Cleaning Cats' Teeth - or Just how Much DO I Love Oscar?

Some vets here are suggesting it at 7 - the Geriatric cat assessment - I guess it picks up early kidney damage and such - but what they can DO about all that is another thing...

Exactly, deb!

A vet I trust says that almost all elderly cats die from either kidney failure or thyroid disease. That's just how they go.

And when you gotta go, you gotta go....

i called the vet today before i even bothered taking Pugsley in. bunch of fascists. i explained over and over that all i wanted to pay for was a checkup and the tooth cleaning. no, no, no. he MUST have everything else done, dont i love my cat? if i cant afford a cat, i shouldnt have one (hence, giving him away). so i did what i do when anyone is mean to me on the phone. i hung up on them. i will brush his teeth myself and make another appointment if he starts complaining about his tooth. i found a website with a how-to on cleaning cats teeth yourself, but i dont think this site will let me post the url. so if anyone wants the how-to, please ask and ill send it to you.

You definately do not need a vet (or M.D.) for that matter that tries to tell you what you must do. Suggest, yes - order, no. Find another.

Pippy - good luck!

I believe it is only urls to your OWN site that A2k is concerned about - because of the concerns about spam - post away if it isn't YOUR site!!!

okie dokie then... how to clean cats teeth-- http://www.placervillevet.com/cat%20toothbrushing.htm

Pippy - what big teeth you have!

Cannot wait to hear what happens to Margo and Roberta when they try this out on Possum and Mikey.

Hung up on 'em? Good for you, pippy!!!
I don't even take that load-of-guilt-crap from MY doctors...much less from a vet! Glad you found a way to deal with the teeth yourself. How long 'til Pugsley goes to stay with your friend(s)?

Sounds like asking for a free bloodletting to me! I wonder what' s the go with getting a disability pension after Possum has finished with me

Poultry flavoured toothpaste!

Hey! I got TWO meezers! Goodbye, sweet world...

he is going on thursday. i bought him a real cute little sweater, so he wouldn't look like a deformed poodle anymore, but he HATED it. he started walking around sideways and falling over like he was dying! of course, he was prefectly fine when i took it off him. we're going to try out the chicken flavoured toothpaste tonight-- im daring everybody i know to brush their own teeth with it, but no takers on that one yet... i think the stress is getting to him though. he threw up on me AGAIN last night! poor baby. here's hoping the move goes well.

I do not believe I would have even tried a sweater on a cat. If he let you put it on without gereral anesthesia, you might be able to pull of the tooth brushing act after all.

he's just about the sweetest cat in the world. i dont think he's ever bitten or scratched anything.. thats why hes my wittle baby pussy cat. ill let you know on the toothbrushing, that might result in kittie under the couch for the next week.

Hahaha! I got a really good laugh imagining Pugsley in a sweater! Cats HATE it when you dress them up! Most of them refuse to walk! They get downright INDIGNANT about it!

Reminds me of when we were kids. We loved to dress our huge, mean-tempered tomcat in soft li'l baby clothes, leaving the middle crotch snap open for his tail to go through. Our big (20 lb.) baby would throw a regular hissy fit. (Southern expression, sorry.) He would scream, roll over & over, bite at the clothing, refuse to walk, and then finally skulk into a hiding place, hoping nobody had seen him in such a HUMILIATING, DEGRADING position. You would have thought we were torturing him. And, come to think of it, maybe we were. But we weren't hurting anything but his PRIDE.

I still laugh every time I think about it.

eva, thats hilarious. i can remember "torturing" all my pets in just the same way. i guess theres more pride in being a bald cat than there is in being a dork in a sweater.

Was happy to find out there is a way to get Simon's (another smeese) teeth clean and that is the tooth at a time ploy - I bought him a toothbrush and the chicken flavored kitty toothpaste and a little handy pac of catnip.

I tried to brush all his teeth once and there was no way that he was going to stand for that - so it was a real disaster. The vet charges $100 in Hilo, Hawaii to do a full mouth cleaning (under anethesia)

s'glass

HAHAHA! Yes, a dork in a sweater IS worse, in cat logic! That puts him in the same category with those yappy little (dare I say the word?) dogs. I can just imagine him hurling every imaginable cat obscenity at you at the top of his lungs!

I'm sure you will miss him come Thursday. Why does he have to go stay with your friend(s)? Did you tell us and I missed it?

i have another male cat, who ive had for a very long time. honestly, hes a total bastard. he hides under the tables and bite you when you walk by... but i cant part with him ever cause hes been my best friend for so long. we got pugsley from the cat lady at the pet store, he was going to be put own if he couldnt find a home. unfortunately they fight, and i've had to keep pugsley locked in my bedroom, along with his litterbox and food. i trade them around a few hours every day, but im not home much and pugsley isnt getting the socialization that he needs. plus, my room stinks like cat pee. i cant bring any guys home cause my room stinks and i cant kick the cat out. every now and then he'll sneak out and i get my arms ripped off trying to break up their fights.. so i think everyone will be happier if pugsley finds a new place to live.
oh, and just cause i feel the need to complain about this one... the lady who gave him to me said that her boyfriend was allergic and she couldnt keep them both.. no, no.. he was spraying. so if anybodys got a cat who sprays, dont fret too much, you CAN get them to stop, it just takes work.