Pet Dental Health Month Is a Leadership Opportunity, Not a Promotion

February always comes fast in veterinary medicine. One minute you are closing the books on the year, and the next you’re staring down Pet Dental Health Month.

Early in my career, I learned this lesson the hard way.

At my first practice, we leaned into February with a deep dental discount. The phones rang nonstop. The schedule filled instantly. The team worked late nights and weekends trying to keep up. Clients said yes, but many had only a surface-level understanding of why dentistry mattered. 

By March, we were exhausted. By April, the dental schedule dropped off a cliff. We had trained clients to wait for a sale rather than value oral health.

Looking back, the problem was not dentistry. It was how we approached it. Pet Dental Health Month isn’t about how many COHATs you can cram into February. It is about how you, as a leader, set the tone for patient care, client education, and sustainable growth for the rest of the year.

Reframing Dental Health Month

Dental disease is one of the most common and most under-treated conditions we see in practice. That makes February a powerful moment to align your entire hospital around one message: Preventive dentistry is essential medicine, not an optional add-on.

In practice, this looks like:

• Giving your team the language and confidence to talk about oral health every day
• Helping clients understand value, not just price
• Protecting your hospital’s capacity, morale, and financial health

When leaders approach February strategically, dentistry becomes a year-round pillar instead of a once-a-year surge.

How to Promote Dental Health Month Without a Discount

You do not need to discount care to increase dental compliance. Here are leadership-driven strategies. 

Elevate Education at Every Touchpoint

Clients rarely say no to dentistry because they do not care. They say no because they do not fully understand.

Use February to:

• Standardize how dental disease is discussed in exams
• Train teams to explain what is happening below the gumline, not just what is visible
• Share before and after photos and dental radiographs when possible

Education turns dentistry from a line item into a medical recommendation.

Empower Your Team

Dentistry can’t live on one person’s shoulders.

Consistency builds trust and trust drives acceptance. To start building trust, make sure:

• Technicians feel confident identifying potential dental issues (calculus, drooling, bruxism, etc) and starting the conversation
• Client service teams know how to reinforce recommendations when scheduling
• Everyone understands the hospital’s dental standards and protocols

Tell Stories, Not Statistics

Plaque percentages and disease stages matter clinically, but stories resonate emotionally.

Encourage your team to share real examples:

• The patient who seemed fine but had severe pain under the gumline
• The senior pet who became more playful after a dental procedure
• The chronic halitosis that turned out to be advanced periodontal disease

Bottom line: stories stick and move clients to act.

If You Do Offer a Discount, Lead with Value

Some hospitals choose to offer a Dental Health Month incentive. That is not wrong, but leadership determines whether it helps or hurts long-term sustainability.

If you discount, consider these principles.

Discount Strategically, Not Deeply

A modest incentive can prompt action without training clients to wait for February.

Options include:

• A limited-time professional services incentive
• A bundled approach that includes diagnostics or follow-up care
• A focus on preventive patients rather than advanced disease only

Tie the Discount to Education

Every discounted dental should still include:

• A clear explanation of findings
• Documentation and visuals in the medical record
• A conversation about ongoing home care and future needs

The discount opens the door. Education ensures it does not close again in March.

Protect Your Team and Schedule

Leadership also means setting boundaries.

Avoid overloading February by:

• Capping the number of discounted procedures per week
• Scheduling dentals consistently throughout the year
• Keeping room for urgent and advanced cases

Burnout helps no one, including your patients.

Helping Clients Say Yes Without Undermining Your Practice

One of the biggest barriers to dental care is not a lack of belief. It is logistics and affordability. This is where tools like MyBalto can make a meaningful difference without forcing hospitals to discount their services.

MyBalto is a 501(c)(3) charitable program that allows clients to round up or donate directly to a hospital-managed fund. The hospital designates an administrative team to oversee the program and determine how and when funds are used. That means support goes directly to pets in your own community, guided by your team’s judgment and values.

From a client’s perspective, the care feels more accessible. From the hospital’s perspective, the dental service is still fully paid. No price cutting. No erosion of value.

From a day-to-day standpoint, this matters because:

• Clients gain access to needed care through community-supported funds
• Teams feel empowered to help without negotiating or apologizing for pricing
• Hospitals maintain financial stability while improving dental compliance

Programs like MyBalto allow practices to support patients and clients in a real, tangible way while preserving the integrity of their medical recommendations. It is not about discounting dentistry. It is about removing barriers while keeping care sustainable.

Keeping Dental Health Front and Center After February

The real success of Dental Health Month is measured in April, June, and October.

To keep dentistry a year-round priority:

• Add oral health checks to every wellness exam
• Track dental recommendations and follow-ups
• Celebrate dental wins in team meetings
• Share ongoing client education through newsletters and social media

Most importantly, reinforce that dentistry is not seasonal - it is foundational. Pet Dental Health Month is not about being slammed in February and slow the rest of the year. 

When the focus stays on education, value, and sustainability, dentistry stops being a promotion and becomes what it should be: excellent medicine, delivered consistently in a way your team can sustain.

If February is your reset moment, let it be the start of a stronger, smarter approach to dental care that lasts all year long.