Chumley goes in for his dental Tuesday

[ldg]

...his non-anesthetic dental, I should say.

When we were in last month, I forgot to bring the info I printed out from the http://www.fivtherapy. site. His (holistic) vet asked us to just send it to her. So we have a half hour consult with her to discuss what we're going to do going forward... and then we'll start to tackle his gingivitis by beginning with the dental.

I was supposed to try treating his gums with honey... but I can't do it! I have a baby tooth brush AND a finger cover kind of brush... and he loves being "petted" with both on his cheeks - but his gums are sensitive. He loves eating the babyfood that got wiped on him - kind of on his gums.

I started trying to train him with the babyfood... But I'm NOT good at this, so we'll also have to discuss other options after he gets his dental... if they're able to do it!

But Chum is doing GREAT! He doesn't overgroom at all anymore, he's not itchy/scratchy, his fur is all grown back in - except on his abdomen, and even there it's almost all the way grown back. He's getting more and more comfortable here, and moves around with much more ease than he did.

He is SUCH a playful boy, and purrs a lot now with the head rubs we give him. He still doesn't like hands very much... which is part of why Tuesday morning is going to be so .... interesting.

 

[strange_wings]

Is he likely to bite you if you stick a finger in his mouth? If he's mannered enough not to do that, sit on the floor, put him in your lap, use your left hand (unless you're left handed, then use your right) to hold his face and gently open his mouth. Use your pointer finger on your other hand to smear the honey on his gums. Maybe have Gary squirt the honey on your finger or have it in a dish and dip it out. The quicker you get this done and let him go, the better he'll put up with it.

Are you just supposed to rub it on the gums a little and that's enough? If so a few quick swipes like this will get it on there. You can work up to brushing by holding him the same way. Give some sort of treat/reward after.

Though if you think he's a nipper, then all bets are off. I know some adult former strays are missing some of those manners and are a bit rough at times since nature taught them some lessons house cats usually don't get.

...though, I think some of mine would willingly lick honey off of my fingers.

One thing they all seems to love, sour cream and cream cheese. I don't know if your boy would be trainable with either of these.

 

[pami]

Awww that sweet smiley Face Chumley

Sending lots of loving vibes that way for a smooth visit.....

Let me know how the procedure goes, I am curious about it.

 

[carolina]

Pami!!! Great to see you making your way back to TCS - we have missed you around for sure

Laurie..................... Awie! I looked through the sites, but couldn't find the advantages of doing a dental without anesthetics - can you enlighten us? God, I can't ever imagine doing that, but I suppose they do something for pain control? what about controlling him on the table?
My mom does root canal without anesthesia - her eye lift was also done awake, without one - she HATES needles (evidently not a problem with cutting)

This thread made me think of her

I just wonder it, and please, understand I know nothing about this, if the stress of the procedure wouldn't be as much harmful to the cat as the anesthesia itself? Plus the trauma of it all?
Can you let me know a bit more about it? I am curious!
Oh, and the link you posted originally is missing the .com - I had trouble but was able to get there - what a great kitty!! She kept very detailed records - great site!!

Here is the link if anyone else is curious: http://www.fivtherapy.com
Hugs and vibes,

 

[ldg]

Thanks, Carolina, for fixing the link to the FIV therapy site.

And Pam, WE'VE MISSED YOU!

Carolina, I had the same questions about the non-anesthetic dental. Of course - everyone worries about putting their pet under anesthesia for anything, even routine stuff. I also worried especially about Chum - because I felt the stress would offset any benefit of not using an anesthetic. But his (holistic) vet reassured us - they've worked with these people and this procedure for many years (they specialize in this, and provide the service to vet practices around the country. From their website, it's been 20 years. They're from CA and practice at local vets around the country. At Chum's vet, they're only there two days twice a year, and the slots go quickly. We just happened to see her the day after they scheduled the visit and they still had a couple of openings).

She KNOWS Chumley's background - and he was a biter. But he's great at the vet, doesn't complain, and lets everyone handle him just fine.... She knows he was at least three (if not four) years old when rescued and he was a feral kitty. She's convinced he'll do just fine.

Here's information on the people who do it and what they do: http://houndstoothpetdental.com/

If you look through the FAQs, the state that they know how to work with biters and fearful pets. Obviously they don't claim to have a 100% success rate - but it doesn't cost more than the dental with anesthesia, and as it looks like he doesn't need any teeth pulled, we figured we'd take her advice. As far as we're concerned, she's already worked miracles for him, so no reason not to trust her on this.

*****************************
Strange, there's an additional component re: treating his gums. If there's an option that doesn't require smearing something on his gums, we'd like to discuss it with his vet. There's another dynamic we forgot to consider, and that's Sheldon. Shelly is normally our ambassador kitty, but once it sank in that Chumley wasn't temporary... he became very upset and jealous. We had enough of a problem with him being aggressive to Chumley that we contacted an animal communicator to help us work with them, because we weren't able to resolve the problem ourselves (and that's not usual for us). She was REALLY able to help with the situation. But all the individual attention Chum was getting during our attempts caused an unhappy setback.

To work with Chumley for this process, he needs to be in the bathroom (a contained space), and our work with Chum we started with baby food... even though we gave EVERYONE the "baby food" treat... it just drove Shel insane that Chum was getting... extra attention? Something Shelly wasn't? But it increased Shelly's aggression towards Chumley.

So... if it must be, we'll do it. But we'd like to find out if there is an alternative.

 

[feralvr]

AW Sending positive vibes your way, Laurie

and for lovebug

Chum too. Will be thinking of you guys on Tuesday.

 

[pami]

Originally Posted by Carolina

Pami!!! Great to see you making your way back to TCS - we have missed you around for sure

Thank you Carolina, I have missed you guys, too

Originally Posted by LDG

And Pam, WE'VE MISSED YOU!

I find this procedure very interesting...
snowb now has to have a dental every year, he is taking longer and longer and to come out of the anesthesia. I would love it if I could find someone in my area that knew what they were doing, he would be a good candidate I do believe.

 

[my4llma]

To Chumley on Tuesday!

 

[strange_wings]

I have some slight issues like that, but it's between Siri and Sho and who should be on who's lap.

They get even time, but the two do not like each other in the first place so both actively use that to needle the other one.

I would suggest time with each of them in the bathroom, say for tooth brushing on each cat, but can attest that it can easily take 20-30 minutes with that many cats. And that's if you're quick about it.

Irronically Sho never gets jealous of us cleaning/treating Siri's ears!

I hope you can figure out a home preventive care that helps, too, as even leaving he home is stressful for many cats. Are there any dental treats, like the CET ones, that are even safe for him? It's too bad his immune status contradicts any raw... what about cooked chunks of meat?

Good luck with his procedure. I hope he doesn't get too stressed.

 

[ldg]

If I remember from our last visit, the next step is antibiotics. The problem is the best ones to treat gingivitis are liquid, and I can't get liquids in Chum, just pills. I think she said we'll try the Convenia, but it's not great for gingivitis either.

But they do all get "alone time" in the bathroom. Spook gets her teeth brushed (she's the only one so far) - but she loves it.

I think it's just Shel knows we're in there with babyfood.... (I tried letting everyone have some of the raw honey, but none of them eats it on their own LOL, so getting it on Chum's gums without getting him used to the process with something he does like isn't happening).

But yes, he's bitey to begin with.

 

[carolina]

Laurie, my dentist said they are having great results with convenia actually - better results then clindamicyn, and their specialty is stomatitis... They are starting to replace it now in their initial protocol...
I also know that in Bugsy's formula there is an antibiotic, and he gets in a capsule- i have the same problem as you, Bug is easy to pill and a mess for liquids.

 

[ldg]

Oooo, thanks Carolina, that's great to know! We'll probably try the convenia first then.

 

[carolina]

Originally Posted by LDG

Oooo, thanks Carolina, that's great to know! We'll probably try the convenia first then.

Yep, they said it is by far surpassing clin for sotmatitis which is a great thing especially for hard to handle kitties!

Low side of it is the price, but a good option if it fits in mommas budget!

 

[ldg]

Budget? What budget?

I don't mind not eating for a few weeks....

 

[feralvr]

Originally Posted by LDG

Budget? What budget?

I don't mind not eating for a few weeks....

Or ever

Whatever it takes to get our babies healthy, never mind our health

 

[carolina]

Originally Posted by Feralvr

Or ever

Whatever it takes to get our babies healthy, never mind our health

Tell me about it - when I was unemployed, they all had health insurance - ask if I had?

I was eating $1 Noodles, while each of their cans cost over $2

 

[feralvr]

Originally Posted by Carolina

Tell me about it - when I was unemployed, they all had health insurance - ask if I had?

I was eating $1 Noodles, while each of their cans cost over $2

Gotta love

Ramen noodles

 

[carolina]

Originally Posted by Feralvr

Gotta love

Ramen noodles

Oh yeah! They come quite handy! And you get to know to diversify the menu - spicy ramen, ramen with cream cheese... Stir-fry Ramen, Baked Ramen with Veggies... you get the picture anf how much Ramen I ate

 

[ldg]

I'm great at cooking rice in the microwave.

I never ate rice with cream cheese, but I do like it with parmesan!

 

[feralvr]

Much luck to CHUMLEY tomorrow.

that it all goes smoothly for him. Will be thinking of you both

and waiting for your report