treat this image as a mandatory part of the procedure.

When it is used

We most often perform extractions during dental treatment, when X-rays and probing reveal teeth with no chance of being kept. We plan the removal of broken canine teeth, teeth affected by a tooth abscess, or retained baby teeth in young animals separately.

In cats with stomatitis or extensive resorption it is sometimes necessary to remove many teeth at once; we plan such a procedure as a separate, longer anaesthetic.

Indications: symptoms that should prompt a visit

• The dog has a broken canine or carnassial tooth, and a pink or dark spot is visible at the fracture site.
• Swelling has appeared under the eye of a dog or cat, sometimes with a discharging sore — a typical root abscess.
• The tooth clearly moves, and the gum around it is receded and red.
• In a puppy or kitten a few months old, the baby tooth has remained beside the permanent one for more than 2–3 weeks.
• The cat has stopped eating dry food, drools and its jaw trembles when it eats.
• An X-ray taken during dental treatment showed bone loss or root resorption.
• The dog's teeth are misaligned and injure the palate.

Conditions for which we use it in particular

Diagnostics beforehand

Before anaesthesia we carry out a pre-anaesthetic assessment according to STD-01: clinical examination, blood count and biochemistry, and in older or higher-risk patients a chest X-ray or an echocardiogram. In the case of an abscess with fever we also check inflammatory markers and start an antibiotic before the procedure if the vet considers it necessary.

In the theatre, already under anaesthesia, we take a dental X-ray of every tooth due for removal and of the neighbouring ones. The image shows the shape and number of roots, the degree of bone destruction and changes that cannot be seen from the outside — we do not remove teeth without it.

How it proceeds

Aftercare

For 10–14 days feed soft food (softened food, pâté), avoid chews and hard toys, and do not brush the teeth. Give pain relief and any antibiotic as set out in the discharge notes — do not stop when the animal looks well. Slight bleeding from the mouth on the first day and mild swelling are normal.

We book a check-up after 7–10 days: we check healing and discuss further dental care. Call us sooner if the bleeding does not stop, or if swelling of the mouth, fever or loss of appetite lasting more than a day appears, or the animal keeps rubbing its mouth on the floor.

Frequently asked questions