Cat lost her tooth and there is a hole in her gum!

[remmiebrandt]

My cat yelled &  I thought maybe it was a squirmish with the other cat so I went to pick her up but she was howling and pawed at her mouth. I calmed her down then while she was sitting I looked and saw there was a bloody hole then looked around and found her tooth - it must have just happened. Meanwhile she ran to her dish and I gave her canned food - no chunks - and she ate the whole thing and then went to lay down. Money is tight but I'm not sure if she an anti-biotic or something? Her gums are bad - she was a street cat when I took her in about 5 years ago so I guess she was eating bad food scavaged but she's been mine about 5 years now and gained weight - she's about 15 pounds. Thoughts?

 

[detmut]

about how old do you think your cat is?

 

[BonitaBaby]

Definitely get her antibiotics, otherwise it could develop into a nasty infection. My cat was a street cat before she got rescued and has bad teeth (4 had to be surgically extracted before I adopted her). She's getting her dental cleaning right now. If money's tight though, that might not be an option for you...but you definitely want antibiotics right now for the tooth that fell out.

 

[catladyvettech]

I'd definitely recommend a visit to the vet. She may need antibiotics to prevent an infection and while you're there ask how much it is for a dental cleaning. Ask if they offer payment plans (most vets don't but it never hurts to ask) and see if they accept Care Credit. It's a medical credit card you can use at vets and some human doctors too. You can apply online and with purchases over $200 they give you 6 months to pay with deferred interest. It's a really neat option for large/unexpected vet bills and I have it for my cats.

 

[nansiludie]

Also since the tooth just fell out, was it black? I am worried about there being a hole like that, also she may need other extractions or cleaning at least. Can you look into Care Credit?

 

[pharber-murphy]

I agree with everyone else - she probably needs antibiotics. My Mr. Grimsby had a really nasty infected tooth. The vet pulled it although the infection was still active, and he developed septicemia (sp?). He was in hospital on intravenous antibiotics for a full week afterwards. Don't delay! Please get her to a vet as soon as you can!

And please keep us posted on her progress.

Best regards.

 

[remmiebrandt]

Thanks everyone - I decided to wait and watch - apparently she is fine. She is eating - the first couple days I gave her only smooth food but she wanted some chicken I was eating last night so I broke it up really small for her - took her a little while spitting out pieces until she adjusted since it was that long front tooth that came out - but she got it down. She exhibits no pain and lets me rub a little coconut oil - I also put a bit of salt water on the tip of her nose and let her lick it off the first day - there seems to be no excess bleeding or sensitvity and I see no signs of swelling so I think I'm just going to leave well enough for now. I wish I'd seen how it happened exactly but she did always have gingervitis since I got her and I did once put her on antibiotics about a year ago to clear up mouth sores so I guess this is just a result of years of street living. I've really no idea how old she is - she was an adult when I found her and that was about 6 years ago - she could be anywhere from 8 to 20  I guess. Thank you all for your concern. I will continue to keep a close watch on her though.

 

[pharber-murphy]

You know, cats are very good at hiding pain. I took Bertha to the vet last Monday because the Thursday before I noticed a lump on her lower lip. The vet excised it and sent it to the lab for biopsy (nothing there, thank goodness). When he called to give me the results, he nearly read me the riot act for not bringing her in that weekend. I figured it wasn't an emergency and it didn't seem to bother her anyway. He told me she must have been in a lot of pain, although she was eating normally and wasn't pawing at her mouth or anything.

So, if you can afford to take your cat to the vet on Monday for a quick check-up, it may be better for her. If there is an active infection and it gets into her bloodstream, you're either looking at hefty vet bills to hospitalize her or saying goodbye to your kitty. Better safe than sorry, as they say.

Best regards.