21/08/2026
🦷 Advanced Dental Care Close to Home 🦷
Bolt, a lovely 5-year-old Boxer, came to Heath Vets for a routine dental procedure with our own veterinary team.
As part of every thorough dental assessment, dental radiographs were taken under anaesthetic. These x-rays revealed an unexpected finding: a large dentigerous cyst affecting her lower jaw.
A dentigerous cyst is a fluid-filled sac that develops around an unerupted tooth. Although benign, these cysts can slowly expand over time, destroying surrounding bone and potentially affecting neighbouring teeth. Often, they remain hidden beneath the gumline and can only be detected with dental radiography.
👉 In the x-ray image, the arrows highlight the large dark area where healthy jaw bone would normally be present. This illustrates why dental radiographs are such an important part of veterinary dentistry, as significant disease can exist below the surface with few or no visible signs.
Following this diagnosis, we worked with our visiting dental referral service, Holmes Vet Dentistry, to plan and perform the surgical treatment required. By offering referral services within the practice, we were able to provide advanced dental care in a familiar setting, with continuity between our own team and the referral clinician.
We're delighted to report that surgery was successful and beautiful Bolt is recovering brilliantly. In fact, she's already back to playing with her favourite toys! 🐶❤️
Cases like Bolt's highlight the benefits of the referral services available at Heath Vets:
✅ Advanced procedures performed at your local practice
✅ Continuity of care with the Heath Vets team you know and trust
✅ Less travel and stress for pets and their owners
✅ Collaborative case management between our vets and referral clinicians
As an independent practice serving Burgess Hill and West Sussex, we're proud to offer a range of referral services that help pets access advanced care in a familiar environment.
