Senior Cat Dental Woes

author Sara Thornton DVM                                          iCandy RagaMuffins

My RagaMuffin Nougat is ten years old now. He has always been happy and healthy. Long retired from the show ring, he is not retired from the couch or the cat yard.

Like all my cats, he gets regular grooming including nail clips and comb outs. Once a year, they each get a formal check up. Now that I have retired, I keep a notebook with their records in it and dates on my cell phone to remind me when individuals are due for a tune up of any kind.

October came around and Nougat’s name popped up that he was due for vaccinations and annual bloodwork. I do the same with each of my pets that I did for pets that visited me in the hospital: ausculation, palpation, skin, ear, eye and mouth checks. This RagaMuffin had a problem surface. He had a bad tooth. I knew it needed attention.

Since I no longer have a practice, I made an appointment for him with my friend and colleague Dr Denise Jones. At the appointment, Nougat’s mouth was evaluated. She agreed that the sore tooth needed to be extracted. She also felt a couple more teeth needed to be radiographed. I made an appointment for him to return for the procedures.

The night before the dental work, Nougat was separated from the other cats because he couldn’t eat anything overnight. I’m sure he thought that was weird. The early morning was dark, foggy and raining. I drove Nougat to Brunswick Veterinary Hospital to drop him off. Like every pet owner, I hated to see my baby get carried away from me, even though I have every confidence in the team that was taking care of him.

All went well with his procedure. No surprise, I was told RagaMuffin Nougat was a charming trooper. He lost two teeth in total, but the radiographs were clear on the questionable teeth. He came home with me as if nothing had happened. His pain is well under control and he is happy to be home.

I greatly appreciate the care that was taken of my special boy. Taking care of pet’s teeth is an important part of keeping them healthy through their senior years.