Can my senior cat get dental care without treating chronic issues?

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I think you are between a rock and hard place. I would find a Vet comfortable with Harley's kidney disease and is fast with dental extractions. Specialists aren't always the fastest at removing teeth. Sometimes the general practitioner is quicker and what Harley needs is to NOT be under anesthesia for 3 hours. Your Vet may just not feel comfortable with the severity of his teeth, his age and underlying kidney disease. Who and how they monitor anesthesia is also important. For the sake of his kidneys they need to be sure his blood pressure is stable and doesn't drop too low. I think you can have his teeth done, but there is risk due to his age and kidney disease but you don't have much choice at this point. I would find someone with in your budget that feels comfortable and you need to be willing to accept the risks and go for it. I wish you the best!

There is really no home dental treatment, only home preventive care. If there is an abscessed tooth that infection can cause the jaw to get infected too if left untreated. There may be a tooth root exposed from a broken tooth. Really, he needs to see a vet and should be neutered too. Now, I realize that may not be possible where you are so if you absolutely cannot get him to a vet all you can do is try an oral antibiotic to hopefully correct any infection. Clindamycin is the best antibiotic to use for dental issues. I am only able to find it in tablet form. He may or may not eat it. If not, you will have to mix it with some canned cat food to see if he will eat it that way. I would give it for 14 days total. ( https://www.marshallspetzone.com/health-care/5511-7762-savavet-bioclan-25mg.html#/145-pack-3 ) Once you receive the medication, if you need help with dosing information you are welcome to post again.

What a tough situation for you to be in! I would recommend running at least blood tests on your cat, specifically a geriatric blood panel. That would give an idea of how her organs are functioning, if there are any medical conditions present (such as diabetes, hyperthyroidism, kidney disease), and it will help your decision as to whether or not to let her go. She could potentially have an underlying medical condition that isn't treatable, or has reached a point where letting her go is the best option. Also, if her organs aren't functioning well, a dental will not be safe for her as the anesthetic risk would be too high. If paying for a vet is an issue, you can see if your vet accepts payment plans, if there is a low cost clinic in your area, or you can apply for Care Credit online. There is also an organization called Red Rover that give grants for treatment of sick animals, and you can see if you qualify for one of their grants. http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/resources/tips/trouble_affording_pet.html?credit=web_id91754962 https://www.redrover.org https://www.carecredit.com

The scaling and polishing portion of the dental is the least time consuming, and most inexpensive portion of the $1000 estimate. In addition, tartar left on teeth can further aggravate gum disease. The necessary extractions cannot be done without anesthesia or pre-anesthetic bloodwork to make sure that Baxter’s liver/kidney function appears normal enough to handle anesthesia. With severe gum recession/fractured teeth, cats can develop serious tooth root abscesses and oral pain resulting in weight loss, poor health. If there are in fact diseased teeth in Baxter’s mouth, having a complete dental scaling/polishing with necessary extractions will likely significantly improve his quality of life and decrease the chances of oral bacteria causing heart valve issues in the future. Good luck!

Good Afternoon...thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I empathize with your struggle and Munchkin's picky diet. I certainly do not want to cause alarm, but many times cats will become "picky eaters" for many other reasons other than their teeth. As a veterinarian, this symptom always give me pause. Cats with dental issues still usually have a normal appetite, even with a bad tooth - they will still eat. There are many other conditions which can cause an older kitty to change their eating habits and influenced "what tastes good to them" - conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease (even with no other GI symptoms), kidney disease, liver disease, and many types of cancers (that can be within any organ of the body...) can cause an older kitty to change their appetite preferences. I would want to know if Munchkin is maintaining her weight, or has she lost weight? If she has lost weight, this is also more concerning. I would recommend you monitor her weight very closely - if she is maintaining (and has not lost weight within the past 6-12 months...). You may want to consider a visit to your veterinarian for additional diagnostics including a full senior bloodwork/urine profile, and possibly an abdominal ultrasound and chest radiographs to ensure nothing more sinister may be going on. I hope this helps, good luck!

Hello. I am sorry to hear that Tiger is feeling sick. Tartar and tooth disease can worsen heart disease, especially if there is already heart disease present, however anesthesia in a cat with HCM is going to have increased risks. The decision to go to surgery or not will have to be made with you and your vet, depending on the severity of Tiger's heart condition. You can try feeding him a dental diet to help prevent more tartar build-up and if he will let you you can try brushing his teeth. You won't get the stuff on there off without anesthesia and a dental cleaning, but you can prevent it from getting worse. Good luck with Tiger.

You shouldn't be too worried, from my experience it's rare that a cat this age would need a full dental work as such at this age, it the tooth does not seem to be decaying and if he has no trouble eating, i would leave it as it is for the time being.