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- Apr 2, 2011
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My Johnny just turned 11 this month, which I know is up in age for cats. He's had a heart murmur since he was born, which has been ultrasounded and he is supposedly 'okay'. Today I found a big tooth (one of the side ones, not the front 'fangs') in the food bowl. He's lost a whole bunch of the little teethies over the past few years but not a big one. And he's had a hard time eating dry food for a while now (I've been feeding him wet to make up for it). He's also had pretty fowl breath for a long time.
I was reading a few other posts about teeth falling out and so far all I've gathered is that I definitely should bring him into the vet to make sure he doesn't have an infection in the hole where the tooth came from. I can't get him to open his mouth enough to get a good look at his gums to see if they're red, swollen, etc. I don't want to touch his mouth too much if it hurts.
Basically before I bring him into the vet I'd like to be informed, I haven't been able to find a vet I feel comfortable with/trust so I'd just like to know any and everything I can before I go in (aka before they start pumping him full of who knows what, for no reason). Also, since Johnny does have a heart condition and he's older, I was hoping I could find some honest opinions on how serious this is, and if there's a possibility that he doesn't have much longer. He's my first and best cat, he's very dear to me. I've had him since he was a kitten, since I was 13. Seeing one of his big ole teeth all dried and bloody is upsetting
.
I've included links to a few pics of his tooth to see if maybe someone can tell what caused the tooth to fall out. (Just old age, gingivitis, bad teeth due to poor blood circulation, etc?) Thanks all for reading and looking.
Large files, not dialup friendly.
http://i51.tinypic.com/30v24ap.jpg
http://i51.tinypic.com/14m9e06.jpg
http://i52.tinypic.com/24qjsxx.jpg
I was reading a few other posts about teeth falling out and so far all I've gathered is that I definitely should bring him into the vet to make sure he doesn't have an infection in the hole where the tooth came from. I can't get him to open his mouth enough to get a good look at his gums to see if they're red, swollen, etc. I don't want to touch his mouth too much if it hurts.
Basically before I bring him into the vet I'd like to be informed, I haven't been able to find a vet I feel comfortable with/trust so I'd just like to know any and everything I can before I go in (aka before they start pumping him full of who knows what, for no reason). Also, since Johnny does have a heart condition and he's older, I was hoping I could find some honest opinions on how serious this is, and if there's a possibility that he doesn't have much longer. He's my first and best cat, he's very dear to me. I've had him since he was a kitten, since I was 13. Seeing one of his big ole teeth all dried and bloody is upsetting
I've included links to a few pics of his tooth to see if maybe someone can tell what caused the tooth to fall out. (Just old age, gingivitis, bad teeth due to poor blood circulation, etc?) Thanks all for reading and looking.
Large files, not dialup friendly.
http://i51.tinypic.com/30v24ap.jpg
http://i51.tinypic.com/14m9e06.jpg
http://i52.tinypic.com/24qjsxx.jpg