Orion & Marrow Bones
January 2005

Well, about a month ago Orion was chewing on an old marrow bone. I probably shouldn't have let him keep it, once he cleaned it out. But, he loves to bat it around, and make it fly like a hockey puck. I was at the computer with him by my side, when I heard this CRACK! I just had this feeling, and went to check his mouth. At first, I didn't see anything. But, on further inspection, I saw he had broken one of his top incisors, the one next to the canine. He didn't seem to be in any pain, and kept eating as usual. But, just to be sure, I took him to the vet's. The vet referred me to a vet dentist.

To make a long story short, Orion had to have a root canal done to his tooth today, at a cost of $621.00! The vet dentist gave me 3 choices. Do nothing, and because some of the pulp was exposed, he said the tooth would probably abscess in about a year, causing an infection. Extract the tooth. Or do the root canal. Because I'm still hoping those darn ears will go up someday, and I'll be able to show him again, I opted for the root canal. The receptionist and I were talking and she said the extraction would have cost almost as much as the root canal, but would have been much more painful to Orion.

After his procedure, the vet's office didn't have a kennel big enough to recover Orion in. So, they brought him out still under the effects of the anesthesia. My poor baby could hardly walk, and kept falling down, and banging on the walls. One of the techs helped me take him out to the van. I took his front end, and she took the rear end, and we both walked him to the van. Then, I helped him get in. Once home, we sat in the driveway for a while, waiting until he could get down safely.

So, now Orion's tooth is fixed. But, he will no longer be able to chew on marrow bones, Nylabones, or cow hoofs. The receptionist said to me they only recommend the Nylabones for puppies when they're teething. Definitely no rawhides, as those tend to break in pieces and can cause intestinal obstructions. So, for those of you who give your dogs marrow bones, take them away once the meat and marrow is gone!

I don't think my credit card is going to recover from this one, for a long, long time.