Dental disease is one of the most prevalent and underdiagnosed causes of chronic pain in companion animals, with significant welfare implications for dogs, cats, and exotic pets.
Dental disease causes chronic, significant pain that owners frequently miss because animals continue to eat despite discomfort - they have no alternative. The welfare impact of untreated periodontal disease, tooth root abscesses, and fractured teeth is substantial and continuous. Regular professional dental assessment with cleaning under anaesthesia when required, combined with daily home tooth brushing, represents the highest standard of dental welfare care. The welfare cost of dental anaesthesia fear must be weighed against the far greater welfare cost of untreated chronic dental pain.