Aa
I am in a dilema....
A month ago my fiance and I went and picked out a 4 week old Goldendoodle puppy. For the past month we have done everything to prepare and made our home suitable for the puppy. Today (one week before we are going to pick him up) the breeder contacts us. Our puppy has malocclusion (bottom jaw is a bit smaller). She basically told me the problem and said she understood if we didn't want him anymore. Easier said than done. I feel like I just possibly lost my child I have been carrying for 9 months.
I phoned the vet and got more information but it was so much to take in over the phone. The vet is 2 hours away from us. My fiance and I discussed finances before deciding on getting a puppy. We understand there will be many vet costs and unknown vet costs. We are okay with spending some money on the dog if he has teeth problems that need fixing; we just don't want to end up losing our home or something :S What is the resonable thing to do in this situation? Will removing his baby teeth right away help with anything?
I phoned the vet and got more information but it was so much to take in over the phone. The vet is 2 hours away from us. My fiance and I discussed finances before deciding on getting a puppy. We understand there will be many vet costs and unknown vet costs. We are okay with spending some money on the dog if he has teeth problems that need fixing; we just don't want to end up losing our home or something :S What is the resonable thing to do in this situation? Will removing his baby teeth right away help with anything?
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
I think our dental experts would say that removing the baby tooth with abnormal direction soon will actually help the perm come in more straight. This should be done very carefully so as not to cause any abnormal inflammatory response while the perm is erupting.
I also think your veterinarian believes there is a good chance the perm should push through and have normal position. Discuss with your veterinarian and decide on which way both of you feel is best.
I also think your veterinarian believes there is a good chance the perm should push through and have normal position. Discuss with your veterinarian and decide on which way both of you feel is best.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
I was able to contact a board certified veterinary dentist (who we hope will soon be part of this forum) and pose your question to him.
Like your veterinarian said, Dr. Gaddis (the veterinary dentist) says that there is a chance that the pup may grow out of this and the lower jaw may end up "catching up" to the upper jaw. He recommends that if there is no change within the next 7-10 days, it would be prudent to extract the lower baby canine teeth.
His opinion is that removing the baby teeth will eliminate any potential pain from the teeth poking the roof of the mouth and also prevent what is known as a mechanical lock. This mechanical lock can actually limit the growth of the lower jaw and cause the problem to become worse. Removing the teeth should allow the mandible to reach its genetic potential. Of course, he cautions that great care needs to be taken during the extraction so that the adult teeth still residing in the bone below the baby teeth are not damaged.
This answer was provided by Dr. Bert Gaddis, Diplomate of the American Veterinary Dental College. He practices in Pelham, Alabama.
Like your veterinarian said, Dr. Gaddis (the veterinary dentist) says that there is a chance that the pup may grow out of this and the lower jaw may end up "catching up" to the upper jaw. He recommends that if there is no change within the next 7-10 days, it would be prudent to extract the lower baby canine teeth.
His opinion is that removing the baby teeth will eliminate any potential pain from the teeth poking the roof of the mouth and also prevent what is known as a mechanical lock. This mechanical lock can actually limit the growth of the lower jaw and cause the problem to become worse. Removing the teeth should allow the mandible to reach its genetic potential. Of course, he cautions that great care needs to be taken during the extraction so that the adult teeth still residing in the bone below the baby teeth are not damaged.
This answer was provided by Dr. Bert Gaddis, Diplomate of the American Veterinary Dental College. He practices in Pelham, Alabama.
A vet has examined him. He is only 8 weeks old right now so she said there is pretty much a 50/50 chance that he may just grow out of it or that it may cause him problems.
We did commit to the puppy. We do not plan on breeding it and the breeder is just charging us for the cost of the puppy while she had it. The money we save on the dog may end up being put towards dental work.
As far as I understand, it is just one canine tooth that is going crooked and may eventually poke into the gum. It is not doing this yet. The vet cannot tell yet if the adult tooth will grow in the same way.
Will removing the baby tooth asap help any with the chances that the adult tooth will come in correctly? This is the first decision we have. Remove the baby tooth asap or let it fall out on it's own and see how the adult tooth comes in and go from there?
We did commit to the puppy. We do not plan on breeding it and the breeder is just charging us for the cost of the puppy while she had it. The money we save on the dog may end up being put towards dental work.
As far as I understand, it is just one canine tooth that is going crooked and may eventually poke into the gum. It is not doing this yet. The vet cannot tell yet if the adult tooth will grow in the same way.
Will removing the baby tooth asap help any with the chances that the adult tooth will come in correctly? This is the first decision we have. Remove the baby tooth asap or let it fall out on it's own and see how the adult tooth comes in and go from there?
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
I am also just going to make a comment until one of our dental experts has a chance to chime in....
While I was in practice, one of our most memorable pets was a Sheltie named Lad. Lad was a big sheltie (around 50-60 lbs) and his overbite was SO extreme that he was by far the most easily recognized dog in our clinic. His maxilla (upper jaw) protruded beyond his lower jaw by a good 2 inches if not a little more. Given his already long Sheltie snout, he quite literally looked like a shark, although he was a good natured shark!
Lad's owner was not the most conscientious of owners, but he did what was needed for Lad. I don't recall that Lad ever had any problems with eating nor did he ever have any extensive dental work done. That is not always the case with severe over-bites, but he is an example of a loving pet that did fine even with the "deformity".
Dr. Humprhies has offered some great advice...try and get an independant veterinarian to examine the pup and that may help sway your decision one way or another. I really commend you for being such concerned "parents" even before your little one has arrived.
While I was in practice, one of our most memorable pets was a Sheltie named Lad. Lad was a big sheltie (around 50-60 lbs) and his overbite was SO extreme that he was by far the most easily recognized dog in our clinic. His maxilla (upper jaw) protruded beyond his lower jaw by a good 2 inches if not a little more. Given his already long Sheltie snout, he quite literally looked like a shark, although he was a good natured shark!
Lad's owner was not the most conscientious of owners, but he did what was needed for Lad. I don't recall that Lad ever had any problems with eating nor did he ever have any extensive dental work done. That is not always the case with severe over-bites, but he is an example of a loving pet that did fine even with the "deformity".
Dr. Humprhies has offered some great advice...try and get an independant veterinarian to examine the pup and that may help sway your decision one way or another. I really commend you for being such concerned "parents" even before your little one has arrived.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
I'll make a general comment and ask one of our dental experts to chime in.
IF you are not going to breed this dog (pet only) and the malocclusion is not bad, you frankly can have a long and happy life with this dog. Many dogs adopted from shelters, pure bred, mixed bred etc. have some degree of malocclusion. And they live normal lives without much extra-ordinary expenses for dental care (just normal cleaning etc).
However if the malocclusion is severe, then you ARE looking at expenses related to unusual dental problems.
If your heart is set on this pup AND you are not going to breed (and I never suggest that) then have this pup examined by an independent veterinarian and get an independent assessment of the situation before committing to purchase.
Bottom Line for me would be How Severe Is The Condition, before I would make a purchase / no purchase decision.
I'll only make this a "comment" and ask one of our dental specialists to add their expert thoughts.
IF you are not going to breed this dog (pet only) and the malocclusion is not bad, you frankly can have a long and happy life with this dog. Many dogs adopted from shelters, pure bred, mixed bred etc. have some degree of malocclusion. And they live normal lives without much extra-ordinary expenses for dental care (just normal cleaning etc).
However if the malocclusion is severe, then you ARE looking at expenses related to unusual dental problems.
If your heart is set on this pup AND you are not going to breed (and I never suggest that) then have this pup examined by an independent veterinarian and get an independent assessment of the situation before committing to purchase.
Bottom Line for me would be How Severe Is The Condition, before I would make a purchase / no purchase decision.
I'll only make this a "comment" and ask one of our dental specialists to add their expert thoughts.
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