My senior dog has a tooth abscess. What antibiotics should she take?

I'm sorry to hear that. Giving antibiotics will only be a temporary fix. If she has an abscessed tooth, it is because the tooth is the problem. I'm not sure why your veterinarian thought 8 years was too old, but perhaps Sadie has other medical problems I am not aware of. Antibiotics could temporarily help, but unfortunately, I would suspect once the antibiotics were stopped, it will open back up and start draining again. I recommend trying to save up, or searching online to see if there happens to be a low cost income based clinic in your area, so that the tooth can be removed. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

If Sid does have a tooth root abscess, he will likely need to have the tooth extracted. This will require anesthesia. At the same time, the rest of the teeth can be evaluated and xrayed and then cleaned to prevent or slow the progression of periodontal disease. Antibiotics alone may not be sufficient to resolve the condition. Even though he is a senior pet, a complete physical exam along with blood work will allow your veterinarian to tailor the anesthetic protocol for maximum safety. Medicating Sid without the advice of your veterinarian would not be recommended. Inappropriate antibiotic use may lead to resistant bacteria and may complicate any underlying condition.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. That really depends, as there are several appropriate choices. If it is tooth or periodontal disease related, clindamycin is often used. However, there is a HUGE dose range for this so please talk to your vet about the right dosing and medication - otherwise you'll end up wasting your money for little effect - or causing serious side effects. Of course, if it is tooth or periodontal disease related - the only cure is usually an anesthetized dental cleaning and removal of diseased teeth. Best wishes to you and Monster!

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! You can give the probiotic while you are giving the clindamycin. The dose of clindamycin for dental abscesses is: 5.5-33mg/kg by mouth every 12 hours. He is receiving 25mg/kg, I hope this helps!

I have done long term antibiotic therapy in select cases of dental disease. It can be effective. However I have also seen patients Marquis's age handle anesthesia and tooth extraction well too. If possible sometimes a referral to a veterinarian experienced with geriatric dental disease is helpful as they may be able to address the tooth itself safely and then antibiotics are not needed long term.

I wouldn't say that you can rule out an abscess, on the contrary, if it got better after antibiotic treatment, it's likely to be a tooth abscess. the antibiotic may solve the problem but you cannot know in advance, you need to finish the antibiotic course and wait a few weeks to see if it comes back or not. if it comes back he will need a dental procedure, and by the way he is nowhere too old for anesthesia, a few weeks ago one of my oldest patients, a cat 23 years of age, went through a small procedure under general anesthesia without any issues.

Clavamox is the most commonly used antibiotic in the world for dog bites (also in humans by the way). it's rare but sometimes clavamox won't work in such a case, my next antibiotic choices would be Metronidazole or Cephalexin. you will still need to get them from your vet though.