Veterinary
Dentistry
Dental procedures include everything from routine cleaning and periodontal disease checks, to x-rays and extractions - all of which are vital steps to keeping your pet healthy!

Pet dental care is an important part of overall pet health - and especially when done as part of preventive care, can significantly boost a pet’s quality of life Sploot offers a wide range of pet dental care, from oral exams and teeth cleaning to x-rays and extractions.
Why is dental care so important for cats and dogs?
It’s all about those three magic words: quality of life!
Just like a human’s quality of life would likely suffer without regular teeth brushing, teeth cleanings, and regular check-ups, a pet’s quality of life would likely suffer, too. And because, of course, cats and dogs cannot clean their own teeth, it’s even more important for pet parents to recognize the need for regular pet dental care.Common oral conditions and diseases pets can face are tooth decay, gum disease, gingivitis, and periodontal disease. Without consistent dental care, plaque and tartar build on teeth and underneath gums - and without X-rays, the issues may escape a pet parent’s notice! Over time, these conditions can lead to inflammation, pain, infection, and tooth decay or loss; in more serious cases, plaque and bacteria accumulated in the teeth and gum area can enter a pet’s bloodstream, and affect organs like the heart, liver, and kidneys.The good news? Regular dental care can help prevent dental and oral disease, and just as importantly, can help prevent pain and discomfort for your beloved furry family member!
Got questions about dental procedures? Our dental specialists would love to answer any questions you may have about the procedure, estimated cost, and more.
Routine & Urgent Dental Care
Sploot offers routine and urgent dental care for cats and dogs.
Routine care includes:
- Oral exams (including dental X-rays and full mouth probing) to assess probable level of dental disease
- Teeth cleaning (including cleaning, polishing, and potentially plaque prevention product if appropriate)
- Tooth extractions
Urgent care includes, but is not limited to:
- Treatment for abscesses, pain, or infections (in some cases, stabilizing pets for additional specialist care)
Got oral care related questions? Feel free to give us a call! (720) 730-8890

Sploot’s Dental Experts
At Sploot, we have dental experts on staff, a state-of-the-art dental suite, and in-house laboratory and radiology equipment to perform same day lab tests and X-rays - in short, everything needed to provide our pet patients with great dental care.

Interested in dental care for your pet, but want to learn more? Call us for a free consultation.
FAQs
Veterinary dentistry includes a full oral exam as well as the cleaning, adjustment, extraction, or repair of your pets' teeth and all other aspects of oral health care. The process begins with an oral exam of your pet’s mouth by a veterinarian. Radiographs (x-rays) are necessary to evaluate the health of the jaw bone and the tooth roots below the gumline. Because most dental disease occurs below the gum line, where you can’t see it, a thorough dental cleaning and evaluation are performed under anesthesia. A dental cleaning includes ultrasonic scaling (to remove dental plaque and tartar) and polishing, similar to the process used on your own teeth during your regular dental cleanings.
Periodontal disease in pets is a progressive disease caused by bacteria in the mouth that damages the gums, bone, and other supporting structures of the teeth. Since this disease lurks below the gums, in many cases, visible signs of gum disease in pets are not present until the disease is very advanced. As such, it’s very important to begin preventative dental care for your pet at an early age.
Like human dental appointments, we would start by performing an oral exam to evaluate all soft tissue structures. Next, we will obtain full-mouth x-rays to evaluate the health of the bone of the jaw as well as the bone surrounding each tooth including the tooth roots below the gumline. Then, we probe each periodontal space to check for abnormal pocketing between the teeth and the gums. We clean every side of each tooth with our ultrasonic scaler to remove dental plaque and tartar, and follow up with thorough polishing of each tooth.
Your pet’s teeth should be checked annually by your veterinarian for early signs of any problems and to keep your pet’s mouth healthy. Get your pet checked sooner if you notice:
- Bad breath
- Broken or loose teeth
- Extra teeth or retained baby teeth
- Teeth that are discolored or covered in tartar
- Abnormal chewing, drooling, or dropping food from the mouth
- Reduced appetite or refusal to eat
- Pain in or around the mouth
- Bleeding from the mouth
- Swelling in the areas surrounding the mouth
Periodontal disease is the most common dental condition in dogs and cats and can show up at any age. Poor dental hygiene, genetics, having a maligned bite (malocclusion), and the shape of a pet’s mouth can make them more susceptible to periodontal disease.
Small and toy dog breeds as well as brachycephalic breeds (dogs with shortened snouts) are among those more prone to the disease. The American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) recommends that small and toy breed dogs begin receiving regular dental cleanings starting at one year of age, and large breed dogs at two years of age. In cats older than four years of age, studies report about 50 - 90% of them suffer from some form of dental disease.
Periodontal disease will worsen as your pet grows older, unless effective preventive measures are taken. Early detection and treatment are crucial, because advanced periodontal disease can cause severe problems and pain for your pet. Periodontal disease doesn’t just affect your pet’s mouth. It can also lead to disease in your pet’s kidney, liver, and heart muscle changes, etc.
Because each pet is different the pricing for dental treatment varies significantly based on the pet’s context and his or her unique situation. Each patient is treated as an individual and will require their own treatment plan (for example each pet may receive different medications for anesthesia, has a different degree of dental disease, requires different cleaning time and recommended procedures). To learn more about pricing, please give us a call or text us at (720) 730-8890 and our dental team will contact you with more details.
Yes. Anesthesia is needed for a comprehensive oral and dental assessment with treatment. When you go to the dentist, you know that what’s being done is meant to help you and keep your mouth healthy. Your pet does not understand the benefit of dental procedures, and he or she reacts by moving, trying to escape, or even biting.
Anesthesia makes it possible to perform dental procedures with less stress and pain for your pet. Anesthesia allows for a better cleaning because your pet is not moving around and risking injury from sharp dental equipment. When x-rays are taken, your pet needs to be very still in order to get high-quality images, and this is unlikely without heavy sedation or anesthesia.
We, in accordance with the AVMA (American Veterinary Medical Association), do not recommend anesthesia-free (non-professional) dental treatment. Most people offering this service aren’t trained veterinary professionals.
Without anesthesia, a veterinary dental assessment and treatment plan cannot be done properly. Thorough examination, measurements, and dental x-rays can not be taken which means disease can be missed. With anesthesia free dental procedures, only the plaque that is on the visible surface of the teeth is removed. However, everything that is below the gumline and on the inside of the tooth is not properly removed. If you do not treat, clean, and polish all surfaces of the tooth above and below the gumline, tartar and calculus will build up even faster.
Just like with your teeth, to properly diagnose dental disease, you must perform dental x-rays. Without proper anesthesia, dental x-rays are simply not possible. Therefore you cannot visualize important structures beneath the gum line and disease will be missed and go untreated.
Yes. When performed correctly, anesthesia is safe. Although anesthesia will always have risks, it’s safer now than ever and continues to improve so that the risks are low and are far outweighed by the benefits. Most pets can go home the same day of the procedure, although they might seem a little groggy for the rest of the day. We would always want to ensure that we mitigate any risks prior to anesthesia therefore a thorough examination and lab work is performed to fully assess your pet's health.
Pet parents often worry that their pet is too old for anesthesia. This is a huge misconception that prevents many older pets from getting the treatment they need. As we often say, “age is not a disease,” Dental health is important and the risk of dental disease often outweighs the risk of anesthesia. We do not take anesthesia lightly in patients of any age, and certain precautions should be taken for senior pets. Our expert veterinary staff and state-of the-art monitoring equipment will make sure your pet is in the best of hands. It is important to have a pre-operative examination and lab work performed prior to anesthesia to check proper blood levels and organ function. If for any reason your pet is deemed to be too high risk for anesthesia, our veterinary team will discuss other ways to help manage dental disease (at-home care, oral antibiotics, etc.)
Yes. Every pet is required to have a pre-operative appointment. Since your pet will undergo anesthesia or heavy sedation, our veterinarians will need to perform a full physical exam and medical review. This also allows us to prepare for the dental procedure and assess whether any teeth have to be removed. How can I take care of my pet’s teeth to prevent dental diseases?
We would highly recommend practicing at-home care to potentially prevent dental disease. The best thing you can do at home to prevent periodontal disease in your dog is by brushing their teeth daily. You can start with getting your pet comfortable with your hands near their mouth and then try to implement a brushing routine, using approved oral care products. Brushing will only be effective if it is performed consistently, at minimum, three times weekly. However, this may not be feasible for all pet parents and pets. Other options to help decrease plaque and gingivitis in dogs and cats include:
- Dental wipes
- Oral rinses
- Dental chews
- Prescription dental diets
We would highly recommend practicing at-home care to potentially prevent dental disease. The best thing you can do at home to prevent periodontal disease in your dog is by brushing their teeth daily. You can start with getting your pet comfortable with your hands near their mouth and then try to implement a brushing routine, using approved oral care products. Remember, brushing will only be effective if it is performed consistently, at minimum, three times weekly. However, this may not be feasible for all pet parents and pets. Other options to help decrease plaque and gingivitis in dogs and cats include:
- Dental wipes
- Oral rinses
- Dental chews
- Prescription dental diets
Generally, we recommend that your cat should have their teeth cleaned every one to two years. There are certain cases where our vets may recommend that your cat receives a cleaning more often due to feline odontoclastic resorptive lesions (FORL), plaque buildup, periodontal disease, etc. There are other lifestyle factors to consider as well in determining how often your cat should receive a cleaning.
Yes, dental cleanings for cats are absolutely necessary. Cats often go undiagnosed for gingivitis, periodontal disease, and other dental diseases simply because pet owners don’t realize the importance of regular cleanings. Your furry friend can’t tell you when they are experiencing pain or discomfort, but a routine cleaning at the vet can let you know what’s going on.
Your dog should receive teeth cleaning annually. That is a general rule of thumb and there are exceptions. Depending on your dog’s current state of health, their breed, age, and lifestyle can all change how often your dog should come in for a cleaning.