Bad teeth - what should I do???

Hi everyone, I'd really appreciate some advice on a teeth problem my cat has.

During a routine medical check and immunization at the vets, I was told my two 7 year old Siamese had very dirty teeth that I needed to clean.

Stupid of me, I never knew I should clean their teeth.

Bought a pet teeth cleaning kit but they had a thick layer of muck/plaque on their teeth so that did not work. Bought a set of metal teeth cleaning picks/probes and went over their teeth today. One of them is fine, I can now routinely clean their teeth with a tooth brush. The other has bad teeth you can see in the photo below


What is the best way to deal with this cats' teeth? Get the vet to clean them? Find a vet dentist? (do they even exist?) Scrape all the muck off and keep them clean?

Definitely get the vet to do a complete dental and remove any teeth that need to come out.  This will greatly prolong your cat's life and make him a lot more comfortable as well.  Feline dentistry is part of veterinary care and you do not need a dental specialist unless the cat has serious problems and needs all teeth removed, etc.   At age 7, and being Siamese, I would definitely advise you get a basic blood screening panel done first, to make sure kidney and liver values are healthy.  If you are not comfortable with your vet's knowledge and experience, find an animal hospital that is certified by the AAHA, and preferably one with a Feline Specialist on the staff, and have your dental work done there.

I agree; I would start with a dental with your vet.  

We lost one of my childhood cats to illnesses I suspect were related to her rotten teeth.  She was about 10 years old when we lost her.

Thank you for your replies. Looks like we will be taking a trip to the vet.

I'm an expat in China and I'm not so confident of the vets here but with teeth like that, it has to be done.

I had no idea you were in China since you had not yet filled in Location in your profile.  We are an international site so it is possible we may have some members in China or with familiarity with China.  If you would give your location (Beijing?), perhaps we could help.  If you add it to your profile, everyone will be able to see it.  One consistent recommendation we give is that if there are any veterinary schools in your area, often they will have clinics.  I know China does not have a long history of having animals for pets, so you may have some difficulty.  Perhaps you know other ex-pats who have pets who could steer you in the right direction.