Dental

[nikon71]

Hi fur parents

I had a question. I had Rey into the vet this weekend and was told he has a neck lesion. I asked what needs to be be done and they said the tooth would need to be extracted.

I was quoted close to 900$ for one tooth is this normal?? I will try and scan a copy of the estimate I was given.

 

[nikon71]

The estimate and it does include a cleaning still very expensive

 

[daftcat75]

Is that the estimate for the whole bill or just the extraction?

Krista got several teeth extracted and the whole bill was $1400. The extractions themselves were $200-$400. There's a few line items that say extraction. But then there was the X-rays and the anesthesia, the bupe shot they give post-surgery, etc.

But you have to do it! If you don't, it could create eating problems later which can put you in a real bind.

Krista needs more dental work now but she stopped eating last week due to tooth pain. Well, that sent her liver crazy and now she's a poor candidate for anesthesia. I have to refeed her liver back to health with bad teeth. It is the saddest, cruelest, most frustrating thing I've experienced with this cat. And we've been through IBD and pancreatitis.

 

[daftcat75]

That all looks about right, unfortunately.

Here's Krista's bill. I don't even have a diagnosis yet on her liver and the bills are already going to exceed this.

 

[nikon71]

Dang that is very expensive!!!!! Two yrs ago I had a cleaning and two teeth extracted cost me under 500$ Prices have skyrocked!!! We need O-Kitty-Care for our fur babies!!!!

 

[nikon71]

Sorry didn't see your other comment. Poor Krista. Sounds like she been through the ringer. Is she eating any? Must be so hard with her mouth so sore Is she on a special diet with increased calories?

I went through pancreatitis with Rey 2 yrs ago after his dental and it was terrifying!!! The estimate I included is for the cleaning/1 tooth extraction still seems to high to me.

 

[nikon71]

Something else I wanted to add. Did they give an appetite stimulant for Krista? When Rey wasn't eating they gave that to get him to eat. It really helped. Forget the name of the med.

 

[LTS3]

I'd insist on NO Convenia Convenia is known to have serious side effects in cats that lasts months after the initial injection. Convenia- long term antibiotic: Is it worth the risk?

The OxyFresh Oral Hygiene is just a mouth rinse type thing to give after the dental. You can buy similar products from the pet store for less money.

February is Pet Dental Health month and some vets may offer discounts on dentals for the month. Ask your vet.

 

[daftcat75]

Honestly I don’t even have the diagnosis yet. I understand the vet wants to be thorough. I take her in for an ultrasound tomorrow. I have confusing guidance from the net and the vet what her calorie total should be even before this. She’s 8 lbs now. Her ideal would be 9. She dropped all the way to 6 during the IBD/pancreatitis. I stupidly weighed her at the vet’s after she received fluids. So subtracting the fluids, she’s either stable or lost just a little so far. Before all this started I was feeding her 8 oz a day for an average of 240 calories. Now I’m using a formula I read about refeeding fatty liver that suggested 50-60 cal/kg. That would put her at about 6 oz for 180-220 target. I don’t know if we can get there with her teeth and the way she’s been feeling.

Appetite stimulant. I started her back on mirtazapine because that’s what I had before her pancreatitis diagnosis. Vet wants to switch her to Entyce. I tried to give her the low end inside tuna mousse and she actually seemed to go for it. Mostly.

For pain, she’s getting bupenorphine. I’m just really frustrated with the DEA that I can’t get more than six doses. So that lasts us three days and the vet still hasn’t gotten back to me about whether I can keep returning every three days or if the DEA is going to cut her off. The other thing, and I think this also DEA stupidity, the syringes don’t slide. They pop all the liquid out at once. This afternoon’s dose splashed off her teeth and sprayed me in the face. I’m not sure how much she actually got. Not enough because it was terrible trying to get her to eat that meal.

Anyway...

Bite the bullet and do the dental. It will only get more expensive and more complicated if you don’t.

 

[nikon71]

Hi LTS3

We had chatted before regarding the convenia. No He will never have that medication. That is what I was thinking if this can wait til Feb it would give me time to save up. Some of the optional stuff I will opt out for to lower the cost some. What the vet said it was a neck lesion. It does not appear to be that bad right now but has to be taken care of. He had that 2 yrs ago the neck lesion. I am wondering and this is a conversation I need to have with the vet is that these lesions come back - being Rey has had a few extractions already from this would it be best to just remove all remaining teeth and not put his body through the stress of surgery/anesthesia.

 

[nikon71]

Hopefully tomorrow when you go for the ultrasound it will give you the answers you need to figure this all out and get Krista feeling better. Rey dropped a bunch of weight quickly when he was going through his pancreatitis. What helped him and was good for his belly was goat milk (primal) I mixed that in with canned food to bulk up the calories - I did a pate type food because he just had 2 extraction was easier for him to eat no chewing required - that was same time his pancreatitis started up. Rey did Entyce he did well on that.

We have the same rules here on the Bupe. It's ridiculous. I had to go back every few days like you said. I don't have a car and cabs get costly!!! I had that happen too all the med on his face and its not like we can easily replace it - all the dang hops we have to go through. So over this opiod crisis it hurts good folks and animals!!!!

I am def going to get his dental taken care of - going to try and hold off til next month. He is in no distress atm. So we will see.

 

[daftcat75]

Ask the vet what the dental month deals are. I understand wanting to get a discount or save up. That was the plan for Krista. Last month her blood results were fantastic. It was when her eating reduced over the Christmas/New Years that I decided move up the dental for her sake instead of mine. Unfortunately, I let her leave too much on her plate or walk away from too many meals and now I’ve got the cruelest catch-22. We can’t deal with her teeth until her liver is dealt with. But we’re having a terrible time healing her liver without treating her teeth.

Wait if you must. But take her in at the first sign of reduced appetite or anorexia. I don’t want any cat (or cat guardian) to have to go through what Krista’s going through right now.

 

[bear]

Casper had bupenorphine in a transdermal that I could rub into his ears.
To him the administration was like giving him wanted attention.
I would put a finger cot (like a prophylactic for my finger). Put a "very small measured" amount from the syringe it was stored in. It comes out with a texture like an almond paste. You then rub it into the inside ear leather. Be careful not to get any on you. Discard the finger cot and use a new one for each application.
Follow Vet's administration instructions completely.

Cats vary in their side affects to bupenorphine. Read up to know what to expect.
http://csu-cvmbs.colostate.edu/vth/Documents/pharmacy-buprenorphine.pdf

 

[daftcat75]

Casper had bupenorphine in a transdermal that I could rub into his ears.
To him the administration was like giving him wanted attention.
I would put a finger cot (like a prophylactic for my finger). Put a "very small measured" amount from the syringe it was stored in. It comes out with a texture like an almond paste. You then rub it into the inside ear leather. Be careful not to get any on you. Discard the finger cot and use a new one for each application.
Follow Vet's administration instructions completely.

Cats vary in their side affects to bupenorphine. Read up to know what to expect.
http://csu-cvmbs.colostate.edu/vth/Documents/pharmacy-buprenorphine.pdf

I like the idea of a transdermal. I sent the vet an email and also asked about getting the Entyce compounded as a transdermal. I would really rather stay out of her mouth right now. Except our new yellow cat screening I started with her: check the eyes, check the ears, peek at the gums. Make sure I still don't have a yellow cat. Maybe, just maybe, through repetition, I can desensitize her to having her cheek pulled back long enough to administer the bupe.

 

[LTS3]

A q-tip / cotton swab would also work to apply any type of transdermal gel to prevent the medicine from being absorbed through your skin, especially one like buprenex.

 

[daftcat75]

A q-tip / cotton swab would also work to apply any type of transdermal gel to prevent the medicine from being absorbed through your skin, especially one like buprenex.

I think Krista would be more receptive to a finger than a q-tip. Especially because I’m already handling her ears more often now as I check that she’s still not yellow.

 

[daftcat75]

Krista is still at the vet. But. She got squirmy during the ultrasound so they sedated her. And once under, the Dr got to do the dental after all! She has a broken canine. She has two more canines that have deep pockets with food in them. Waiting to hear if those are being extracted or if the pockets can be cleaned and the gum re-adhered to the tooth. In any case, she’ll be coming home with fewer teeth (at least one is going) and very likely a lot less pain. Still waiting on bile acid test and perhaps a few others for liver diagnosis. Suspected HL and perhaps bile duct obstruction. Because she’s getting dental work done, she will get the bupe shot so I don’t have to worry about that one for a couple of days. Thanks to this site, I knew to turn down the Convenia. So we have a week of squirmy antibiotics but if she returns my happy fur pig wanting to eat me out of house and home, it will be worth a little cat wrestling. She’ll have fewer teeth to bite me with..