How to Remove Dog Teeth

Removing a dog's teeth should only be done by a veterinarian under general anesthesia. Some reasons why a dog would need teeth removed include severe crowding, infection, pulp exposure, broken teeth, and oral cancer.


Dental health is a very important to overall health in dogs because dental disease contributes to kidney disease and heart disease, not to mention it can be very painful for the dog. Larger teeth within the mouth require more steps, such as dissecting three-rooted teeth into three parts, opposed to simple one or two rooted teeth removed as a whole.

Things You'll Need

  • General anesthesia
  • Digital oral radiographs
  • Scalpel blades
  • Gingival elevators
  • Root tip elevators
  • Root tip extractors
  • Drill
  • Consil
  • Gauze
  • Absorbable suture material
  • Suture scissors and forceps
  • Pain medication
  • Antibiotics
  • Ice

Instructions

  1. Canine Oral Surgery

    • 1

      Place animal under anesthesia and take digital oral radiographs to evaluate tooth under the gum line in its pre-operative state.

    • 2

      Do a complete dental prophylaxis prior to extracting any teeth

    • 3

      Cut into the gingiva with scalpel blade to create a gingival flap and elevate it using a gingival elevator

    • 4

      Loosen tooth in socket by using drill and root tip elevators then remove tooth using the root tip extractor. Inspect tooth to ensure the root tip is intact and nothing is left in the socket. This step will be performed differently depending on the specific tooth being removed.

    • 5

      Fill socket with bone grafting material, such as consil.

    • 6

      Close extraction site with absorbable suture material (that is, the stitches will dissolve as the wound heals).

    Post-Operative Procedures

    • 7

      Take another oral radiograph of the extraction site if there is any questions as to whether or not the extracted tooth was removed in one piece.

    • 8

      Turn off anesthesia and wake up dog.

    • 9

      Ice the extraction sites every three to five hours to reduce swelling.

    • 10

      Administer antibiotics daily for one to two weeks and pain medication daily for 15 to 30 days.

    • 11

      Feed softened food for the next 30 days and keep dog from scratching at mouth.