My lab has badly cracked molar

[Bullshot]

Any advice, words of encouragement? I just discovered her upper back molar is deeply cracked and discolored. Certainly on way to an abscess and assuming tooth is going to be lost. I am so upset. Has anybody dealt with this?

 

[kansasdad]

Putting it off will not make it easier, just like humans.

Guessing here, but lab work before general anesthesia and the cost of an extraction (surgery) will end up costing a lot more than if you went to your dentist to have a molar removed (not under general anesthesia).

 

[Birdbander]

One of my English Pointers cracked one several years ago. Vet just extracted it. No issues since. Not having overly deep pockets, I don't recall it being unreasonably expensive.

 

[utah400elk]

My lab had the same. They pulled the tooth and he was happy go lucky dog again right away.

 

[BrentD]

My flat coated cracked a lower canine which had to be remove. Ever after, her tongue hung out of that side of her mouth. She was happy as could be.

Evolutionary biologists claim that canines evolved for capturing prey, but in reality, they are just a tongue retention system.

 

[p_ham]

Have it pulled. Don't put it off.

 

[Hunting Wife]

She’ll never miss it. Honestly, it will be harder on you than her.

 

[greenhead2]

Like others have said get it done as soon as possible. Your dog will thank you. It cost a lot less than I expected too.

 

[David658]

Like others have said get it done as soon as possible. Your dog will thank you. It cost a lot less than I expected too.

It was affordable because you didn't get it done in Los Alamos. We drive two hours to a vet south of Albuquerque to afford quality treatment.

 

[Birdbander]

If you really want to reduce your vet cost, find one that wants to learn & go bird hunting but his wife won't let him have a bird dog

 

[BrentD]

Save the tooth. I use Codi's canine as a button on a muzzleloading bag.

 

[JEL]

She’ll never miss it. Honestly, it will be harder on you than her.

This. Our lab broke a canine in a stupid move involving a fire pit and a ball. Took her in and turns out she had two cracked teeth. Both came out. Cost a lot. She was down for about a day. Hurt me way more than her.

 

[Jamen]

My lab had that happen. Took it out with no issues. Like others said do it sooner rather than later.

 

[Bullshot]

Prelim visit was done on Tuesday, but the procedure not able to be scheduled until June 8 . In part though because I wanted the actual anesthesiologist on overwatch rather than just a tech, last time my pup almost didn’t come back from a routine cleaning. The tooth is cracked from the top down below the gumline and I was surprised to hear the vet say that as long as the crack migrates to the outside and there is enough tooth left, she feels there is an 80-90% chance she might save some of the functional tooth with a triple root canal (3 roots on those molars) and cleanup of damage. I am on the fence between authorizing that as this is very expensive and might just delay the inevitable and then have to extract it in a couple years anyway. My pup is a vigorous youthful almost 7 years old, but if she is ok without the tooth, I might just want the bad tooth gone lest she has to go under again as an older dog. Decisions decisions.

 

[utah400elk]

Just take the tooth. The dog will not miss it. I spent well over 20K on my chocolate lab. I am glad I did but it has changed my philosophy going forward.

He was bitten by rattlesnake in Wyoming mountains, had life long allergies, lost his tooth and suffered from “happy tail”. He ended up chewing his own tail off because vet bandages killed part.

We should have taken the tail immediately and not looked back. Instead we had a six year battle that cost thousands. The allergies were the real killer. The snake bite was also crazy expensive. We didn’t even see him get hit. Just woke up to his ankle bigger than mine and he couldn’t walk.

 

[Addicting]

Prelim visit was done on Tuesday, but the procedure not able to be scheduled until June 8 . In part though because I wanted the actual anesthesiologist on overwatch rather than just a tech, last time my pup almost didn’t come back from a routine cleaning. The tooth is cracked from the top down below the gumline and I was surprised to hear the vet say that as long as the crack migrates to the outside and there is enough tooth left, she feels there is an 80-90% chance she might save some of the functional tooth with a triple root canal (3 roots on those molars) and cleanup of damage. I am on the fence between authorizing that as this is very expensive and might just delay the inevitable and then have to extract it in a couple years anyway. My pup is a vigorous youthful almost 7 years old, but if she is ok without the tooth, I might just want the bad tooth gone lest she has to go under again as an older dog. Decisions decisions.

Just have it pulled, why put the dog thru more than is needed.

 

[Birdbander]

The older a dog gets, the more complications of declining health come into play regarding surgery and being put under.
If I were in your situation I would go with the less expensive removal now. The dog will not have lasting negative effects.
Imagine if you go with the root canal and several years down the road it needs removed but your dog's health has declined and it wouldn't survive anesthesia. That's a tough spot.

 

[Addicting]

Also vets put animals under every day for numerous procedures without a hiccup. The pulling of that tooth should take no more than 20 min and the dog will be recovering.

Requiring a anesthesiologist is a little overboard for a tooth pull.

 

[kansasdad]

Vertical root fracture’s are the bane of my existence for my human patients. They are very unpredictable and fail more frequently compared to teeth needing root canal treatment due to decay issues. For my patients getting a back tooth endodontically treated, a crown after the root canal is done is a given.

 

[Trial153]

I have dental kit in my kennel, pulled more teeth then could count over the years