Cat dental care: advice and best practices
For some time now, a veterinary discipline has been on the rise: dentistry. This is good news because it proves that pet owners are finally concerned about the good oral health of their little companions. Let’s discover why dental care is essential for the good health of the cat and how to maintain its teeth and gums with the greatest regularity possible.
Why Care For A Cat’S Teeth?
It is very important to take care of your cat’s teeth throughout its life because it limits the installation of tartar. It is due to the presence of bacteria which clump together on the enamel of the teeth as soon as they appear, which can therefore also concern kittens. To protect themselves, the bacteria secrete a substance that forms a kind of film. Day after day, it mineralizes and is more and more resistant. It becomes visible: it is the tartar.
Tartar appears very quickly if we neglect theoral hygiene of his little companion whose teeth eventually take off. The cat can also present with an inflammation of the gums which seriously exposes the very structure of its teeth. In addition to being unattractive because it makes the teeth an unattractive brownish yellow, tartar promotes the proliferation of microbes which infiltrate over time into the gums. It is therefore a factor favoring periodontal diseases.
Certain signs also suggest the presence of a periodontal disease to know :
- Bad breath,
- Reddening and swelling of the gums,
- bleeding gums,
- The presence of drool,
- Difficulty chewing food,
- Tooth loss.
Many cats suffer from gingivitis and even, what is more serious, of a osteomyelitis resulting in the formation and subsequent discharge of pus or pyorrhea endangering their health and not just their oral health. Indeed, bacterial germs then migrate to the joints, the digestive system, the kidneys or even the heart.
What Is Dental Care For Cats?
Among the main acts of animal dentistry, we find:
- dental x-ray,
- The preliminary biological assessment,
- Scaling, which is performed under general anesthesia,
- polishing,
- devitalization,
- The placement of amalgam fillings, commonly called fillings,
- The act of dental surgery.
If you never have your cat’s teeth descaled, the care that will be required afterwards will be much heavier due to the damage caused by the installation of tartar.
How To Prevent Tartar From Forming On Your Cat’S Teeth?
There tartar prevention inevitably involves regular brushing of the teeth, using a applicator finger cot or a soft bristle brush and small format like the one designed for young children for example. Brushing is done as we do for us, from top to bottom so as not to mistreat the gums of the animal. On the toothpaste side, we do not recommend the one that the master uses for the maintenance of his own teeth! A toothpaste for cats is different from that intended for humans. It does not taste like mint or chlorophyll but like malt or chicken and does not produce foam.
We advise to brush the teeth of your kitten or adult cat at least three times a week. The ideal is to accustom your little feline very early to accept this ritual without difficulty. If the brushing is done gently, the animal will tolerate it much more easily.
In parallel with oral hygiene care, it is essential to give your cat dental toys and specially designed slats for him to chew on. This greatly promotes the oral care of the cat. Other solutions exist, such as special croquettes and antiseptic lotions that can be obtained from certain veterinarians or from a pharmacy which dedicates one of its departments to animal care.
The kitten has 26 milk teeth which fall out to make room for 30 permanent teeth. So many small quenottes which should be taken care of relentlessly and regularly checked by a specialist in animal dentistry. This is essential for the cat to keep its teeth white, have good breath, be able to eat without difficulty and stay healthy. At the slightest sign that may suggest a dental problem, it is necessary to consult.
