Dental question - Garfunkel has one tooth left...

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Phil & Garfunkel

Phil & Garfunkel

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My last vet appointment was about three months ago. At that time Garfunkel only had two teeth left, both his canines. They were also in bad shape and the vet said they would probably have to come out soon, but that we would evaluate how his teeth were doing during my next visit (six months from then). I adopted Garfunkel when he was eight and he was already missing about half his teeth at that time. He's going to be fourteen next month and almost every year they would end up doing dentals and removing one or more teeth.

A few weeks ago when Garfunkel yawned I noticed he only had one tooth left. About a year ago I noticed he hadn't been eating well for a few days or so and then one day one of his teeth just fell out, so this didn't seem strange for him.

At this point, is there any downside to just waiting for his final tooth to fall out naturally, or should I probably just go in and get it pulled? If I do let it fall out naturally, is there a real risk of infection or anything?
 
It may have broken off rather than fallen out, which means a root could still be in there.

That requires dental intervention.

I would get it looked at and possibly that last tooth pulled. Problem gone.

Be SURE they take dental x-rays to determine if there are any remaining tooth roots.
 
Hmm, didn't consider the root possibly being there.

I also realize that perhaps my original post reads like "should I just let it fall out or actually do something?" when really I was more concerned about the vet stress and him being old and OTJ and not wanting a relapse or other complications.
 
Any infection in a remaining tooth, or in a partially resorbed or broken off tooth may play havoc with the glucose levels.

And anesthesia becomes more risky the longer you wait and the older he gets or if you wait until infection is raging.
 
My civvie's canine broke a few months back. This was after her dental exam and before her scheduled dental (end of November). The bulk of the tooth is intact, but top half is missing. As I can see the tooth and there is no redness in the gum area and I know it's not bothering her, I am waiting for her scheduled appointment and giving a surprise to the dentist.

However, last year she had a canine break and was sitting sideways in her mouth and that was a dental emergency, which got removed immediately.

It may be a good idea to get it examined and just let them pull it now rather than wait for it to fall out on it's own, as it could become a painful situation, get infected and even become like my situation a dental emergency which you don't want to have to deal with.
 
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