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By the time they reach 3 years of age 80% of cats have some form of dental disease. You might notice persistent bad breath, drooling, pawing at the mouth, red inflamed gums, bleeding from the mouth, yellow or brown build ups on the teeth and reluctance to eat.
Dental disease occurs in pets because of the conformation of their mouths, diet
and lack of proper care of their teeth.
Teeth are anchored into our pets' mouths by bone, a substance called cementum, a periodontal ligament and the gingiva (gum). Over the day salivary proteins attach to the tooth surface creating a film. 6-8 hours after this film is created, food particles and bacteria adhere to it. This is called plaque and generally is invisible. Over days, the mineral salts in saliva and plaque precipitate to form hard calculus or tartar. This is the hard yellow-brown material seen on teeth. Calculus is rough, attracting more bacteria to attach to it. It is also extremely irritating to the gingiva creating marked inflammation. The attachment of the gingiva to the tooth is slowly destroyed. This can extend to the periodontal ligament. Loss of the support structures of the tooth results in deep pockets which are hidden under the gum line. These pockets accumulate food and bacteria and the inflammation worsens. Often this is seen as pus along the gum line. The damage continues and eventually the process results in destruction of the bone and therefore, wobbly, painful teeth.
Dental disease is graded 1 - 4
Grade 1 - gingivitis - this is when there is much plaque build up on the teeth and the gum line is inflamed. The gum appears red and swollen. There is often a mild build up of calculus on the teeth. These teeth need to be cleaned to reduce the gingivitis and prevent loss of any teeth.
Grade 2 - marked gingivitis - this is when the gums are extremely inflamed and swollen. These gums will often bleed when touched. There is often much calculus built up on the teeth. These teeth need to be cleaned and thoroughly assessed.
Grade 3 - periodontal disease - this is when there is marked gingivitis, marked build up of calculus and the destruction of the bone has started to take place. These teeth need to be cleaned and thoroughly assessed. Some teeth may need to be removed.
Grade 4 - severe periodontal disease - this is when there is so much bone loss that the teeth are wobbly and extremely painful. These teeth need to be removed. Cats are often much happier without these teeth in their mouths.
***It is important to note that dental disease doesn't just affect your cat's teeth. The bacteria that reside under the gum line can enter the cat's blood stream and lodge in organs such as the heart and the kidneys. This can result in severe disease.
About 60% of cats over the age of 3 also suffer from feline odontoclastic resorptive lesions (FORLS). These are basically cat cavities. These lesions occur at the gum line. Odontoclasts (tooth destroying cells) attack the tooth creating a cavity. Once the cavity reaches the root canal, the tooth becomes very painful. Over time the tooth snaps off at the gum line leaving exposed roots which are painful and easily become infected.
It is unknown what triggers these odontoclasts to start attacking the tooth. We do know however that most cats with FORLS have periodontal disease. There is also an increased incidence of FORLS in cats with FIV.
Teeth with FORLS need to be removed to reduce pain and suffering.
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There are lots of things that can be done to keep your cats teeth clean:
1) The gold standard is tooth brushing. Brushing mechanically removes material from your cat's teeth. Cat toothpastes also contain an enzyme that helps to break down bacteria and a polish that keeps the tooth surface smooth. If your cat already has dental disease, tooth brushing is an excellent way to maintain their teeth after a dental scale.
Before introducing a toothbrush and paste to your cat you need to get your cat used to the idea of brushing. This is best achieved using something like cream cheese or nutrigel on your finger. Offer the cream cheese to your cat on your finger. Then slowly rub the cheese over your cat's teeth in an oval manner. Aim to rub it over 2 teeth at a time. If your cat accepts this, over time you can progress to a finger brush. These are small plastic brushes that sit on your finger like a thimble. Continue brushing with cream cheese until your cat is used to the brush, then you can progress to the toothpaste.
BEWARE - never use human toothpaste in cats' mouths! They resent the foaming action and the paste can irritate their stomachs.
At the Rowville Veterinary Clinic we stock both toothbrushes and toothpaste for cats.
2) Diet - One of the biggest challenges in keeping our cats' teeth clean is their diet. Soft foods are a big problem as they do nothing to clean the teeth. Dry foods are actually not much better as dry kibble shatters when cats bite into it.
Meaty bones are excellent for cats teeth and gums. Chicken wings are an ideal choice. These bones MUST be fed raw as cooked bones can splinter.
There are a number of premium commercial diets designed to clean cats teeth.
Hills Science Prescription Diet make T/D or tooth diet. The kibble in T/D is larger than normal kibble and is specially designed so that cats teeth sink into the kibble without the kibble shattering. This mechanically cleans the teeth and has been proven to reduce plaque and calculus as part of a veterinary supervised oral hygiene regime. We will often recommend T/D after a dental scale if your cat is not amenable to brushing. Hills Science Diet have also produced oral care diet. This is similar to T/D but we use this diet for early dental disease or as a preventative. Both diets are completely balanced and therefore can be fed long term.
All Eukanuba cat foods contain Dental Defence. Dental Defence is a product called sodium hexametaphosphate which coats the dry kibble. Sodium hexametaphosphate delivered in this way has been proven to significantly reduce plaque and calculus build up. As Dental Defence is included in the entire Eukanuba range, you simply choose the life stage diet appropriate to your cat.
There are a wide range of treats available that claim to be for dental health. Anything that your pet will chew and gnaw on for some time will help. There are also treats called CET chews which are coated in an enzyme that can help to reduce bacteria and therefore plaque in the mouth. These are readily available at the clinic.
If your cat already has significant dental disease, she may need a dental procedure.
Dental procedures are performed under a general anaesthetic. Your cat's teeth are examined thoroughly and then cleaned (scaled) using an ultrasonic scaler. This removes all calculus and plaque from the crown of the tooth. A hand scaler is used to gently clean under the gum line. The teeth are then assessed for loss of support and for FORLS using a probe. Any diseased teeth with loss of structural support or FORLS are removed as these teeth are painful. Teeth are removed using a high speed drill, a bone burr and with elevators. The gum is then closed using an absorbable suture.
If you are concerned that your pet has dental disease, please make an appointment at the clinic for an assessment.
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