Comprehensive Oral Health Assessment and Treatment (COHAT)

After placing a patient under anesthesia a technician performs a complete dental cleaning with an ultrasonic scaler that allows us to efficiently clean the crown of the tooth and most importantly below the gum line.

We use the increasingly popular acronym COHAT (comprehensive oral health assessment and treatment) to refer to our treatments that involve dental cleanings. They are an integral part of a COHAT, but far from the only part of these procedures. We truly believe in the phrase “comprehensive” when evaluating and treating our patients.

• An essential tool of a COHAT is dental radiography. All of our patients have full mouth dental radiographs taken during these procedures. It is impossible to provide quality veterinary dental care without dental x-rays. This vital diagnostic tool allows us to evaluate dental structures under the gum line that are not visible on oral exams. This allows us to diagnose painful conditions that would otherwise go untreated.
• A board-certified veterinary dentist then performs a complete oral examination by evaluating each and every tooth and their surrounding tissues. Perhaps no diagnostic tool is more important than this step of a COHAT.
• If any additional diagnostics are required, a treatment plan is formed and we call you to review this. With your consent, most treatments are completed that day.
• Dental treatments may involve varying degrees of pain. We take this very seriously and do everything to prevent and alleviate pain in our patients. Our staff is passionate about multimodal pain relief and forms a plan together that will minimize pain for your pet during and after dental surgery.
• All of our patients are closely monitored post-operatively until they have recovered enough to go home.
• A detailed and complete discharge plan is reviewed with you. This plan will include digital pictures and radiographs from your pet’s COHAT. We will review and demonstrate home dental care options for you that meet the individual needs of your pet.

Again, we firmly believe in the comprehensive aspect of our dental cleaning procedures with the ultimate goal of improving your pet’s oral health and quality of life.

We offer a pet dental cleaning package.  

The cleaning package includes:

• Complete pet oral exam
• Pre-anesthetic blood panel – We test all pet organ function prior to anesthesia to identify problems and make anesthesia as safe as possible.
• IV Catheter, Fluids, General Anesthesia & Sophisticated Electronic Monitoring – We are highly trained and experienced in pet anesthesia, and you can be assured your dog or cat’s anesthesia will be individualized to their specific needs and your pet will be closely monitored throughout the entire process.
• Digital Veterinary Dental X-rays Radiographs allow us to get a full picture of your pet’s mouth and identify periodontal disease, fractured teeth, or oral cancer that is not visible without x-rays. Digital capabilities allow us to immediately assess the x-rays allowing for shorter anesthetic periods.
• Thorough, professional teeth cleaning & teeth polishing. Polishing the teeth leaves them smooth and less susceptible to rapid accumulation of tartar and bacteria, as can happen with a pet’s tooth is improperly scaled.
• Copies of your pet’s dental X-rays and dental charts.
• Peace of mind knowing your pet is receiving the gold standard in veterinary dental care that can prevent painful dental disease, and save costs down the road.