Charm_333 said:
I know February is dental month at vet clinics -- and I mean, it's a great idea -- but I was just wondering why this is?? -- the consensus I've come up with is that vet clinics slows down in Feb, and therefore dental month with its reduced rates help bring clients in -- but that also brings up an interesting question, on why Febuary is this way ??
Any ideas anyone ??
I think you have a point. From what I could gather, most dog/cat owners book the routine annual appointments in the spring/summer seasons. I attribute this to the fact that the incidence of infections amongst canines for heartworm disease, Lyme disease and other parasitic related infections are logically higher during those seasons. Every year, our vet hospital sent us notices for the heartworm test in early spring. There seems to be a lot more emphasis placed on heartworm disease prevention than oral health care.
When I had a dog, I brought him for his routine visits every late spring for his heartworm test, blood work, canine distemper virus/kennel cough vaccine and every second year for rabies vaccine etc. Unfortunately, we didn't introduce good oral health habits when my dog was a puppy and it was very hard for us to get in his mouth even with the finger brushes. Pomeranians and other small breeds tend to have more tartar build up and periodontal disease. When needed, my dog was put under and his dental work was done. But this was only decided after his routine check up so this dental work was usually done in the summer time.
I don't recall our vet hospital (shared by 3 veterinarians) ever sending us notices about February being Pet Oral Health Month. I suppose they felt no need to do so as this vet hospital was (still is) a flourishing business in my community.
Since dentistry is my profession, I have been exposed to literature which suggests a possible link between periodontal disease and bacterial endocarditis. My vet informed us that that hypothesis has been proposed in dogs as well, particularly the toy breeds.
There has been a lot of focus on heartworm disease (at least here in Canada) while the main illness affecting dogs and cats presently is periodontal disease. Whether the
Pet Oral Health Month is designated in February or another month, educating pet owners on oral health care is very important !
The American Veterinary Dental Society
http://www.avds-online.org/
The Academy of Veterinary Dentistry
http://www.avdonline.org/
