Dental Cleaning and ACE

Question
Hi, I realize this might not be in your area of expertise, but since you see a wide variety of dogs and owners come in with their dogs, maybe you have heard of this issue before.

Our female American Eskimo is 7 years old and seems relatively healthy.  She has never had any issues so far.  She is scheduled for her very first dental cleaning.  Her teeth are dirty and her gums are red.  We have been postponing her dental cleaning because we are afraid the cleaning will release bacteria and cause other issues, however we know her teeth do need to be cleaned else they will cause other different issues in the very near future.  

Our breeder says we should not have ACE (acepromazine) the relaxant used in conjunction with the anesthesia.  She says generally white dogs should not use ACE.  She is the only resource that has said this that I can find.  Our breeder is a very well respected breeder.  One of her dogs had a very bad reaction to ACE, though I don't remember what happened specifically.  Because our dog is related to the dog who had the bad reaction, we hope to not have ACE used on her during the dental cleaning.

The vet we are working with says they are ok with not using ACE, and also say there isn't a substitute medicine.  

I wouldn't expect you to know specifically about ACE and anesthesia, but have you heard from any dog owners about issues they've had with doggie dental cleaning or medicines given to their dogs?

Thank you.

Answer
Hello Elise, Yes I have, there are some breeds that are more sensitive to anesthesia than others.  I am not familiar with ACE, but do know that older dogs and some breeds do better when they are put in a "tank" and gassed.  This is a much safer alternative to the IV injection.  Ask your vet about this and if they do not do this, ask other vets in your area.  Again if you trust your vet, then take his advice over others.  Thanks for asking, Cindy Lou :)