Caries or Tooth Decay
|Caries is not common in dogs and rare in cats. This is mainly because the shape of their teeth tends not to allow retention of food material. When it is seen it may be associated with the feeding of human treats – biscuits etc.
Effectively the tooth rots away until much of the crown is lost. Specialist treatment can be possible when lesions are caught early – however, extraction is often the only answer.
As with caries in people - these lesions are painfull and can lead to tooth root abscesses developing.
As a rule - careous or decaying teeth should be investigated
Did You Know?
Using a disclosing solution can demonstrate how much plaque is present in even a seemingly healthy mouth.