Piper's teeth need cleaning

When I took my mom's girl Piper to the vet on Saturday for her annual exam it turned out that her gums around the bottoms molars were infected (Gingervitis). Poor baby girl. She was given a steriodal anti inflamatory injection to make her feel more comfortable and we were told that she needed to have her teeth cleaned. Oh, yes, he also took blood to do a blood test to determine which type of anastacia would be best for her. Anyway since non of our cats ever needed this before any advise in regard to anastasia, after care, possible pain patch, what I need to look out for, etc. would be appreciated.

Would like to be as informed as possible so I can make sure things are done the right way.

Thanks - can you tell I am really nervouse about this *sigh*

Helen, my Popcorn recently had her teeth cleaned. The vet will choose the right anaesthesia for Piper. As for aftercare, she will not need a pain patch as the clean is just a clean and will not casue pain. If she has to have any teeth removed or extensive dental work done, she will most likely be on a course of antibiotics and possibly oral pain meds for the first couple of days. The clean often makes the gums a little sensitive so she may need to be on canned food or dry food softened with warm water for the first couple of days. Good luck with her, she should be fine.

I would recommend that you make sure that your vet puts your kitty on IV fluids during her dental. Dentals can sometimes take longer than expeted- especially if extractions are necessary. Any time an animal is under anaesthetic blood pressure tends to go down which can lead to kidney damage. Any good vet would put an older cat on fluids. IV fluids help to keep blood pressure up, and increase blood perfusion to the kidneys. This helps to keep the kidneys happy and makes it easier to flush the anaesthetic out of their system. Having an IV catheter in place also gives the vet emergency IV access if they need it.

Originally Posted by Hell603

When I took my mom's girl Piper to the vet on Saturday for her annual exam it turned out that her gums around the bottoms molars were infected (Gingervitis). Poor baby girl. She was given a steriodal anti inflamatory injection to make her feel more comfortable and we were told that she needed to have her teeth cleaned. Oh, yes, he also took blood to do a blood test to determine which type of anastacia would be best for her. Anyway since non of our cats ever needed this before any advise in regard to anastasia, after care, possible pain patch, what I need to look out for, etc. would be appreciated.

Would like to be as informed as possible so I can make sure things are done the right way.

Thanks - can you tell I am really nervouse about this *sigh*

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I would ask your vet to put Piper on a course of antibiotics (I like Antirobe for this) to address the gum infection ~before~ you schedule the cleaning. Gingivitis can easily become a systemic infection in cats and I think it is better for the cat and for the vet if the gums are free of any infection before they do the cleaning.

Regarding the anesthesia, I always specifically request Isoflurane gas only - no Ketamine. I am scared of Ketamine use in cats as I have personally experienced the loss of 2 cats while on the operating table when it was used and I know of many others who lost cats from its use as well. Additionally, Isoflurane metabolizes in the lungs, not the renal system, and so as soon as they stop administering it, the cat will wake up. Ketamine takes much longer to exit the system so the cat is groggy for hours afterwards.

As for pain management, if extractions are necessary, ask your vet to include a little Torbitol in the IV fluids administered during the precedure. They should administer enough to control pain for the first 24 to 36 hours and they should give you a couple of tablets should you find you need them at home. My vet (because she is an absolute peach!) will even cut the tablets into the required dose based on my cat's weight and need.

If extractions are not necessary, you should find Piper to be pretty much back to normal within a day or so afterwards and pain management might very well not be necessary at all.

Hope this helps,

Gaye

Thanks so much guys - this has helped a lot!!!!!!!!!


If you saw my rant in the cat lounge - sorry he did call me at 4:50PM, I was just worried. Her blood test came back clean!!! Yes, he will administer IV fluids during the cleaning and use Isoflurane gas for the anesthesia. He will also provide a course of antibiotics for after the cleaning - I had requested same to be compounded into a gel if possible so that we can administer transdermally.

Again thank so much!!!!!

Hope all goes well. My kitty Cleo has chronic gingivitis so we know what you're going through. If it keeps recurring they may have to do a small biopsy of the gingivitis to make sure they proceed correctly.

It's good you had the blood test done because that'll lower her risk of a bad reaction. She'll probably feel ok after. Did the vet say whether he thought she'd need extractions? If not & it's jus a cleaning she'll be up & around pretty quickly. Be sure to not feed her too much right after she gets home because the meds could make her vomit. And she probably can't eat the night & morning before her dental. Be sure to ask your vet what time she can eat!

Of course you may have already had all of this done by now... but if not good luck!!!

Thanks so much - for now we think it's just a cleaning - guess won't really know until he gets into her mouth. She is not supposed to have food or water after 10PM the night before. And no matter what Next Friday will be the longest day of my life *sigh*

Thanks again

Helen, I had to take a 13 year old cat in to have her teeth cleaned once, and the vet
also did several extractions. The vet used Isoflurane gas for safety reasons because of the cat's age. 1/2 hour after the procedure was completed, my cat was sitting up in her cage and looking around. When I picked my cat up later that day, she was completely back to normal, and was able to eat soft food at home with no problems.
So I think Piper will be ok too.

Originally posted by gayef
Regarding the anesthesia, I always specifically request Isoflurane gas only - no Ketamine. I am scared of Ketamine use in cats as I have personally experienced the loss of 2 cats while on the operating table when it was used and I know of many others who lost cats from its use as well. Additionally, Isoflurane metabolizes in the lungs, not the renal system, and so as soon as they stop administering it, the cat will wake up. Ketamine takes much longer to exit the system so the cat is groggy for hours afterwards.

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(I just wanted to share what happened when Snowball was given an anesthesia that may have been Ketamine.)

I agree, a couple of years ago, I took Snowball, who was 10 years old at that time, in to have his teeth cleaned, (this was on a Friday.) The vet used an injectable anesthesia, and I think it may have been Ketamine but I'm not positive. Snowball had a lot of difficulty recovering from this anesthesia. He was extremely lethargic when I brought him home, and wouldn't eat or drink anything. The next morning, I found him hiding under a chair and still extremely lethargic. I took him back to the vet and they treated him for mild dehydration, but he still wasn't doing very well, and was still lethargic and wanted to hide. I was actually afraid that I was going to lose him that weekend. Finally, on Sunday evening, he started showing signs of recovering, and started eating and drinking on his own again, and was behaving more normally in general.