Cat tooth care is essential Cat tooth care is essential I am fortunate to currently share my life with four wonderful, idiosyncratic cats. Three of them just had professional, veterinarian-administered teeth cleanings, all with dramatically different outcomes and findings. I have renewed my commitment to taking their dental health as seriously as I take my own.
Periodontal disease is the most common disease that affects our feline and canine friends.
The gums of a healthy cat will be pink in color, firm to the touch, and closely attached to the teeth. Willie's gingivitis was so severe that he had to take oral antibiotics for a week following his cleaning. Here the bacteria form pockets of infection around the teeth and destroy the supporting tissue, causing painful abscesses and potential tooth loss. This was certainly the case with Gracie. Because she has hyperthyroidism and has not been stable enough for the last year and a half to undergo the required anesthesia, by the time she was able to endure the dental cleaning she needed five of her 30 adult teeth extracted.