Tavi has his smile back

Debbie Jensen couldn’t bear the thought of her prize-winning Shetland sheepdog going without his bone.

Her dog Tavi, a breed champion, had broken a large tooth in early January and was reduced to eating only soft food.

It happened while Tavi was working over a chew bone. As soon as Tavi broke the tooth, he let out a yelp and ran for the doggie bed, so Jensen knew right away that something was wrong. She looked in his mouth and saw the damage – a slab fracture of a large tooth in the left lower jaw.

The tooth pulp was exposed and the injury was clearly painful for Tavi, who has sired other top Shelties over the years and has competed to win a string of awards in obedience, agility and herding.

“He’s a sweet little guy,” Jensen said.

She took him to the pet emergency clinic for initial treatment and then to her regular veterinarian, Steve Bauer at Latah Creek Companion Animal Hospital.

An extraction was one possibility, but that would have left Tavi with a big gap in his jaw. Plus, an extraction would have required surgery and recovery time. Tavi would have been reduced to eating only soft food. No more bones.

“I would have really worried about the surgery,” Jensen said, explaining that Tavi should live another six years, so she didn’t want him suffering for that long without a major tooth.

She knew that some veterinarians have a sub-specialty in dentistry so she asked Bauer about it. He said he was not qualified to do that kind of work, but that she might ask her personal dentist if he would repair the tooth while Bauer administered anesthesia.

Jensen talked with her dentist, Kenneth M. Collins, who did not hesitate to say yes, she said. He called a friend in Seattle who does dental work for animals at the Woodland Park Zoo to learn about the techniques for animal dentistry, and Bauer had a book on veterinary dentistry at his office.

On Jan. 10, Tavi underwent anesthesia at Bauer’s clinic while Collins used his regular tools to perform a root canal on the three-rooted tooth, and then placed a white resin filling onto the fracture, essentially restoring Tavi’s bite and smile in a single visit. Paula Martinez from Collins’ office assisted.

“Tavi was so happy,” Jensen said. “I had a lot of confidence. … I knew they would do a good job.”

Jensen said her husband, Craig, remarked that Tavi got the twinkle back in his eyes.

Bauer said he had never been involved in dentistry on a dog before, and he described the operation as “an interesting experience.”

“It worked out real well,” Bauer said. “If you look at it, it looks like a real tooth.”

Jensen said that Tavi should live another six years, so the root canal and filling were worth it.

She was fortunate, too, when it came time to pay for the help. Collins told her he was doing the procedures as a challenge and would not charge for it. The veterinary bill was $230. Jensen had expected to pay $1,000 or more.

Collins said that when Jensen first called, he thought the request was weird, but agreed to do it because, he joked, “It fills out my career.”

He said the root canal procedure was very similar to one on a human. “It looked like a long, skinny adult tooth,” Collins said. “When we got done, we just felt so good,” he said.

“If the dog smiles you can’t tell at all,” he added.

Debbie Jensen is vice president of the Spokane Shetland Sheepdog Club, while Craig Jensen is vice president of the Spokane Dog Training Club.

She and her husband travel to Sheltie competitions with Tavi and their other dogs. The Jensens and other owners of competition dogs typically have a higher standard of health care for their pets, she said.

In addition to the root canal and crown, Tavi is under treatment for a sore back. All of the Jensens’ Shelties eat a special diet with nutritional supplements.

And even before Tavi broke his tooth, the dogs were getting regular dental care.

“We brush every night,” Jensen said.