TECH cleaning verse VET cleaning

Many veterinarians allow technicians with minimal or no training to perform their dental cleanings, an unfortunate epidemic in veterinary medicine. Whereas human dental hygienists are specially licensed and highly trained, in veterinary medicine, anyone hired as a “vet tech” is allowed to perform dental procedures. Dental scaling, polishing, probing, and charting also require special education to be performed safely. Also, a deep understanding of dental and oral anatomy is essential to avoid undo pain and harm from unlicensed and untrained employees.

A second and even more serious epidemic involves unlicensed individuals performing dental surgery, including tooth removals. This practice occurs "behind the scenes" where pet owners likely do not know that non-veterinarians are performing oral care and surgery on their pets. Veterinarians who allow this in their practices put their reputations, licenses, and patients' health at risk.