Oral health

[Diana]

Hi guys

I am Diana. Was a member before the forum changed, dunno if anyone will remember me. But I have 3 cats....Shelly, Evie and Timo.

Ok so my Shelly (tortie) is nearing 9yrs old and she is going into the vets tomorrow to have her teeth cleaned as some plaque has formed. It was noticed last year, however the vet was able to flick of the dirt and her teeth were ok...not great but ok. This time however it was recommended she be brought in to have a good clean. We're not sure if she has to have teeth removed until after the little procedure. But how do we combat this? When it was noticed last year I tried brushing her teeth but she wouldn't allow it. So we brought Oral food and she has it at the weekend and occasionally during the week, plus her treats are dental treats (Healthy Bites - Breath and Dental) so it's not if we haven't tried. She has a mixture of wet and dry.

I don't want this to happen again as this is not covered under pet insurance and at £200-400 a time...it can get expensive.

Ideas guys?

[lilynmitz]

My experience is that it's difficult to completely control this, and nearly every cat I've had has required one or more dental ops in their life. It's hard enough in humans without fastidious daily cleaning and medical intervention (ie a regular clean up at the dentist).

Dental treats probably help a bit as the crunching of hard foods can knock off bits of plaque, but equally the dry crumbs can get stuck between the teeth and be part of the problem. And most of my cats have swallowed dried food whole, so there goes that option. Some people find feeding raw chicken wings (NOT cooked) can have the same effect, but not all cats like them.

If you've got a really laid back cat, you can clean them a bit with feline toothpaste, but even then it's not going to be wholly thorough as it is with humans.

[meriad]

Diana, I'm a very firm believer in the Science Hill Oral Care dry food - apparently they contain some enzyme that helps break down tartar on teeth and because of their size a cat should really have to chomp through them; most cats will be unable to gulp them down (but there will always be that exception )

They are quite fattening so what I usually do is give my lot a few as a treat every so often. So far - touch wood - their teeth are all OK

[Diana]

Well Shelly went in today. She had two teeth removed.

I dont want this happening again. Shelly is laid back but we tried brushing....she wont accept it lol. I will try that Oral food, atm we have Advanced Nutrition Oral, so we will use it up and try something else. What about Logic gel?