Teeth Cleaning Already??

[ailish]

I'm wondering what everyone's collective experience is with cat dental. My otherwise healthy 4 year old, who I have had for 3 years, went for her yearly well cat checkup and it turns out she needs her teeth cleaned. I was a little blindsided by this due to her age. The vet showed me her teeth and although her fangs look beautiful, her sides look dark gray. It was described as mild to moderate tartar build-up. I feel like a bad cat Mom, I didn't even know. She doesn't have any bad breath or trouble eating.

So she gets three wet meals and one dry meal a day and I can't help wondering it it's the wet. I know, I know, I'm fully on the wet bandwagon and I feed good food, but whaaaaa? My kitty has black teeth!!!! We're signed up for the procedure complete with X-rays and pre-anesthesia mini-bloodwork, I don't want to do this on the cheap.

Going forward, I don't think teeth brushing is an option, she's the nicest cat ever, but hates to be held. She doesn't get treats, so maybe those teeth cleaning treats I've seen, although I always thought that was bogus. The vet said it's pretty much genetics and that some cats need cleanings when they are two, some not 'til 6 or 7. If possible, I'd like to cut the frequency of cleanings (in a healthy way) so if there is something I could do...

 

[verna davies]

You could put a small amount of a cat enzymatic toothpaste on a Q-Tip and wipe it on her back and side teeth. Logic claims to work without brushing so it should help and as its a quick process she might not mind. One of mine loves the taste and licks it off my finger.

 

[EmersonandEvie]

Evie had to have a dental earlier this year too, but hers was due to gingivitis. She is 3.

 

[MissClouseau]

My cousin's one cat started to have dental issues when he was younger than 1 years old. Genes is indeed a factor. Also I read going through something like calicivirus sometimes leaves dental problems.

Try to brush as often as you can even if it's not daily. There are also other things you can try like ProDen Plaque Off, dental toys, dental treats, those oral care things specifically made for cats to add to the water.

I haven't read a study on this so can't speak with evidence here but I don't think wet food is a problem inherently but obviously ingredients aren't all the same and I bet some are problematic. I mean, some wet foods even have "various sugars" in the ingredients.

 

[Kieka]

My rainbow kitty had several teeth pulled during his neuter by the shelter we got him from (estimated six months). I believe they were all baby teeth, but I was 11/12 so who knows. He had lifelong teeth issues and just had a handful of teeth left by the time he was seven. At the same time we had another cat who never in his entire life needed his teeth cleaned and died at 15/16 with all his teeth still. Same diet, same house, same care, different genetics.

 

[HPeters]

heres a list of dental products from food, treats, water additives and toothpastes for maintnence of kitty teeth
http://www.vohc.org/VOHCAcceptedProductsTable_Cats.pdf

 

[FetchingCat]

My 10 month old had bad tartar, so we signed him and his brother up for the Banfield plan, which is a prepaid medical plan. Our 1.5 year old had tartar and bad gingivitis, we were shocked. I think some of it is genetics.
I think the notion that wet food is bad for teeth doesn't make much sense. I also don't see how dry food would be able to knock the tartar off teeth.
We use the Virbec CET dental chews, and put toothpaste on their treats. I also hear raw meat on the bone will help their teeth. Never offer cooked bone, they'll splinter!
Good luck!

 

[ailish]

Thank you everyone for your responses! I see now that this isn't all that unusual for some cats. The vet did say that this problem has a large genetic component, so I guess we will be getting used to teeth cleanings every couple years. In the meantime I will be trying some of these suggestions.

Once we get through this first go-round I'm hoping it won't be so scary the next time. For me, anyway. I'm not too worried that something will go wrong, I just get all upset about HER getting upset. It always bothers me when I have to do something that will upset her that she won't understand. They have so little control over what happens to them, I can only imagine the fear when their world gets rocked, even for one day.

 

[scubajo]

Hi A ailish - just want to ask how everything went with your 4 year old cat? Was it all that bad? Happy you did it? Mine is going thru his first cleaning this week.

 

[ailish]

It went quite well, actually. I managed to get her to take her pre-visit sedative at home without any problem. She seemed like she was starting to relax - until I picked her up to put her in the carrier and she started fighting like a banshee, something she has never done before. She had the cleaning and there were no extractions needed and no gum disease. It took her awhile to come out of the anesthesia. They don't like them to go home until they can kind of walk, and that wasn't until about 5:00. She had the procedure at about 10:00. We got home and she was pretty out of it. Her hind end didn't work very well and she was totally cross-eyed, which she isn't under normal conditions. Nevertheless, she stumbled out of the carrier and went right over to her food dish. I gave her a very small amount of food just in case the anesthesia would make her sick, but it did not. I continued to give her small amounts for awhile that night, but all was well. Around 11:00 that night she seemed to be mostly back to normal. She pooped and peed that night, So all systems were normal.

I am glad I did it. The vet told me that she would probably need two more cleanings in her life because she apparently builds up plaque faster than some other cats. I don't know anything about the first year of her life except that she had babies very young, so I don't know if anything environmental may have made her more susceptible to build-up. The vet told me that there are basically three things that we can control that can help our house cats have the most healthy life possible - food, weight and teeth. I figure I'm saving myself money and my cat pain by keeping up with the dental. Good luck with your cat!!!