Cat teeth

[sooty&splodge]

Hello everyone - this is my first post!

I have two healthy rescue cats both now almost 4 years old. When they had their annual checkup at the vet round Christmas time she commented that their teeth and gums were not in good condition. Apparently this may have been because they were not cared for properly when they were kittens (before they moved in with me of course).

The vet suggested that some time this year we should arrange for their teeth to be properly cleaned. I am a bit reluctant to do this as it involves a general anaesthetic. I wonder if anyone has had this done for their cats and has any comments or suggestions as to whether it is a good thing?

[AmberLee]

Welcome to Pet Talk!

Sorry, I haven't had my cat's teeth cleaned professionally. Others here have and I hope they will chime in with the info you are looking for.

I do give them dental cleaning treats regularly and :rolleyes: when I am willing to fight them, brush their teeth. There is a relatively recent post with people discussing ways of brushing, etc. Although my Cassy is not crazy about having his teeth touched, he does enjoy both the seafood and malt flavors of cat toothpaste, which helps slightly.

Good luck!

[sasvermont]

I have had cats for many years now. Not many at one time, it is just that I am old! hehehehehehe. Anyway, I have had a few of my cats' teeth cleaned from time to time, but vowed this time (2 new cats) that I would being a weekly teeth cleaning routine. They don't mind it now. I clip their nails too! So what I would do is have their teeth cleaned (not cheap) and then get them into a routine of cleaning them every so often. The toothpaste etc is not expensive and they rather like the flavors! I use one flavor as a treat, to lure them into the process and then the other flavor to do the deed. They don't mind it and their teeth and gums are fine right now. Gotta stay on top of the teeth! Good luck. By the way, any pet supply place sells kits to clean cat's teeth.

:p

[Randi]

Sooty & Plodge! Welcome to PT. We don't have many members from the UK. I'm danish, living with my husband from Berkshire.

Out cat Fister had his teeth cleaned for the first time recently, he is 5 years old. It was also his first time to the vet, but all went well. We hesitated at first, because he's very diffficult to get in the transportbox, have to sedate him every time. :( We have only recently been able to lift him - just long enough to weigh him, (7,5 kg) but he's beginning to acccept it now. The reason is that he lived his first year in our backyard.

You should really get his teeth cleaned, he'll feel much better afterwards. Good luck! :)

See this! (http://64.246.0.213/talk/showthread.php?s=&threadid=8830)

[sooty&splodge]

Thanks everyone for the welcome and the advice.

I think I will speak to the vet and make arrangements.

Randi - Fister sounds like a big cat at 7.5kg! :eek:

Sooty, my smaller cat, weighs in at 5kg, his bigger brother Splodge tips the scales at 5.8kg. They are both very greedy so I have to keep a constant eye on their weight :rolleyes:

[squills]

Originally posted by SpencerTheLion
I have heard that tuna helps to clean the teeth, but it's not a good idea to feed it daily. Too much tuna is bad for the kidneys.

Well, now, that's very interesting. I have heard of using tuna juice on a toothbrush to get the cat used to the brush, but I have never heard of tuna cleaning a cat's teeth. I have also heard of vitamin B toxicity in cats resulting from a diet too heavy in tuna processed for humans, and I have heard that a diet heavy in protein from any source is controversial in humans and animals that already have kidney disease, but I have never heard of tuna being bad for the kidneys. In fact, it is sometimes recommended for cats who are in advanced CRF with no appetite to coax them to eat.

Do you have any cites for these facts? I'd like to check them out. Stuff changes every day!

[krazyaboutkatz]

Welcome to Pet Talk Sooty & Plodge. I hope you like it here as much as I do. My cat Storm had his teeth cleaned in Jan. of this year. He's 6 years old and he was fine. He used to eat a lot of wet food. Now I only feed my cats dry food. It's much better for their teeth. I was trying to brush their teeth three times a week but I haven't kept it up.:( Bad Mom.

[sooty&splodge]

Thanks for the welcome KrazyaboutKats!

I would post more with some pictures of Sooty & Splodge but I can't seem to get my scanner working!

I was interested to hear you feed your cats dried food only. Is that what most people on Pet Talk do? Mine don't really like it and I feel guilty not giving them canned meat which they much prefer.

Dried would probably be better for their teeth though...

[Tubby & Peanut's Mom]

Tubby and Peanut have only gotten dry food their entire lives. I didn't want to start them on the canned stuff because when I first got them there was no way I could afford to buy canned. Both have teeth that are in great shape except Peanut somehow "lost" one of her "fangs" and Tubby has horrenously bad breath which means he needs to have them cleaned, but they are good strong teeth for a 14 and 16 year old. :)

[moosmom]

My 13 year old Maine Coon is going into have her teeth cleaned on June 4. She will not touch dry food. The vet said her teeth are pretty gunked up and her gums were red and puffy. My only concern is her making it through the procedure because of her age. I'm going to check with the vet before hand just to make sure she feels Lokie will be okay. Maybe then I can start giving her dry food. I hate feeding any of my cats canned food. It's messy, it smells and the cans are a pain in the patootie.

[Pickle]

Hi Sooty & Splodge

My cat went to the hospital on Monday to have her teeth cleaned and a couple of badly inflamed teeth removed. We adopted her a year ago, she is 7 years old, I guess her previous owners didn't get her teeth looked at. :(

She came out of the general anasthetic fine, although it's long lasting and she was dozy and a bit un-coordinated in the evening. It took her a day or so to be back to eating normally but she is doing really well now and the stitches will dissolve in time.

I recommend getting teeth cleaned as the vet told me that cats inherit bad teeth just like people and it can be very painful for them! So from now on my cat is going for 6 months checks with the dental nurse - just like me! :)

[AmberLee]

Welcome, Pickle!

[Randi]

Hi Pickle and welcome! :) Where in Berkshire are you from? My husband is from Maidenhead, it's changed a lot since he lived there though!

I agree on having your cats teeth cleaned at least once a year. Our cat (Fister) had quite bad teeth - and bad breath. He had two teeth out and a good cleaning. After that, he was just perfect!! :D

By the way, your cat looks a lot like Fister's mum. She is beautiful!! ;)

[kittykay]

Hello, you are right to worry somewhat about general anaesthesia, cuz it's hard on all animals, people included. But it's the only game in town and dental care is so very important. I never realized that a cat's teeth could go bad til I adopted my darling Genevieve. I adopted her at the age of five and when I took her in for her first vet check, the vet discovered lots of problems with her teeth (this is a vet I trust, by the way!). He had to remove SEVEN!! She was happy as a clam after that, even the black discharge in her eyes went away forever. She always was slow to wake up after a general, but when she did, she was her old self again. I wish you happiness with your darling cat!

[Athenian]

Hi Friends

I took my 13 yr old cat who is very healthy to the vet on Monday, just for shots and an antibiotic shot before the cleaning, brought her home and she is in a bad mood and depressed. She has some major tartar on her teeth that needs to be cleaned. I am taking her in on Friday for the cleaning. Do cats remain in a bad mood after the cleaning, or do you think her depressive state now is due to the tartar that is affecting her ?

[kittykay]

Dear Athenian: Sounds more like the antibiotic might be stressing her a little. Antibiotics can do that, not only to cats but people too. Or maybe she's just ticked about the vet visit and needs to get over that. I'd put my money on the antibiotic though! She'll be fine again when the course of medicine is over if that's the case. Good luck!

[Freedom]

One of my cats had such extensive gum disease and at least one tooth abcessed. She was not mine at the time, prior owner was an elderly lady. So it IS important to keep up with dental care, as a preventative just as humans do. Ruffles' gums and teath were cleaned, several teeth removed, and she was on antibiotics for a time. She was miserable and unhappy. Vet said it was because the elderly woman fed her canned food at least once a day all her life. This happened when Ruffles was 13, and about 3 months before she came to live with me.

I give them half a can of food once a week up to age 7 or 8, then twice a week to increase their fluid intake. So most of the time, they are on dry food, and no treats, which are soft.

I have had cats in for dental visits several times, always worry about the anesthesia. For older cats, my vet does more extensive blood work prior to the teeth cleaning, and also insists on fluids and . . . something else.

Hope this helps.
Freedom

[labmomma]

I just had one of my cats to the vet last week for teeth cleaning. He has always had bad breath and now that is gone. The cleaning cost me $120.00 but was worth it. I'm now giving tartar control treats to all three several times a day.

[Jess's_mum]

Hello everyone, this is my first post. I've just brought my cat back from the vets. I took her this morning as her eye has been weeping a lot lately. The vet looked in her mouth and showed me the state of her teeth and I was horrified. :eek: So, he kept her in to clean them and ended up removing one. She also has a slight ear infection and the vet thinks this, combined with her bad tooth have caused her eye to be sore. She is 9 and has always prefered wet food. I always thought she was in good health, but she was probably in pain with her tooth and her ear. I'm definitely going to get her mouth and ears checked regularly from now on!


I doubt very much she will let me brush her teeth. Does anyone know if the dental chews you can buy are effective?

thanks
Louise