Medical advice wanted: Has anyone ever owned a dog with a tooth in it's nose canal??

Hi everyone... I have a Jack Russell male who liked fence fighting (we have secured all those spots so he cannot do it anymore). 2 years ago he got into a fence fight with a bigger dog, and the bigger dog bit down just the right way to push one of Apollo's canine teeth up into his nose canal. Our vet was able to stitch his nose and mouth up, but he didn't want to remove the tooth as he felt he didn't want to mess around with the nerves there. So the tooth is still in there, and he sounds like a pug sometimes. His breath is extremely bad these days, and tomorrow he is booked for another dental at our vet, but I'm worried that it could be the tooth in his nose giving him trouble. I'd just like to hear your opinion please. Could that tooth be the problem?

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4meAndyou · F

Since your vet was concerned about nerve damage, I would trust him or her. I definitely think it's the tooth, but I also think you don't want your dog to be in pain all the time. Next time you see the vet, you could ask about a specialist veterinary surgeon who does nothing but surgery. See if one exists. If there is such a thing, you might want to have the surgeon look at the dog.

PennyandApollo · 26-30

@4meAndyou Thank you for your response, I definitely do not want him to be uncomfortable or in pain, but I think we all hoped that everything would heal around the tooth in such a way that it wouldn't become a problem. I live in a very rural area so there aren't many vets around, but I'll definitely ask my vet tomorrow when I take Apollo to go get his teeth cleaned if he believes that it has become a problem again and if he can refer me to a specialist, if we have one around somewhere...

Thank you again.

Majorlatency · M

@4meAndyou You have raised a very important point. Not all veterinarians have certified surgical skills. They often perform surgery without the thorough knowledge especially when you're dealing with very delicate matters. Please seek out a Surgical Specialist trained in these types of operations.

4meAndyou · F

@PennyandApollo @Majorlatency Yes, I became aware of that with my previous cat. He had been a rescue, and I found out at my vet that he had a rod placed in his hind leg. He may have been hit by a car.

It began to weep up on his back, and the vet removed the rod, which was no longer needed, and I had to wonder what the vet who installed the rod was thinking. It looked as though he had take wire snips and just snipped some off, but did nothing to soften the sharp, pointed end which stuck up into the cat's back. No thought to what that would feel like. Eventually, a tumor grew on that spot, and it killed my cat.

Majorlatency · M

@4meAndyou sorry to hear that..

PennyandApollo · 26-30

@4meAndyou I'm very sorry to hear about your loss...
This is why I wanted some advice, I know bad teeth can be the death of pets... And I really do not want to loose him because of my ignorance... I'm just not sure if the tooth in his nose cavity would/could rot... In my simple mind with everything the vet told me, I think/thought that everything will just heal around it and the tooth will be enclosed, I thought that the tooth would be protected against decaying by the tissue around it... I'm starting to think I misunderstood or something...

4meAndyou · F

@PennyandApollo In a perfect world, the tooth would eventually be absorbed. You can't really count on that, though..

PennyandApollo · 26-30

@4meAndyou that is true yes... Thank you again, I truly appreciate it.