08/10/2026
🦷 Anesthesia-Free Dental Cleanings: Why We Don’t Recommend Them
You may have seen advertisements for “anesthesia-free” pet dental cleanings. They can sound appealing, especially because they avoid anesthesia and may cost less upfront. But when it comes to your pet’s dental health, what you see on the surface is only part of the picture.
Here’s why veterinary professionals recommend dental cleanings performed under anesthesia:
🔹 Most dental disease occurs below the gumline. Plaque, tartar, infection, and bone loss can be hidden where you simply can't see them. Anesthesia allows the veterinary team to thoroughly clean above and below the gumline.
🔹 Dental X-rays are essential. Many painful dental problems—including tooth root disease, infection, and bone loss—aren't visible just by looking at the teeth. X-rays allow us to evaluate the entire tooth, including the roots.
🔹 Pets need to be still for a thorough cleaning. Scaling requires specialized instruments and precision. Anesthesia allows us to safely examine and clean each tooth without causing fear, stress, or accidental injury.
🔹 Polishing matters! Scaling can leave microscopic scratches on the enamel. Polishing smooths the tooth surface and helps reduce the buildup of plaque afterward.
🔹 We can treat problems—not just remove tartar. If a tooth is fractured, infected, painful, or needs to be extracted, we can identify and address the problem during an anesthetized dental procedure.
💰 It may actually save you money in the long run.
An anesthesia-free cleaning may cost less initially, but if dental disease below the gumline cannot be properly evaluated or treated, problems can go undetected. By the time they become obvious, your pet may require more extensive, and potentially more expensive, dental treatment. A comprehensive dental procedure allows us to identify problems early, when they may be easier and less costly to address.
Our goal isn't simply to make your pet's teeth LOOK clean, we want their mouth to BE healthy.
We understand that anesthesia can be a concern for pet owners. That's why your veterinarians evaluate your pet's health beforehand and take appropriate precautions to make anesthesia as safe as possible.
If you have questions about your pet's dental health or you're wondering if they are due for a dental cleaning, give us a call at 303-973-8070.
For more information on the risks of anesthesia free cleanings, please visit https://afd.avdc.org/
