Ed. Note: The following content was provided by Cinema Veterinary Centre, who is a client of KHTS AM-1220.

Many Santa Clarita veterinarians and clinics are offering special dental cleaning packages for both dogs and cats throughout the month of February in honor of National Pet Dental Health Month.

Some pet owners may not know that without regular dental cleanings, pets are at risk of developing periodontal disease that often leads to kidney, liver and heart problems if left untreated.

“Both dogs and cats need dental health checkups just like people do, and because February is National Pet Dental Health Month it’s a great opportunity to go and get that done,” said Dr. Jaimie Ronchetto of Cinema Veterinary Centre in Valencia.

Related: Santa Clarita Veterinarian Discusses Common Puppy Problems

“The bacteria load in the mouth can certainly shed through the bloodstream and affect other organs,” she continued. “We see kidney, liver and heart problems stemming from bad periodontal disease, so keeping the teeth clean can help with that bacteria.”

Pets are placed under anesthesia for the procedure, which allows the veterinarian to perform a much more thorough cleaning.

“Teeth are very much like an iceberg, so what you see is really just the tip. There can be a lot going on underneath the gum line that you can’t see without probing and scaling underneath the gum line and taking dental x-rays to see what the roots look like,” Ronchetto said. “We want to make sure the teeth are healthy from the top to the bottom.”

For instance, it’s not uncommon for a tooth to look perfectly healthy and have a dental x-ray reveal an abscess at the root, which requires the tooth to be extracted.

While some pet owners may opt for non-anesthetic dental cleanings instead, the results simply aren’t the same.

“It’s very limited to what the animal will allow them to do because they’re awake,” Ronchetto said. “In my opinion it’s just better to have them put under anesthesia. We take every risk into consideration; it’s really very safe.”

Precautionary steps veterinarians should take before placing pets under anesthesia include pre-anesthetic bloodwork, a full exam and discussing any pre-existing conditions with the owner.

Ronchetto recommends dogs and cats receive anesthetic dental cleanings every six months to a year, depending on the pet.

“It depends on the breed and what they’re prone to,” she said. “Some dogs are just really more susceptible to periodontal disease… That’s just a part of their genetics.”

Cinema Veterinary Centre

23460 Cinema Drive

Valencia, CA 91355

661-253-9300