My Missy had some of her teeth pulled(Question)

missy&spikesmom

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My POOR little Missy (my little white kitty) had a few teeth pulled under anesthesia today. About 2 weeks ago, I picked her up, and noticed she had BAD breath! I opened her mouth and I was horrified at how her teeth looked! They had turned bad REALLY quickly!! She eats dry catfood, mostly, with a small amount of canned catfood every day(more as a little treat). I have another kitty (Spike) who is a voractious eater, so didn't really notice that Missy wasn't eating as much dry food as before. When I did notice, I thought maybe she was just being persnickety, as she sometimes, will just turn up her nose at food, for no good reason! --Here it was, because her poor little teeth had gone so bad! The Vet said it was nothing I could prevent, but was a bacterial thing that attacked her teeth roots. --So, have ANY of you heard of this type of tooth affliction for cats? Would it be something that would bother any other part of her body, do you think? I HOPE not!!!! She was falling all over the place, as she is so unsteady from the anesthetic. So, I put her back into her carrier, and put a soft fuzzy cloth under her, for comfort. I also asked for pain medicine for her, as I was SURE she'd have pain, and wanted to prevent that, as much as possible!
Thanks for any info you have on this!
 

lorie d.

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I'm not an expert on this subject, but I do know that bacteria from bad teeth that aren't removed can enter a cat's bloodstream and affect vital organs just like it can in people. If you had pre-anesthesia bloodwork done on Missy, that would have let the vet check on how well her organs were functioning.
 

hissy

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yes this is quite common in cats, and can lead to serious health problems if not addressed. Just like bad tooth decay is now being linked to heart attacks in humans, tooth decay and infections can lead to internal organ breakdowns in cats. I am glad she had her teeth extracted, and you should check with your vet and be sure he got all the bacteria out, if he left just alittle in her mouth, it will again take hold of her and cause her more distress and pain.
 
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missy&spikesmom

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Thanks for the answers! OK--Here's my NEW question!! I called the Vets today to see if they gave her an antibiotic, and they said she does NOT have what is actually, a real tooth infection. They said that the calcium was being leeched out of her teeth, and that cats get this sometimes. Also, that she would lose all her teeth by some point in time!!! OMG!!!! Have ANY of you heard about this??? They did clean her teeth, but they said they tried to do bloodwork--and she was too vicious and worked up, for them to get it... SO, I have no idea what her bloodwork is. Could they have done that under anesthesia??? I will really be watching your answers, and am thinking, that if I just THOUGHT this was a good vet, and your answeres reflect otherwise, then I am DEFINITELY going out and looking for a new Vet!!! Thanks guys!
 

lorie d.

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This is just my opinion, but I think the veterinary staff at your clinic should be used to routinely dealing with agitated(sp?) animals, and they should have been able to safely restrain Missy so that blood could be drawn for testing. Since several teeth were removed, I also think they should have sent along some antibiotics for you to give Missy at home as a precautionary measure against infection setting in.
 

mellanie

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They really should have done bloodwork! I'm a vet assistant, and I handle a lot of very agressive cats. It can be very frustrating, and sometimes even a little bit scary, dealing with angry cats but there are ways to get blood from an angry cat. If nothing else, they should have taken some while she was under. As for kitties having dental problems, they are more common than you might think. Where I work, we always put animals on antibiotics after dental work, and if there are multiple extractions, a pain killer for a few days.
 
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