Dry Food With Bad Teeth

[jatsk]

Wow! He is doing a lot better today! He ate 1/2 of a 3 oz. can this morning. Then, later on at lunchtime, he was laying on the heater vent, and I said "Hi, Barney" to him. He immediately got up and went to his food dish and was looking at me like "Aren't you going to give me some food?" Usually, he doesn't ask to be fed until late evening. So, I tried giving him the leftover food from this morning. He just looked at it and walked away. Then, I remembered that I had some Simply Nourish cans of food that I bought, but haven't tried giving to him yet. So, I decided to give him the Seafood Bisque flavor. He loved it! He not only licked up all of the gravy, but he also was eating some of the chunks! He didn't eat all of it, but he ate 1/2 of it. So, between this morning and lunchtime, he has already eaten  3 oz. of food! That is the most he has eaten in weeks. I know the Simply Nourish with the gravy isn't the healthiest, but in my opinion, it's better than nothing. I am going to try to give him more food later on this evening. I do hate wasting leftovers, though. Does anyone know if it would be safe to take out half a can of food to feed him and then put a lid on the rest of the can of food, but instead of refrigerating it, leave it out on the counter? How long do you think it could be left out like that? I just think that way he would eat the rest of the food later, since it wouldn't be dried out and refrigerated and reheated. He doesn't like it that way.

 

[cprcheetah]

Unfortunately at that age it is risky putting them under anesthesia, however if he has a bad tooth the bacteria showers through their system and can damage their heart, liver, kidneys etc.  At the vet I work at We use just gas anesthesia with elderly patients without problems.  We just pulled a tooth on a 19 year old cat.  We do bloodwork before the procedure, use an IV catheter and have close monitoring on them during the procedure.  the antibiotic shot may help temporarily but it is not going to correct the problem. 

 

[molldee]

I feel bad for the kitty. He sounds like he's in pain! I'd take the risk of dental surgery for his sake.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

 
Wow! He is doing a lot better today! He ate 1/2 of a 3 oz. can this morning. Then, later on at lunchtime, he was laying on the heater vent, and I said "Hi, Barney" to him. He immediately got up and went to his food dish and was looking at me like "Aren't you going to give me some food?" Usually, he doesn't ask to be fed until late evening. So, I tried giving him the leftover food from this morning. He just looked at it and walked away. Then, I remembered that I had some Simply Nourish cans of food that I bought, but haven't tried giving to him yet. So, I decided to give him the Seafood Bisque flavor. He loved it! He not only licked up all of the gravy, but he also was eating some of the chunks! He didn't eat all of it, but he ate 1/2 of it. So, between this morning and lunchtime, he has already eaten  3 oz. of food! That is the most he has eaten in weeks. I know the Simply Nourish with the gravy isn't the healthiest, but in my opinion, it's better than nothing. I am going to try to give him more food later on this evening. I do hate wasting leftovers, though. Does anyone know if it would be safe to take out half a can of food to feed him and then put a lid on the rest of the can of food, but instead of refrigerating it, leave it out on the counter? How long do you think it could be left out like that? I just think that way he would eat the rest of the food later, since it wouldn't be dried out and refrigerated and reheated. He doesn't like it that way.

I am so glad he is eating better.  And I don't think Simply Nourish is a BAD canned food, actually.   One of mine is the same way...he doesn't really like it once it's been in the fridge.  What i do with the leftovers is put take them out of the can and put them in a snack sized ziploc baggie with some water, squish it all up so it's ready to serve, close it up pushing all the air out, then serve it up at lunch for him, which is about 6 hours later. I figure as long as it isn't too hot in the house, and it's in an airtight container without the metal can, it's ok for that long.   I don't ever leave it out from morning until their 10 pm. meal though, nor do I leave it out overnight. 

Another thing you could do is just take it out of the fridge about an hour before his meal so sit can come to room temp on it's own.  I've done this before too.

 

[scotty parno]

Hi, you could keep it in the fridge and microwave 5 seconds and feel for warmth not heat.I would still try instinct beef bites it will do wonders for your cat..I use paper small plates and throw away dish when my kitty is done.He's 4 months and eats 1cp devided 3x a day that's quite a bit for a 4month kitty,but loves every drop.Good Luck......... Scotty