Reptile & Amphibian Forums

If there is anyone that can possibly shed some light on this situation I would greatly appreciate it and need your input.My cat had 2 molars,one up and one down on the same side pulled 1 month ago.No x-rays were taken prior to the extactions which I now found out should have been done.Since he has had his teeth pulled he is having great difficulty trying to eat soft pate canned food.As soon as he get anything in his mouth you can hear him grinding his teeth or something and he desperately fusses with his mouth as if he is trying to get something out and sometimes he even gags.I have gone back to the same vet 4 different times over the course of the month and all says is that it is healing fine. There was no packing put in the holes and no stitches.Can anyone shed any light on what could possibly still be going on in his mouth.

Hi,

It will take an exam by another vet to determine what is actually going on in your cat's mouth but there are several possibilities. Your cat should have been totally healed weeks ago but he is obviously in pain. I feel so bad for him.

The first possibility that comes to mind is that he may have an exposed root from one or both of the teeth that were extracted. He may also have more bad teeth, one or more broken teeth, or infected and/or inflamed gums. Cats that have teeth bad enough to extract often also need antibiotics. Your baby may even have an abscess in his mouth.

Most vets don't x-ray routinely before dental surgery, so I don't really see that as a problem. But it can be very difficult and time consuming to remove teeth and their roots correctly and not all vets have the best equipment, mainly a drill, to help them do this. You can imagine how painful leaving something like a root behind can be.

Cats often will eat very well starting the day after dental surgery, so something bad is going on here. They can even eat dry food after a full-mouth extraction!

If I were you, I would make an appointment with another vet and take your kitty there. It's really the only way to find out exactly what the problem is. Please keep us updated.

Regards,
PHKitkat

First I would like to say Thank you PHkitkat for taking the time to help me - I appreciate it! and your advice and insight is completely correct.The original vet that did the surgery did not pack the open cavities which is normal procedure.He did not even put stitches in which left these holes open and even though my cat was only fed soft food as recommended, the soft food went into the open cavity and created an abscess - I was horrified to learn this. Just today my little guy had surgery and now has stitches in his mouth.He has suffered uneccesarily so my advice to anyone taking their cats in for dental work is to 1.go to a veterinarian who has a radiograph(which is a dental x-ray machine) just in case it may be necessary to take x-rays prior to dental extractions to be sure what is going on. 2.Make sure that the open cavities for larger teeth like molars(which my cat had 2 molars removed)are packed with a packing which dissolves on its own but is most important to protect food from getting stuck in there and then healing over top resulting in an abscess. 3. Most vets give you pain medication to take home to use for the next few days(my vet did not even though I asked).Don't be polite like I was and ask and then the vet says no it's not necessary - if you have a vet like this, insist that he give it to you.The second vet I went to told me this is always given to take home especially with large teeth being pulled out. 4. Do not under any circumstance feed dry food after dental surgery. Apparently renal failure can set in after dental surgery also, which I did not know and don't quite understand so I have my fingers crossed that my little guy comes out of this okay after all of his unecessary suffering and pain as a result of an incompetent vet.I learned a lot in this last month.

Hi,

You are very welcome! I am SO happy that your little guy has had the treatment he needed and will be fine.

Regarding kidney failure, it can be secondary to bacteria being released into the bloodstream during a dental. Usually, though, this is more likely to happen in cats that have really nasty, rotten teeth.

Keep a close eye on your baby and look for increased thirst and urination. This may indicate kidney problems. I feel that the chances of this happening are minimal, though.

Thanks for the update!

PHKitkat