Several weeks ago my female SAR dog, Cyra (2.5) had a root canal due to a broken canine.

At that time the vet indicated the large pulp cavity meant the tooth had probably been damaged at a younger age and died off as my dog matured and then broke. IIn other words, the tooth did not mature properly due to some prior damage.

We decided not to put a crown on the remaining portion of the tooth because of (1) cost and (2) amount of already thin enamel that needed removal to actually install a crown (lose-lose situation). We decided the root canal was of less risk than extraction due to potential interference with scent work (e.g., oronasal fistula, nerves, etc.) that an extraction could cause.

At the time of the root canal a root tip abscess was found that meant she was probably in significant pain...and I can look back to when we started having some problems with scentwork in late spring/early summer of this year (but then I fractured my ankle and we were not doing scentwork since July-Oct)

Now a problem. Before the root canal she like to play tug but not really obsessed with it. Vet said - well you can't do tug play with her but it did not seem to matter much THEN.

Now that the infection is gone, and her scentwork has improved exponentially but she is driving us crazy with mouthiness (she is 2.5) and wanting to tug and bite everything in sight. Not aggressive, she just wants to tug, shake and "kill" with vigor I had not seen before. Just playing a lot of fetch games does not seem to be enough.

One problem with her tugging is she thrashes side ways and throws her whole body into it instead of pulling straight back. I am truly concerned she would snap what was left of the tooth and not sure what addiitional damage that would cause. The other canines developed normally (she x-rayed the rest and they have nice thick enamel & good roots)

I am at a loss and considering asking the vet to cut the tooth off closer to the gum so it cannot break again? Consider a crown (but the thin enamel is the problem)?

Any insights would be greatly appreciated.

Admittedly, the ideal reward is the interaction between the dog and handler with the tug game. That sounds like it not an option anymore. If you used a rolled up towel for reward, would she do her shaking thing by herself, or does she need you to do it with her?

Been awhile since we had a rolled up towel but she tore into a cardboard box today that had a tug rope put away in it and was killing it so vigorously that she was hitting her flanks and her back legs were coming off the ground....before I took it away from her <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />

If there isn't any resistance by tugging with you, why take it away?

Hi Nancy

How much of the broken tooth is above the gumline? If the entire pulp was taken out during the root canal..The tooth will become brittle and there is a risk of breakage...Whoever is playing the tug game with her...will just have to ease up on HOW they tug and how much tension is put on the tug...If she 'wins' the tug or it's given to her and then she proceeds to 'thrash and kill it'...It's VERY UNlikely that without oppositional forces (ie., person pulling and yanking on the tug while she's biting)...that the remainder of that tooth is going to break...Did the vet file the broken tooth and reduce its height during the root canal? If she's not doing any 'bite program' along with her SAR...I would be tempted to leave it...and if the vet didn't do it...I'd ask him/her to file or make the broken tooth blunt to reduce the chances of the tooth 'catching' or breaking further...Check it out with your vet. Sounds like you've already had VERY good advice (been there, done that <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> )

B

Most of the tooth is intact (so nothing below the gum line is missing) - actually before the root canal we discussed this and she thought that tug would be ok but afterwards said no.

I think I will ask the vet to file it down enough to allow anything caught to roll or slide off and take her tug in to show her what we do.

Training anyone who tugs with her to just let her win makes sense after talking with both of you. Actually her sawing motion is pretty wild (much more so than a more correct steady pulling motion) and it is hard NOT to let go. If they don't even yank it she can be pretty violent, but a two handed tug could limit her motion.

We are not doing bitework - and up until now I did not see tug as rewarding to her as it now appears to be. I meant to say in a first response that I am currently operating with the paradigm that the best reward is the one that is most motivating to the dog

(Though I do find the Ruud & Hawk Tug sequence concept intriguining - but know quite a few good and operational SAR dogs who do not play tug)

If she had a tooth that made tug game suck a little bit, the joy of playing w/out pain is probably delicious. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Glad the procedure worked out! And Happy for your HAPPY dog! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Did your vet put a rod in the tooth for strength? If she is happy swinging the tug around on her own and fetching, then she should be okay, just someone on the other end may be a concern.

Perhaps putting a tug on a strong bungee where she can have the sensation of a tug-o-war, but not that much stress may give her fulfillment.

No rod in the tooth just a rubber type filler.

She does work for LE (Only board certified Vet Dentist in the area, I believe)

I like the bungee idea.

OK - I asked the vet about a rod and she said they don't do them anymore because the tooth tends to break below the gum line when a rod is put in place.

Normally a broken adult tooth no issue with tug later or capping with a metal crown but her issue is the damage had to have occured at younger age and not enough enamel. She said no tug except for letting her kill the rope is probably ok (gotta let her be a dog) just can't get on the other end.