Advice on Dental Treatment for my Middle Aged Buddies

[catguy81]

Hi, I have a 7 and 8 year old. Both healthy males. One has some obvious plaque and occasional sensitivity. The other, nothing obvious.

I don't brush their teeth because they won't let me, so I was thinking of having the vet and techs give them a good proper deep clean.

Is this advisable? Are they put fully under? Is it dangerous?

Thank you for any wise words.

 

[maggie101]

My cat has had it done twice. There have been no side affects to sedation. I would get it done. Plaque does not go away. It will get worse and cost more

 

[Furballsmom]

I agree with maggie101, it is definitely advisable, plus dental issues left untreated can have bad effects on other organs such as the heart. My cats have their teeth cleaned as necessary, sometimes once a year, sometimes the time between can go longer.

 

[iPappy]

Hi, I have a 7 and 8 year old. Both healthy males. One has some obvious plaque and occasional sensitivity. The other, nothing obvious.

I don't brush their teeth because they won't let me, so I was thinking of having the vet and techs give them a good proper deep clean.

Is this advisable? Are they put fully under? Is it dangerous?

Thank you for any wise words.

For true dentals, they are fully put under.
I would suggest asking your vet to run a blood panel on them before, so you can see if there are any problems developing that would make it a danger. Most vets recommend this anyway for the safety of the pet. If they haven't had blood work done in awhile, now would be a good time so you have a baseline for them as they age.
If you decide to do this, once their mouths are clean and no longer sore (this usually takes less than a week) it might be a good idea to at least try to get them used to handling their mouths, even just a little so you can keep a check on their teeth a little closer. It's much easier to do this when their teeth and gums are clean and healthy vs. not, as the occasional sensitivity one of your cats is showing could explain why he doesn't want his mouth handled.

 

[rawlins02]

I recently read that, provided blood work comes back OK, the risk of complications with general anesthesia is around 0.1%.

 

[happilyretired]

Just keep in mind that as with any procedure involving anesthesia, there are risks. One of my cats actually had his trachea slit during a 'routine' dental cleaning, and I had to bring him back TWICE before the vets realized what had happened. The senior vet told me that he was surprised this had happened, as their most experienced vet techs were monitoring the procedure. So things CAN happen.

At that same practice, the vet owner would not let either of his cats have routine cleanings because he believed the dangers vs benefits weighed toward the former. He would only have work done if there were dental problems.