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So, I was expecting it sooner ot later...the vet suggested my 15 year old Clio should have a cleaning. I am apprehensive because of the fear of putting her under anesthesia at her age. Has anyone here either had this done or heard about this with an older cat? What were the outcomes? Should I be worried?
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New York City
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Re: Teeth Cleaning
Sat, January 6, 2007 - 3:42 PMI hate the idea of being put under for any reason - person or furperson! However, teeth cleaning is really good for the teeth and health, since your cat will be able to eat better. Some cats need to be anesthetized for ear cleaning, grooming and claw clipping, too. You can try some herbal calming instead and try to do it yourself...
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Re: Teeth Cleaning
Sat, January 6, 2007 - 3:46 PMChurchill is 11.5 and had his teeth done a couple of months ago. He was given a comprehensive blood test prior to the cleaning itself. This is needed for cats 7+ , so they make sure they are healthy and the anesthesia is no danger to them.
Churchill's cleaning was done sometime late morning or around noon. When hubby picked him up, he was not just 100% awake, but also ravenous and ready to go. Unfortunately, he had to have a tooth extracted, because it was broken. We were given antibiotics for the following 10 days, in order to prevent any infection. But he did not appear to be in any sort of pain, so we didn't give him the painkillers.
Good luck!
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Re: Teeth Cleaning
Sat, January 6, 2007 - 4:15 PMTalk to your veterinarian about your concerns: there are many ways to stack the deck in your cat's favor. One of the first things likely to be addressed, is testing to be done prior to the surgery which will alert to potential problems. I would say that if your cat is otherwise in good general health - i.e. appetite and energy level as per usual, heart rate strong and healthy, along with other indicators that your vet will check - the risk for the anesthesia causing a problem is lower than the risk of doing without the dental care.
And hey, there is nothing wrong with getting a second opinion: If you are not confident that your vet is thoroughly addressing your concerns, take your cat to a different vet to explore options. -
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Re: Teeth Cleaning
Sat, January 6, 2007 - 10:14 PMI am lucky enough to have a vet practice that is a cats only facility...so they are feline specialists. I spoke to my doc at length about the teeth cleaning issue and she assured me that there would be a comprehensive blood work up beforehand and as she said "if all is well than its a go..."
She even told me a story of a16 year old cat that needed a cleaning and she decided at the time, the cat most likely wouldn't live that much longer, but surprise, the kitty turned 20 and was still doing fine, but her tooth issues had gotten worse and they had to go ahead with the procedure at that age...she came out of it just fine and lived to 22.
It just makes me feel better haering that others had senior cats go through this and were fine... -
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Re: Teeth Cleaning
Sun, January 7, 2007 - 10:27 AMYour vet sounds like a good one. I think it would be a good idea. I unfortunately had a cat that went into kidney failure after a teeth cleaning. But that's been many years ago, and I think they are better able to project their chances now.
Domina -
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Re: Teeth Cleaning
Sun, January 7, 2007 - 11:14 AMI feel so lucky that I have a cat that's tolerant enough to let me chip off any tarter build up she may get.
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Re: Teeth Cleaning
Sun, January 7, 2007 - 3:28 PMScotty had it done when he was about 14 or so. He came out just fine. -
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Re: Teeth Cleaning
Mon, January 8, 2007 - 6:27 AMMy kitty Taru needed several teeth pulled at 19 yrs old. I was really nervous, but she was beginning to have real pain. My vet's also a feline specialist, & they took great care of her, & my Kitty Aiko, who'd left us at 20, the year before. They did extensive bloodwork, before putting her under.
She came out of it fine, & was much happier- they ended up taking 4 teeth! She had another spectacularly healthy (for such an old girl) year or so. She made it till just shy of her 22d birthday, when she died of the kidney failure that gradually worsened during her last several months.
My kittens, Ambrosia & Tikkun, have just been spayed- they're almost 6 mths. I give them each a couple of Greenies every day; hope that'll help keep their teeth in good shape. I'm going to try, when they're a bit older, to see if they'll let me clean their teeth once in awhile...
Hope yr kitty's dentistry goes well. Definitely get the bloodwork done- no good vet will put an older cat under w/o it. -
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Re: Teeth Cleaning
Tue, January 9, 2007 - 8:18 PMIt is important for the vet to be careful of putting a cat under who might be in frail health. But it's also important to get those teeth cleaned - bad teeth can lead to infections and may even make a cat stop eating altogether. A friend of mine regularly cleans her cat's teeth, somehow has trained the feline to accept this as a regular thing - apparently the cat will even beg to get a brushing! Certainly that's not possible for everybody, but if you have young, trainable kitties, it's something to think about. At the very least, you could be saving maybe $100 in teeth cleaning costs at the vet. -
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Re: Teeth Cleaning
Wed, January 10, 2007 - 4:17 AMIt's amazing what these procedures cost! Cat care can be more expensive than human care at times. I asked about the price and the vet basically said the anesthesia would run about $110 and the cleaning itself was $80...as long as that's all there is and there are no extractions. So be it...I'll do whatvere it takes to keep Clio healthy and happy. :O)
As for cleaning a cat's teeth yourself...I don't know anyone personally who has done this regularly, but every vet I've been to has suggested to start them off when they are young. They sell itty bitty toothbrushes, etc at pet supply stores. I suppose if one does this early enough in the kitty's life, the cat will get used to it and allow you into their mouths to scrape and clean...but knowing cats...ha! NOT!
Anyway...gonna call for the blood results today and see what's what. First have to find out if her thyroid med dose is appropriate and then we'll discuss the cleaning...ah, the joys of feline mommyhood. -
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Re: Teeth Cleaning
Wed, January 24, 2007 - 9:24 PMMe cat done just registered on the "yuck-mouth" scale of badness. I've cleaned his teeth now and then before now, but I'm pretty darn sure he's got something bad in there just now. Good luck on kitty mouthness. -
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Re: Teeth Cleaning
Thu, January 25, 2007 - 9:59 AMluckily my cat is very tolerant of all kinds of grooming, and I brush his teeth with the finger tooth cleaner glove...of course he doesn't love it, but like someone said above , expensive to have problems!
Does anyone know if those Feline Greenies actually help the teeth or is it just BS? -
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Unsu...
Re: Teeth Cleaning
Fri, January 26, 2007 - 1:41 PMI feed my cats the greenies and other tartar control cat treats and one cats teeth are ok, the other the vat has a slight problem. So, are there any other treats to feed the kitties to clean their teeth. The cat w/ the slight problem doesn't like me playing w/ his mouth, so brushing is out.
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Re: Teeth Cleaning
Fri, January 26, 2007 - 6:45 PMI don't know if they help, but my cats certainly love them.
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Re: Teeth Cleaning
Sun, January 28, 2007 - 1:02 AMMy "yuck mouth" kitty gets greenies all the time. Tooth cleaning with the finger brush occasionally, too. Still puts a hobo to shame with his breath.
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Unsu...
Re: Teeth Cleaning
Sat, March 21, 2009 - 8:17 PMIt looks like getting it early is critical. I have an estimate of 800-1,500 for my 10 year old for his tooth abscess.
He never has liked having his teeth messed with, especially since he would always get this pimple where his upper right canine tooth would hit the skin on his lower jaw.
He started acting peculiar and there was a bit of swelling. I checked out his mouth and sure enough, that upper right tooth had very red swollen skin around it. I called and made an appointment last week. The soonest they had was a week later.
And while waiting, his face continued to swell, until his nose was convex, rather than concave. It just really started swelling so fast, that in the week it had started to literally push the inside of his sinuses out his nose. It looked like a little piece of dirt or cat snot, but looking at it with my glasses on, I realized it was SKIN. I couldn't wait for the scheduled appointment, and took him in as an emergency.
Worse still, he bashed his face on the carrier trying to get out, and opened up that bit of skin that was coming out his nose. So his face was all bloody. And guess what happens when you get blood in the sinuses, with pressure? Bloody tears. I don't know if the infected part completely ruptured or it was the skin from the nose, or what.
The vet is also doing an x-ray to be sure it isn't a tumor. And the blood tests. And he's on an IV. He's going to be in the hospital a few days.
I now will be scheduling other dental appointments, including myself. While the swelling developed really fast, it's a good chance that the tooth was a minor problem for him for a long time. I have a couple teeth that I have minor problems with, and seeing what happens makes the putting it off no longer an option. For any of us. Two or four legged, we are going to hit the dentists.
Apparently they (SF SPCA) have financial assistance for people who cannot afford some treatments. I don't know the requirements of it, or what it covers, but if finances are a problem, check it out anyway.
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Re: Teeth Cleaning
Mon, February 5, 2007 - 10:03 AMI had my 13 year old cat's teeth cleaned this past spring, the first cleaning in his little cat life. At first I was apprehensive but his breath really reeked and he wasn't eating. The cleaning went well but he need a few teeth extracted :-( and I have to say that I'm ashamed that I didn't have his teeth cleaned earlier - I'm told that it should be done every 5 years. Thankfully, my little friend has adjusted to his missing teeth, he's eating well and no more smelly cat breath. :-)
