Mass and swelling

About a week ago, my husband and I noticed a rock hard lump (about the size of large gumball) on the upper right part of our dog's snout. It was roughly right below the right eye, but there was no interference with the eye. We both were taken back at first at the largness of it and how rock hard it was. It actual felt just like bone and did not move (like a cyst would if you moved it around). We contributed it to that she is always playing really rough with our 7 month old puppy and they are constantly running into walls full force and smacking into furniture. This morning, we awoke to find that the lump has disappeared and in it's place there is swelling that has spread throught out the area has caused her eye to be slighltly swollen as well. I felt around the area and it just feels swollen, it's not hard and she did not mind me touching it. I am now worried and am wondering what it can be. I absolutely hate the emergency vet clinic close to my home and cannot get her into our vet until Tuesday. Any thoughts on what this could possibly be??????

[Jennifer Mathis, D.V.M.]

Almost always, what you are describing is an abscessed tooth.  It is painful and has been painful for quite some time, but our pets do not show us pain though they feel it.  Your dog needs to have a dental with dental xrays.  Be sure your veterinarian has dental xray capabilities.  It is unlikely the emergency clinic has these capabilities, so you shouldn't need to go there.  Antibiotics do not fix the problem alone.

It is known that one problem tooth can get an abscess and it spreads to other teeth under the gumline and you can't see it.  Get the problem tooth (teeth) remove before others are affected.  It is much better off without a tooth rather than have a painful tooth.  Xrays are the only way to know which are affected.  Often with these multirooted teeth one root is affected and can create the abscess and the other roots are not as sick, so when removing, can break and leave root tips ( ie nerves) in the mouth and be a continuing source of pain -- so be sure your veterinarian can do a gingival flap to remove all root of the bad tooth (teeth).  The last step in that process smooths the jaw bone that held the tooth so that the jaw is non painful with biting down later on hard food and the pet can eat normally without discomfort.

Pets with good dental health live an average of 2 years longer Quality life - so ensure your 7 month old gets dental care at least by the age of 3 if no sooner.  It's the best way to keep a long healthy life in dogs!

Pain meds, nerve blocks, and antibiotics should be used during the procedure provided the vet you choose has dental xray capability.

All pets that have had this care, their owners tell me that they can't beleive how much more puppy like she is!

There are other possiblities in the mouth, but this is most likely and this is needed to look at what is happening and the veterinarian can see if there's a different reason for this issue (unlikely).

There are a lot of good articles on this topic and what pets feel at www.toothvet.ca
Dental myths and dental truths are some good reads.