So my girl broke a lower canine tooth today at an agility trial. Not quite sure HOW she did it, some suggested it already had a crack and she just tapped it the right way on the ground or something... anyway.

About half to 2/3rds of the tooth is gone and you can see the 'layers' of the tooth including what I'm guessing is the root (little red spot that bled and bled, like the quick on a nail). A couple of folks told me to take her to the vet tomorrow to get it pulled. She is not in any pain at all currently and is going about her business as normal (this incident happen about 10 min before her last run of the day, she was feeling fine and wanted to run so I ran her -- she almost qualified!)

I am just starting Open exercises with this dog and am not too keen on the idea of losing a canine if it will significantly affect her performance of the dumbbell retrieve. At the same time I don't know if I can affort a huge canine dentist bill. Anyone have any experiences with retrieving with a dog missing a canine? Is it possible they would just file this tooth's sharp edges and let her keep what is left? The break 'followed the shape' of the canine if that makes sense. It now looks like a smaller, sharper canine tooth.

Any and all thoughts and experiences are very much appreciated.

My Dutch has three canines that look like you describe. The previous owner had root canals done and I have them checked every year, so far so good.

I also was looking into titanium caps.......

I have an 9 year old dog who has worn down her canines to about 1/2 the length. I can see a big spot of the root. It doesn't seem to bother her at all.
I have a younger dog that has broken her canines off. The vet gave her a general anesthetic and filed the sharp edges off. She acts fine and pulls her raw meat apart just fine. Hers didn't bleed as badly as your dog's did, so they probably aren't down as far.
My vet told me that pulling canine teeth is a major ordeal, the jaw will just about break before the tooth will come out.

Did some more research. From what I've read, they will pull the little teeth in front, but not the canines for the same reason you said, Debbie.

Right now I am guessing she will have a root canal and have the rough edges filed since that little sucker is SHARP (she got me while I was giving her a treat -- ow ow ow!). Everything I've read says the little red spot is the pulp so that needs to be 'desensitized' by the root canal or else it is very easy to get an abcess in there.

Do they normally put on a cap/crown? Since the canines don't do any chewing, really, I wondered if it would be necessary. Plus she is an older dog, so we're only looking at 3-7 years tops of her using said tooth anyway.

Ms. Ostiguy,

Vet bill of about $1,700 for a root canal and a filling that looks like a cap to me. Annual check-ups to see if the tooth is OK. Each procedure requires the dog to be put under anesthesia.

I paid, and the dog seems fine, and the tooth is holding up.

The problem with doing nothing is that if there is pain or an infection, the dog will probably tolerate it much more than would a human, and over time the infection will do damage to other parts of the dog.

The canine dentist who worked on my GSD does work for law enforcement agencies' dogs.

Roscoe broke one off at the gum line in training. 1,700 dollars for a root canal, crown and cap. We went ahead and capped the rest while they were at it(stainless/titanium). Later on two more broke off, including the first. The PD forced me to have those roots removed. The vet said they were huge as any Mollisar root he's seen. After retirement he broke another because I kept up his bite work. That one so far isn't causing a problem but I expect to have something done before long.

Howard

Any idea for one without a cap? I've heard one estimate of $500 to $600 which is what I'm expecting from my vet. From what I have read, they do not cap them unless the dog is actively involved in bite work or a lot of retrieving or whatever, and I don't put my dog in that category at all.

That sounds about right. Probably closer to 700 though. If I remember correctly the tooth prep work, cast and cap construction was about 1000 dollars.

Howard

Just and FYI for everyone. If an upper canine is broken off at or below the gumline, take care of it fast. This can create a very hard to control infection in the sinus cavity.

Well guys, we ended up getting it pulled. And let me tell you loud and clear: DON'T BE STUPID LIKE I DID!

Should've listened a little closer to Debbie. Yep, they broke her jaw in the process of removing the tooth. Now it is wired together for eight weeks. She is still in a TON of pain -- the procedure was Tuesday afternoon, it is Thursday morning and she is still not herself and is not happy at all. She can only eat canned food and she has a hell of a time eating the CHEWABLE rimadyl tablets they thought were appropriate for her. If you even lightly touch her jaw, she cries -- and she has a very high pain tolerance. I feel awful and if this ever happens again with any of my dogs, I don't care if I have to take out a fricking LOAN, I will get a root canal done. Her once-great bite is now totally screwed up since her jaw broke. I'm cancelling agility and obedience practices left and right and had to pull her from a trial next month. She eats like a toothless horse -- takes a mouthful of food, gingerly chews it, spits half of it out, swallows what she's got, and repeats. If she wasn't so food-driven, I don't know if she'd be eating at all.

So right now I am a great combination of POed and terribly upset because I put my dog through all of this pain. She is obviously miserable.