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Abby kitten and teething

post #1 of 7
1/22/11 at 8:43pm
Thread Starter 
Hi, I have a (just shy of) 5 month old Aby (named Abby), who is giving us worries about her teeth and gingivitis. When we got her, she was sick with cat flu so she was quaranteened. She got better, Tinker got sick (we're very well known at the vet's). All of that's behind us now (but both get a daily dose of L-lysine). However, we've noticed (and vet's been watching as well) that Abby's gums have been inflamed for at least the last month.
Our vet checked again today, and there are still no adult teeth in sight. (although a lower canine tooth was missing this morning, and there's 1 loose molar).
My Q: do Aby's have a slower development rate? or is it possible that b/c she was sick her development is a little delayed? (She was very small when we got her, just under 500gr at 11 wks! she's 1.6 kg now and eats like a horse) We started antibiotics today in case there's a bacterial infection happening. The vet has said that Aby's can be prone to gingivitis, but he's never seen it in a kitten b/f the adult teeth come in. Going to try the meds for a week or 2, then if there's still no sign of adult teeth, might take x-rays to see if they're in there! Has anyone had a similar experience?

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post #2 of 7
1/22/11 at 9:15pm
Teething can take up to 6-7 months. If there's one missing and another loose sounds like things are progressing.

She still sounds tiny, Oci's are a bit bigger but my 5 month old is just over 3kg. Sounds like she had a rough start, terrible that she arrived with cat flu.

I don't know that Aby's are any more prone to gingivitis than any other cat (pedigree or moggie), the breeders I know don't seem to have any problems.
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post #3 of 7
1/23/11 at 5:38am
I'd talk to the breeder. Sounds like the poor thing has has a pretty rough start. I'm not sure when adult teeth start coming in, but you may be looking at a lot of teeth problems with this kitten.

Teething is one thing, but red and irritated gums as a kitten is not a good sign IMO. Hopefully things will improve.
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post #4 of 7
1/24/11 at 5:40am
5-7 months for teething usually for me and yeah during that period the halitosis can kill you in a fell swoop. Mine usually go though a bad double fang period of about 2 weeks but all is well with the world soon after the first set fall.

My adults don't have gingivitis and my oldest aby is now coming 11years of age, nothing wrong there though I have heard the same stories that older Abys are prone to it. Haven't had the same experience but then again, I've only been breeding them for 6 years.

Give me a shout if you need anymore help.

BTW 500 grams at 11 weeks is very small. Did she have issues at birth, was the pregnancy of the dam ok?
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post #5 of 7
1/24/11 at 9:04pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks for the information, it's a bit of a weight off my mind to know that 5-7 months for teething isn't that unusual! Of all the kittens I've had (Abby is #6 and my first exotic), this is the first one where I've noticed a missing tooth, how could I have missed all those missing teeth before? grins.
I'm not aware of any issues at birth or with the pregnancy and Abby's mother, but she has always been small. (all 3 kittens that I saw from her litter were tiny, and very skinny). She got very sick with 'cat flu' right after we got her, we spent days feeding her with a syringe b/c she wouldn't eat on her own, and with towels over our heads, holding her over warm water to try and open up her airways! She got weighed every day on our kitchen scale, and as soon as she started eating on her own again started gaining approx 25 grams a day. That was exciting! The vet was great, monitoring her with weekly visits and phone calls inbetween, but we sure were glad when he said, 'Follow-up in 2 weeks!' then we knew we were getting better! Those issues are all cleared up now, final vaccines given and her immune system is up and running, now we're just waiting for teeth and hoping her gums settle down.
I've got my fingers crossed that it'll turn out we're just going through a regular Aby teething session. Thanks for your post!
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post #6 of 7
1/25/11 at 5:47am
Sounds like you did all the right things with her Like I said earlier, give me a shout if you're concerned. There has been a really bad round of not sure which or what virus going around the WORLD and almost every single breeder I know (Aby or otherwise) have had bad/ill litters for the past 18 months.

Laying off the breeding for the moment, and just concentrating on granding these next few ones, I'm trying to DM the mom cat before the season ends
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post #7 of 7
1/25/11 at 7:43am
That may have been the problem with Angel losing the litter - she did have a little touch of virus just before the kittens were born!
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