Yay for doing well after surgery!

I am beyond thrilled that we did this.

He woke up today as good as new, and even with a deep socket in his mouth he chowed down like a pig (I didn't give bones yet).

He is not bothering the eyelid excision site.

He acts totally happy and fine.

I got a better look in his mouth now that he's not achey from his mouth open so long, and his teeth are stunningly shiny and beautiful. :-)

I am never going to hesitate to do this again.

I can't wait to hear about Turbo!

Hey, Michael, yogurt made a good post-procedure supper.

That's great! You know his 'quality of life' meter is surely a lot higher with gums that don't hurt...

Got him home about an hour ago. He did great, but is super drunk. Sleeping right now.:smile:

His only problem was his canines that are worn flat from toys, I think.

Bloodwork was perfect, urinalysis was perfect, and heartworm negative.

Now I just have to figure out a good plan to try and help keep his teeth clean. I think I'll brush once or twice a week, and wipe with a wet towel after supper.

When I went to pick him up, they said that he absolutely refused to go down under anesthesia. They said he would pick himself up with his wobbly front legs and bare his teeth. Not condoning aggressiveness, or anything, but I can't help but like that little terrier attitude.

Glad they're both doing well.

Glad he's home and well! And talk about one tough little guy!

Connie, congratulations on Oliver getting through his surgery!
The eyelid thing sounds creepy, I hope it turns out ok.

He must be feeling so much better (and you too) with that decaying tooth out of the way! Getting rid of that alone must have added years to his life. Wow

Mike, glad Turbo got through ok too!

It never really occurred to me that dogs with poorly placed teeth (too crowded etc.) could have so much trouble with buildup even on a raw diet. It's a good thing you guys posted so that people don't automatically assume that switching their dogs to raw means never having to worry about dental hygiene ever again!

I've never seen this myself though. My own Moka had 10 years of horrible plaque buildup (as in, dark brown) on her teeth from kibble. It took only a few weeks of raw for her teeth to become immaculately clean and shiny (not completely white, but close). Vets said the results could not have been better had she had her teeth scaled and cleaned by them.

The only times I've personally seen a raw-fed dog with plaque buildup problems were cases of dogs being fed mush (ground up bones or just very soft bones).
Once the owners started including big intricate bones, like cow or pig necks (those large vertebrae are the best teeth cleaners I've found) the teeth cleared up within days and sparkled.
Even with my dogs, I sometimes notice a bit of yellowing on the teeth if they've gone a while with only soft smushy cartilagey type of bones (like chicken backs). One pig neck later and the teeth are sparkly white again.

I guess the bones only work if the dog's teeth are set correctly to begin with though. Maybe that explains why the smaller dogs, espcially the toy breeds bred for unusually small or squished faces, are the ones who seem to need the most help with their teeth?

Just guessing of course.

 Quote: Connie Sutherland

He's groggy, but the first thing he did when I set him down in the house was stagger to the fridge and try to pry it open.

I guess the drugs gave him delusions of super-strength, and he had fasted for almost 24 hours.

Hah! Now that is just adorable, if only you could provide a video

Not just the crowded mouths of flat-faced dogs, but also dogs with a genetic tendency to underproduce saliva (which works to wash off food before it forms plaque). Dogs on certain meds, too, have that problem.

I am thrilled with the anesthesia that Oliver's vet uses. I had not seen such a great after-effect before.... no nausea, very fast return to normal, nothing but an hour or so when he got home of groggy-sleepiness.

When I picked him up, he actually walked into the waiting room -- didn't have to be carried.

This is in the "ultra-short anesthesia class."

They got a late start on him because they were out of it and had to go borrow some from another vet practice. (I guess like a cup of sugar.)

I read up on this anesthesia Wednesday night, and I was really heartened by what I read. I checked it out in Merck as well as the Handbook of Veterinary Procedures, and I also came across greyhound sites (greyhounds are also poorer candidates for G.A. than most breeds) that urged using only this anesthesia on them. It's called PropoFlow (or generically, propothol). It is fast-acting and it leaves the system very quickly.

Oliver had no disorientation at home afterwards.

It’s relatively new (trademarked in 1998).

I’m pretty excited to see and experience such an improvement. My Luna was nauseated, vomiting, disoriented, and stagger-y when she was post-G.A.

Many flat-face dog owners hesitate about needed procedures because of their fear of G.A. for them. Especially the not-infrequent loss of the dog just after the procedure when the airway is removed. In fact, I had said to this vet that I would like the airway not to be removed until he was blinking. I also asked for a person present for nothing but monitoring his anesthesia, as well as an open IV for emergency BP drops, etc.

Now I feel about a zillion times better about G.A. for them -- not just the regular-snoot guys!

Sarah, do you know about this anesthesia?

(( Maybe that explains why the smaller dogs, espcially the toy breeds bred
for unusually small or squished faces, are the ones who seem to need the
most help with their teeth? ))

Yes.

Plus, as noted above, the saliva-deprived guys.

Connie,

I'm very happy to hear your guy is doing well...you are such a wonderful dog mom.