Dental question

[Rysiek]

My Dental Vet wrote to me, as I asked what may be causing Rysiek's mouth inflammation, see her answer: "I think the previous inflammation in his mouth was due to the levels of calculus present. He again has calculus accumulation this time I saw him and we removed this. This is probably linked to him only eating soft food. To help this tooth brushing would be ideal to keep the calculus and plaque levels reduced, however not many cats tolerate this. Dry food would also help if he would eat this. I dint think it is autoimmune as he does not have the distribution pattern of that and the tooth I extracted would not cause oral inflammation of the soft tissues. If he will not tolerate hard food or tooth brushing calculus will likely reaccumulate in 6 - 12 months and then the only option is to repeat the scale and polish to remove this and reduce the oral inflammation."

I wonder what other people's experiences are? How do you deal with this? Which dry food?
He has been eating dry food, but perhaps I need to change it...

I am also removing card boxes, although he loves them, but he has been biting and spitting pieces out, which may be harmless, but I am unsure if this may be triggering to the inflammation as well...as we do not really know if and how "toxic" card boxes may be...
It may sound strange, as cats love boxes, but I am unsure about the impact...

 

[Antonio65]

Some cats have a congenital propensity to plaque formation.
I believe that other than brushing his teeth regularly (this means at least every second day), the situation may return. There are products (palatable paste) that can slow the formation of plaque. You could try this. Ask your vet, of course.
Dry food might not help when cats do not chew them, and tend to swallow them almost intact.

As for boxes, some says that cardboard might be treated with chemicals for keeping rats away in storehouses. My cats have always been biting cardboard boxes, so far so good.

 

[Rysiek]

Some cats have a congenital propensity to plaque formation.
I believe that other than brushing his teeth regularly (this means at least every second day), the situation may return. There are products (palatable paste) that can slow the formation of plaque. You could try this. Ask your vet, of course.
Dry food might not help when cats do not chew them, and tend to swallow them almost intact.

As for boxes, some says that cardboard might be treated with chemicals for keeping rats away in storehouses. My cats have always been biting cardboard boxes, so far so good.

Thank you. He definitely swallows dry treats most of the time...
As to the boxes, I will just try a box- free period, as I am unsure...if they are treated with chemicals to treat rats away it may be irritating his already inflamed gums (?), perhaps...

We have pet dent oral gel Pet Dent Oral Gel (60g)
I will definitely try it, as he definitely has "a congenital propensity to plaque formation." It just accumulates really fast
...
I am still tapering some meds, and as he was on a really strict medication regime I did not want to add yet another procedure (teeth cleaning)...
I will introduce this slowly...
I have to prevent this process so to prevent mouth ulcers...
It is all complicated...

 

[Antonio65]

We have pet dent oral gel Pet Dent Oral Gel (60g)
I will definitely try it, as he definitely has "a congenital propensity to plaque formation." It just accumulates really fast

I think that the product you have is good, and it can surely help as long as you are consistent with giving your cat it. I would like to be more consistent with brushing my cats, but I am not.

This morning I forgot to ask you something.
Your dental vet mentioned "calculus". I'm not mother tongue, but I thought that calculus was a stone, like a kidney stone. Am I wrong? I'm just learning here thanks!

 

[Rysiek]

I think that the product you have is good, and it can surely help as long as you are consistent with giving your cat it. I would like to be more consistent with brushing my cats, but I am not.

This morning I forgot to ask you something.
Your dental vet mentioned "calculus". I'm not mother tongue, but I thought that calculus was a stone, like a kidney stone. Am I wrong? I'm just learning here thanks!

This is what my vet said "calculus" which I think is to do with tartar on his teeth Calculus (dental) - Wikipedia

English is my second language as well...

 

[Joxer]

I have tried in the past to find some sort of study showing that a dry food diet actually improved cats' dental health, and have never found one. On the other hand, dry food is seriously lacking in moisture and generally made from worse ingredients (more corn and byproduct garbage) than canned food.

I have found that vets are far too eager to extract teeth. I have had two cats with broken canine teeth (their "fangs"). I never saw how they got broken; probably from chomping on a mouse head or something like that (these were indoor/outdoor cats). In both cases, vets strongly recommended that those teeth be extracted. I looked up the procedure, realized how brutal it is for a cat to extract one of their four (two top/two bottom) canine teeth, and declined. One vet even claimed that an x-ray showed that the root was exposed due to the piece missing at the end of the cat's broken canine. It was all nonsense. That can lived for 12+ years (15 altogether) with a broken canine, and his ultimate cause of death had nothing to do with his teeth.

I will add that I was also advised to have one of this cat's eyes removed due to a suspected "iris melanoma". Again, that developed slowly over years, never caused any apparent discomfort, and had nothing to do with his death. I was essentially encouraged to maim my cat (remove an eye and one of his critical canine teeth) for no purpose at all.

Veterinary care is critical for cats, especially as they get older. But I have never regretted asking a lot of questions, getting second opinions, and doing my own research.

 

[stephanietx]

My vet recommends weekly hydrogen peroxide application to teeth and gums to help cut down on plaque and tartar build up. You just get your qtip wet with hydrogen peroxide then run it along the gum line.

 

[Rysiek]

My vet recommends weekly hydrogen peroxide application to teeth and gums to help cut down on plaque and tartar build up. You just get your qtip wet with hydrogen peroxide then run it along the gum line.

Thank you...
Is this just any hydrogen peroxide or you have a more specific one?

 

[Rysiek]

I have tried in the past to find some sort of study showing that a dry food diet actually improved cats' dental health, and have never found one. On the other hand, dry food is seriously lacking in moisture and generally made from worse ingredients (more corn and byproduct garbage) than canned food.

I have found that vets are far too eager to extract teeth. I have had two cats with broken canine teeth (their "fangs"). I never saw how they got broken; probably from chomping on a mouse head or something like that (these were indoor/outdoor cats). In both cases, vets strongly recommended that those teeth be extracted. I looked up the procedure, realized how brutal it is for a cat to extract one of their four (two top/two bottom) canine teeth, and declined. One vet even claimed that an x-ray showed that the root was exposed due to the piece missing at the end of the cat's broken canine. It was all nonsense. That can lived for 12+ years (15 altogether) with a broken canine, and his ultimate cause of death had nothing to do with his teeth.

I will add that I was also advised to have one of this cat's eyes removed due to a suspected "iris melanoma". Again, that developed slowly over years, never caused any apparent discomfort, and had nothing to do with his death. I was essentially encouraged to maim my cat (remove an eye and one of his critical canine teeth) for no purpose at all.

Veterinary care is critical for cats, especially as they get older. But I have never regretted asking a lot of questions, getting second opinions, and doing my own research.

Valid points...
In our case the decision was not taken lightly and he was seen by many specialists and have had many tests in order to diagnose his problems, namely his mouth ulcerations severe mouth pain...

 

[gabicards]

I have tried in the past to find some sort of study showing that a dry food diet actually improved cats' dental health, and have never found one. On the other hand, dry food is seriously lacking in moisture and generally made from worse ingredients (more corn and byproduct garbage) than canned food.

I have found that vets are far too eager to extract teeth. I have had two cats with broken canine teeth (their "fangs"). I never saw how they got broken; probably from chomping on a mouse head or something like that (these were indoor/outdoor cats). In both cases, vets strongly recommended that those teeth be extracted. I looked up the procedure, realized how brutal it is for a cat to extract one of their four (two top/two bottom) canine teeth, and declined. One vet even claimed that an x-ray showed that the root was exposed due to the piece missing at the end of the cat's broken canine. It was all nonsense. That can lived for 12+ years (15 altogether) with a broken canine, and his ultimate cause of death had nothing to do with his teeth.

I will add that I was also advised to have one of this cat's eyes removed due to a suspected "iris melanoma". Again, that developed slowly over years, never caused any apparent discomfort, and had nothing to do with his death. I was essentially encouraged to maim my cat (remove an eye and one of his critical canine teeth) for no purpose at all.

Veterinary care is critical for cats, especially as they get older. But I have never regretted asking a lot of questions, getting second opinions, and doing my own research.

I have never found a good source that states that dry food is good for cat teeth, either. It's unnerving how often vets say that, though, particularly as you can find specialists online that will tell you otherwise, but they're much lower in numbers, so that type of information continues to spread without any reliable research done to justify it.

 

[Joxer]

I have never found a good source that states that dry food is good for cat teeth, either. It's unnerving how often vets say that, though, particularly as you can find specialists online that will tell you otherwise, but they're much lower in numbers, so that type of information continues to spread without any reliable research done to justify it.

What I have noticed is that if my cats vomit right after eating dry food, the dry food is basically intact. Meaning that it was not chewed at all, and if it was not chewed, then it could not have removed tartar from their teeth. Cats seem to just swallow dry food whole.

The lack of moisture is a big deal, too, especially as cats get older and develop kidney disease. You can add water to dry food to compensate, which is something that I do. Otherwise, a mostly dry food diet can lead to dehydration and constipation.

Mostly, I give my cats canned food. The main drawback is that for small feedings, opening a new can often means that a fair amount will be wasted. They find it far less appealing a few hours after it's been opened, even if the open can was immediately placed in a zip lock bag.

 

[stephanietx]

Thank you...
Is this just any hydrogen peroxide or you have a more specific one?

Regular hydrogen peroxide from the store works.

 

[silent meowlook]

Please don’t use hydrogen peroxide in your cats mouth. It can burn the gums at best and cause esophageal burns. It isn’t safe. I will find some literature to back this up.

 

[silent meowlook]

https://veterinarydental.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Dental-Care-for-Cats-1.pdf

 

[silent meowlook]

IS HYDROGEN PEROXIDE SAFE FOR CATS?

Hydrogen peroxide is a common household chemical often used as a disinfectant, bleaching agent, and wound cleaner. Hydrogen peroxide can kill bacteria when applied to wounds in humans and can even be used in some animals. It is generally safe for humans, but there are some important...

www.petpoisonhelpline.com

 

[Rysiek]

What I have noticed is that if my cats vomit right after eating dry food, the dry food is basically intact. Meaning that it was not chewed at all, and if it was not chewed, then it could not have removed tartar from their teeth. Cats seem to just swallow dry food whole.

The lack of moisture is a big deal, too, especially as cats get older and develop kidney disease. You can add water to dry food to compensate, which is something that I do. Otherwise, a mostly dry food diet can lead to dehydration and constipation.

Mostly, I give my cats canned food. The main drawback is that for small feedings, opening a new can often means that a fair amount will be wasted. They find it far less appealing a few hours after it's been opened, even if the open can was immediately placed in a zip lock bag.

Yes, I have the same problem with canned food, so half of it is usually wasted.
The pouches are much better, as they come in smaller sizes...
I also give him some soups, as he is really bad with drinking water, so I have to be creative in providing him enough liquid...

Rysiek usually swallows dry food/treats as well...
He is never fed with dry food only, I use this as a treat rather than feeding him...