This is in the Houston Area-

We have two small dogs. Very small, like 6 lbs each.

one is 5, the other 8. both sets of teeth are rated a "3 out of 4" in "need to be cleaned".

The swanky vet we go to near River Oaks wants

$700-900 for dog 1
$575-800 for dog 2

We think they are getting a little too swanky for us. I want to go to a good vet to get this done, but maybe not one in such a high dollar area.

Any recommendations?

Get a second opinion.

My (previous) regular vet quoted $700 (after a $200 "discount") to clean my GSD's teeth and said his were in very bad condition, had gingivitis, etc. This was after him getting a full physical at his last kenneling a month prior. No way a dog's teeth went from OK to advanced gingivitis in 30 days.

Took him to get a second opinion and they said they were great for his age, although needed to be cleaned but it wasn't anything extraordinary. IIRC vet 2 charged around $400 to do the bloodwork and cleaning.

[This message has been edited by Max06 (edited 9/24/2013 2:30p).]

300-600 isn't out f the question for both. Includes bloodwork and knockout gas etc.

They can't clean the dogs teeth while they are awake mind you.

Actually, you can, but you have to do a LOT of conditioning work on the dog so they don't freak out. Another reason the raw diet is awesome...only a fraction of the nasty crap on their teeth that comes from kibble.

[This message has been edited by MouthBQ98 (edited 9/24/2013 2:37p).]

I had a 70 lb doberman that would lay down and let me scrape the tarter off her teeth just like a dentist would do. I would do this once a month or so.

I know yappy little dogs will most likely not allow this.

We just set up a teeth cleaning for our 55lb GSP in the $300-400 range.

$600 each is about what i would think reasonable, at most, and i think thats what i paid last time. Their rates just seem to have skyrocketed in the last couple years.

I live in montrose and drive to stafford to the doggie dentist. Dr. Ross is reasonable and he is an Aggie. They do a great job. Should be much cheaper than what you were quoted.

I've had my rat terriers done several times and never paid more than $200. And they put him under every time.

I saw the one in stafford, wasnt sure if he'd be cheaper or more expensive since he specializes.

Good to know he is an Aggie vet, maybe will have to check him out.

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They can't clean the dogs teeth while they are awake mind you.

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No..........but I can clean my dogs teeth while awake. Of course I'm a dentist with the proper scalers and started the dogs while they were pups.

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They can't clean the dogs teeth while they are awake mind you.

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No..........but I can clean my dogs teeth while awake. Of course I'm a dentist with the proper scalers and started the dogs while they were pups.

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Ha, for some reason the visual of a dentist cleaning a dogs teeth cracks me up. Mostly because i know the face my dogs would make.

I suspect that they are anticipating some extractions which will drive up the price (most grade 3-4 dentals require surgical extractions). There are $200 dentals and there are $500 dentals, you generally what you pay for.

I think we charge from $200 to about $400 depending on the level of tartar, and extractions are additional as well as pre-anesthetic bloodwork/EKG/etc.

Is this thread a joke? $200 teeth cleaning for a dog?

I think I'm in the wrong line of business!

You are paying for the neighborhood you live near I believe. What you describe usually averages $400-600/dog (hard to say exactly without full oral exam while under anesthesia) depending on bloodwork, extractions, etc. The reason there is generally a range is because extractions etc. can vary and that can easily increase the original estimate. Don't pay too much or too little, as stated above you get what you pay for.

DVM

You're right - I'm secretly a millionaire from all the dog's teeth I clean/pull :-)

Don't forget it is a small business - and vets are by and large not wealthy. Pay for the building, the tech to monitor anesthesia, the table to do the dental on, the tech to do the dental, the vet to do the extractions/review x-rays, the dental x-ray machine to take them, the computer system to load them, the dental equipment (same used in people!), extractors, the 8 years of school to tell if we should pull that tooth or not and interpret the x-rays, electricity, AC, etc. Some dentals can take 20-30 min, some can take 2-3 hours! Also no insurance like we have. And we are often removing several years worth of tartar, not 6 months.

And you cannot clean under the gums in an awake animal, and therefore cannot clean them properly without anesthesia. Brushing daily however with dog toothpaste is a good way to keep them clean once professionally cleaned and/or before they get bad!

http://www.hillspet.com/products/pd-canine-td-canine-dental-health-dry.html

Mix this in with your dog's food every now and then. My dogs teeth clean up fast after a week or two of mixing this in. I just do it once or twice a year. They make a small bag that you can get for 22 bucks from your vet.

For how small your dogs are this would more than do it. Get some man-sized dogs while you're at it.

[This message has been edited by PANHANDLE10 (edited 9/24/2013 10:22p).]

You people are absolutely freaking NUTS!

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Don't forget it is a small business - and vets are by and large not wealthy.

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Not necessarily true. Both of my uncles who have their own practices have done very very well for themselves. I want to know what you consider wealthy I guess...

Damn. I was really excited about getting a lab in the near future since we just moved into a new house. This thread has caused me to reconsider. $500 for some dental work for a freaking dog? Wtf?!? Do they sell dogs with dentures?

the wife's chihuahua mixes (3 of them, yeah) all have bad teeth (as in bad before she met me). to the point now where almost all have fallen out due to poor dental care and soft, chewy type food (according to a couple vets).

needless to say, they still eat heartily, because a dog will always find a way to eat. feed em the crunchy stuff the bigger dogs eat and they're nice and plump just like the them.

now my beagle/lab mix that I've mentioned before.....I PROMISE I HAVE NEVER TAKEN THIS DOG TO THE VET FOR TEETH CLEANING. nor would I, know why? because he gets the $3.99 chew bones from heb that helps clean his teeth the old fashioned way. perfectly straight teeth, about 9 years old now. also buy him the greenies from petsmart for variety, peanut butter doggie biscuits from walmart sometimes too.

I think we usually pay about $150, declining all lab work. If the dog dies under anesthesia, I figure that's pretty humane, and she's old and sickly. Besides, if the labs reveal any anomolies, we most likely wouldn't treat it anyway.

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You people are absolutely freaking NUTS!

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This. Brushing a dogs teeth. Wow.

Small dogs have teeth problems that large dogs don't have. I dont think its right to ignore it, and let their teeth rot and fall out. Thats just me though.

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I dont think its right to ignore it, and let their teeth rot and fall out. Thats just me though.

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I can understand both stances on that.

Pro: You care for the dog and you keep it as healthy as possible

Con: Dogs are animals. They originated in the wild. They evolved without teeth care

I actually enjoy brushing my dogs teeth.

I must have had more than 100 dogs in my life and I've never taken one to the vet for tooth problems. Snakebites, open wounds, infections, broken bones, etc - yes. Tooth care - no effing way.

I applaud the veterinary marketing people who sell this.

Holy crap. Just had our 11# dog's teeth cleaned last week, with blood work and xrays, for $570 in McKinney.

They gave us a 10-15% discount because it was canine oral hygiene awareness month or something. He had to have it done, so why not.

The blood work and xrays were extra and precautionary as he had a very slight murmur that was concerning to my wife.

Our dogs vet quoted us a price of $975 to clean and extract two teeth, blood work and snip his nuts. Got all of done, for 275 out the door at a Vets office in Richmond. Of course she is surgical only.

Will give her a plug:

http://affordablepetsurgery.com/index.htm



[This message has been edited by oneeyedag (edited 9/25/2013 8:48a).]

We get our dogs teeth done when we go to Missouri to visit my parents. My 6 lb Chihuahua cost me $90 to get her teeth cleaned.

I have 3 small dogs and when they were younger their teeth were fine. Now that they are older they get their teeth cleaned professionally. This is after an abscessed tooth, and some bad teeth that had to be extracted. I brush their teeth once a week now, that's about all they will tolerate. Bad teeth can also cause heart, liver and kidney problems later in life. So it just depends on how important your pet's long term health is to you.