In recognition of February being National Pet Dental Health Month, we’ve put together this webpage full of important information you should know about feline dental health. It includes helpful tips, fun facts, a feline dental IQ test and an opportunity for you to win a free oral assessment and treatment procedure appropriate for cats with stage 1 dental disease for one of your cats! (Only current clients are eligible to win.) We hope you enjoy it.
Dental Disease Overview
Dental disease is a common and often overlooked problem in cats. The initial stage of periodontal disease includes gingivitis (gum disease) and plaque buildup on the teeth. Plaque, if not removed, eventually leads to tartar formation. If left untreated, gingivitis, plaque, and tartar and its byproducts inevitably lead to serious periodontal disease. With periodontal disease, the structures supporting the tooth below the gumline are diseased. Tooth resorptions (destruction and resorption of teeth which may involve tooth root, crown or both) commonly occur in cats as well, with or without periodontal disease. (See Fun Facts and Knowledge Nuggets below for more information about tooth resorptions.) Tooth resorptions and all stages of periodontal disease, especially advanced stages, can be very painful, and if left untreated can lead to tooth loss and chronic pain until the tooth is lost (either on its own or by surgical extraction) as the disease progresses. Periodontal disease also can negatively affect other organs, including the heart, kidneys and GI tract.
As periodontal disease develops and/or worsens, your cat may be in need of professional attention. Prior to anesthesia, a pre-operative examination as well as bloodwork is done on your cat to help determine if your cat can safely undergo general anesthesia. While under anesthesia, a veterinary nurse/technician scales and polishes the teeth above and below the gumline using ultrasonic and hand instruments, flushing the cleaned area as needed. Your Cat Hospital veterinarian then examines each tooth individually for pockets, rough areas, gum recession, decay and fracturing. Intra-oral X-rays are taken using our digital radiology equipment. Then, your veterinarian surgically extracts any diseased, non-salvageable teeth.
Throughout this entire process, your cat remains under anesthesia and our dedicated anesthetist continually monitors his/her vital signs (including heart rate, respiratory rate, blood pressure, heart activity, body temperature, oxygen saturation and carbon dioxide) and monitors intravenous fluid administration rate. Pain medication also is administered both during and after the procedure, as warranted. Following the procedure, we recommend you bring your cat back to Cat Hospital 10 to 12 days later to ensure his/her mouth is healing properly and that there are no complications.
To combat dental disease, we recommend you:
- Brush your cat’s teeth daily. If using toothpaste, do not use human toothpaste which may cause nausea and vomiting.
- Consider feeding your cat a specially-formulated dental diet. Consult your Cat Hospital veterinarian to decide if this is something that would benefit your cat.
- If you give your cats treats, give them specially-formulated ones, such as CET Dental Chews or Feline Greenies.
- See your veterinarian at least annually for a professional evaluation and monitoring.
Note: Detailed articles about dental disease, dentistry, anesthesia and periodontal surgery can be found in our online library.
Fun Facts and Knowledge Nuggets
- An adult cat with all his or her teeth has 30 teeth.
- Kittens lose their baby teeth at 14 weeks old.
- Cats do not need any teeth to eat. They even can eat dry kibble without any teeth!
- A cat’s “fang” teeth (canine teeth) have only 1 root. Cats have 2 teeth with 3 roots – the fourth upper premolars on the left and right sides. These serve as the main shearing tooth in all carnivores.
- Cats have 3 sets of incisor teeth (12 teeth total). People have only 2 sets (8 teeth).
- Dental evaluation is a critical component of a cat’s regular visit to the veterinarian.
- Much dental disease occurs below the gumline, thus only is found once the cat is under general anesthesia when the gum and gingiva are probed and X-rays are taken.
- The single biggest cause of tooth damage and tooth loss is periodontal disease (disease that affects the periodontium, or bone, connective tissue and gum surrounding and supporting a tooth). Plaque- or tartar-induced inflammation is the major factor leading to periodontal disease in cats.
- Pain management is critical for a cat with periodontal disease.
- Tooth resorptions (resorptive lesions) are the most common tooth-related problem cats encounter unrelated to tartar or gum disease. Resorptive lesions are characterized by the destruction and resorption of teeth by specialized cells called odontoclasts. In animals and in people, these odontoclast cells cause the resorption of the roots of baby teeth to allow for adult teeth to erupt. In cats, however, these odontoclast cells also are sometimes inexplicably triggered to dissolve the enamel of adult teeth, which is very painful and different from the cavities that occur in people. Their cause is unknown, yet 60% of all cats have resorptive lesions at some point during their lives.
- General anesthesia is required to properly clean a cat’s teeth and comprehensively examine a cat’s mouth. Scraping a cat’s teeth in an exam room while the cat is awake is not adequate treatment and may cause more harm than good.
- Some cats require dental work every few months while some cats can go for years without dental work. Several intrinsic factors that can lead to dental disease include your cat’s mouth chemistry, breed, genetics and the presence of specific diseases (such as feline leukemia virus, feline immunodeficiency virus and diabetes).
- More than 85% of cats over age 4 have some degree of periodontal disease.
Note: Detailed articles about dental disease, dentistry, anesthesia and periodontal surgery can be found in our online library.
Stages of Periodontal Disease
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Stage 1 – Gingivitis This is the ONLY REVERSIBLE STAGE of periodontal disease. The gum (gingiva) tissue around the tooth is inflamed and swollen, and plaque and tartar on the tooth surface is present. Treatment can reverse these conditions. |
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Stage 2 – Early Periodontitis Entire attached gum is inflamed and swollen. Parts of the tissue and bone supporting the tooth are starting to become destroyed. Radiographic changes in tooth roots start to become evident. The mouth is painful and bad breath becomes noticeable. |
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Stage 3 – Moderate Periodontitis Cherry red and bleeding, the attached gum is being destroyed by infection and tartar (calculus). Advancing inflammation and infection also continue to destroy the tooth root structure. Painful mouth affects eating and behavior. Bad breath intensifies. |
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Stage 4 – Advanced Periodontitis Chronic bacterial infection is destroying the gum, tooth and bone. The mouth is extremely painful, affecting eating and behavior. The risk for systemic disease becomes very real as bacteria enter the bloodstream and possibly affect other organs, including the heart, kidneys, liver and GI tract. |
Photos courtesy of Cats Exclusive Veterinary Center
Test Your Feline Dental IQ
Dental Diets and Oral Treatments
Several prescription and non-prescription dental diets, applications and treats are available to support the oral health of our feline friends. These include:
- Hill’s Prescription Diet Feline t/d (prescription)*
- Purina Veterinary Diets DH Dental Health Feline Formula (prescription)*
- Royal Canin Feline Dental Diet (prescription)*
- Science Diet Oral Care for Cats (nonprescription)*
- CET Dental Chews (prescription)
- Feline Greenies (nonprescription)
- Dental Tartar Shields (nonprescription)
- CAT::Essential healthymouth anti-plaque water additive (nonprescription)*
- CAT::Essential healthymouth anti-plaque gel (nonprescription)*
- CAT::Essential healthymouth anti-plaque spray (nonprescription*
*Approved by Veterinary Oral Health Council (www.vohc.org)
Note: While not all of these products listed above have the VOHC Seal, Cat Hospital of Chicago veterinarians, who have more than 56 years combined experience in the health care of our feline friends, have found that all of these products also can be helpful in preventing tartar and plaque formation in cats.
Register to Win a Free Oral Procedure (current clients only)
In recognition of February being National Pet Dental Health Month, Cat Hospital of Chicago is pleased to offer our current clients the chance to win an oral assessment and treatment procedure appropriate for cats with stage 1 dental disease. This procedure includes:
- Preoperative examination the day of the procedure
- Tailored anesthesia plan developed by the veterinarian given your cat’s age, overall health and medical history
- Ultrasonic cleaning and polishing of your cat’s teeth
- Cleaning your cat’s teeth under the gumline
- Intraoperative blood pressure measurements
- Intraoperative fluids
- Digital dental X-rays (full mouth)
- State-of-the-art anesthesia and anesthesia monitoring throughout the procedure (heart rate, respiratory rate, heart activity, oxygen saturation and body temperature)
- Dedicated anesthesia nurse throughout the procedure
- Pediatric warming blanket to maintain your cat’s body temperature during the procedure
- Heated post-operative recovery cage to maintain your cat’s body temperature as he or she wakes up and recovers
To be eligible to win, your cat must have been seen by a Cat Hospital veterinarian during the past 2 years (since February 2010). One entry per cat who meets this requirement. The drawing will be held on March 1, 2012. You need not be present to win. Cat Hospital will notify the winner by March 5, 2012. The winner must have the oral assessment and treatment procedure done by December 31, 2012.