Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi, I have a cat who is 9 years old. One month ago he had two
fangs pulled, one on the upper left and one on the lower right. A dental surgeon did the surgery so I assumed it was done correctly. I was not aware that there was a problem with the lower fang but the upper fang was very loose and the gum was receding. The vet suggested that the tooth might just come out on its own but my cat began to have respiratory problems that seriously impeded his ability to breath so the tooth was extracted. The vet said that he also pulled the lower fang because there was a problem(that I was not aware of) with that tooth too. Otherwise, both teeth had looked fine, no decay,etc.And when I asked if either teeth had been abcessed he said no.

It has now been a month since teeth were extracted and I have been back to the vet numerous times to get medication to deal with the respiratory problems which the vet said were related to, originally the upper tooth's root being so near the sinuses and now there's a hole, etc, and then, after surgery, because of what he called "debris" or tiny pieces of bone and tissue that the body had to deal with and now considered foreign amd it is now a matter of waiting for the area to heal. He gave my cat an antibiotic shot that was to last two weeks and Convenia(shot) that was to last one week and said to come back in two weeks.I barely made it through the week. My cat got very croupy, the third eyelid on the side where the upper fang was extracted almost covered his eye and his eye was all red. Not only that he acted as though everything ached and sat hunched.

So I was back the next week and the week after that because of respiratory problems that required immediate attention. I asked the vet if my cat was asthmatic, maybe triggered by the surgery. He said he didn't think so. Again, he said that everything was looking fine, stopped the antibiotic and gave a prescription for Prednisolone and said that it was still a matter of waiting for everything to heal. He said that the Presdnisolone would stop the allergic reaction that my cat's body had to the "debris" that was still being cast off and/or absorbed and that was what was causing the problem. He said to give two Predisolone a day for about a week then one a day then start tapering off. He said to give two a day regardless if my cat looked and acted better or not just to get a handle on it.He gave me 50 pills.

I gave two Prednisolone a day for the first week and everything began to improve. Alot. I started to taper off. The problem is that every time I try to taper off there's sneezing, then croupiness,etc. If I try to taper off, say, not give any for 24 hours because he seems to be fine, if he starts to sneeze and I give him two, it doesn't seem to backtrack the symptoms. I'm now giving him two every 16 hours and his eye is all red, the eyelid is covering the eye and it's red in the tear duct and he acts like something is aching. You may say to take him back to the vet. I have, numerous times, and the vet keeps saying, everything looks like it's healing and it's a matter of waiting for the gums to heal and the body to get rid of the "debris". It's been a month, should there not be an improvement? I'm giving him Vitamin C and bone meal to help the healing. Wheatgrass too. Is there anything else I can give him? What else can I do? I'm pretty desperate for an answer. Thank you for reading this and any help you may offer.BTW, I live in a small city so taking my cat to another vet for a second opinion wouldn't be an option.

A loose tooth can be a problem, as it is painful, but it doesn't lead to an allergic reaction. Upon removing the tooth, if a large hole remains, the gums should be sutured. Antibiotics are advised as a precaution to prevent infection, but prednisolone is contraindicated as it suppresses the immune system. There should not be any "debris" after the removal of a loose tooth, and the vet told you there was no abscess. Was the cat vaccinated around this time? The antibiotics did not control the infection, either because it was due to a bacteria resistant to these antibiotics, or due to a fungal infection. The prednisolone suppressed the inflammation until the infection was too severe to suppress further. You might try giving homeopathic Silica 30c twice a day as well as a good immune stimulent such as echinacea and golden seal.

Thank you for your reply.The gums were sutured. The vet is now saying that because there is a hole where the root used to be that it can accumulate mucus,etc,which could could contain bacteria and may be now causing the problem. He wanted to keep my cat on Prednisolone only and seems reluctant to prescribe antibiotics for some reason. The last time he said there didn't seem to be an infection so why prescribe antibiotics but because this has been going on for over a month, I insisted on antibiotics this time. He prescribed Clavamox, 62.5 mg twice a day for two weeks so I'm hoping that will correct the problem. Thank you, again, for your reply.

Hi again, My cat has been on antibiotics for the last two weeks- Clavamox, 62.5 mg given twice a day as well as Prednisolone 5 mg, twice a day. He is still discharging a yellow discharge from the left nostril, on the same side he had an upper fang extracted almost three months ago. His breathing is as though the nasal passage is noisy on that side,almost as though it's partially blocked, as though he has a cold, but only on that side,but when I look as far as I can inside his nostril it seems to be clear. When he's sleeping or resting sometimes it doesn't sound at all. Clavamox doesn't seem to be working and neither does the Prednisolone. My cat is also taking echinicea tincture. Is there anything else?Is this the wrong antibiotic?The other thing is that we just had a national holiday yesterday and unbeknownst to me all the vets decided to
take the entire weekend off too. They are all gone until Monday and I'm 167 miles from the next vet in the next city. I'm out of antibiotics and Prednisolone. I did happen to find a package of Clavamox-62.5 mg- but it's a year old. Rather than give my cat nothing until Monday is it OK to give him that? I'm beginning to wonder when the vet first refused to prescribe antbiotics when my cat first got the teeth extracted whether there was a buildup of infection started where the root was and everytime he gets antibiotics it's not enough to clear it or it's not given long enough or it's not the right antibiotic. Thanks for any info you could give.

I forgot to add that for all the antibotics that were given, Convenia, Clavamox, and the Prednisolone for at least a month
now, the left eye, on the same side that the upper fang was extracted, is still bloodshot and the third eyelid is partially covering the eye. The vet still thinks it's an allergic response
to the tooth having been extracted.

Hi again. An update to my last post. My cat had a bad bout
of respiratory difficulty over the weekend. An injection of
Dexamethasone provided relief- within 1 1/2 hours- but it doesn't seem to be a longterm solution. My cat is currently on Prednisone 5 mg twice a day, Clavamox 62.5 mg twice a day and
seems to have to have the Dexamethasone shot every couple of days. It's been over three months since he had the two teeth
extracted so it would seem that, according to the vet's diagnosis that my cat is reacting to the bits of bone, tissue
cast off curing the extraction as though it was foreign and having an allergic response to it- that the area would be all
healed by now. If this is asthma, and the vet hasn't said it is, he's just using the asthma med to stop the reaction, then
should not what my cat is taking now keep this under control? I'm not familiar with cats with asthma so I don't know. Do cats who have asthma need a Dexamethasone shot every couple of days as well as Prednisone and Clavamox? I'm desperate for a solution here and am willing to consider anything to suggest to my vet that may help with this. Thank you.

Another update. After two weeks on Clavamox 62.5 mg and Prednisone, because the regular vet who prescribed this was on holidays and because my cat still had creamy yellow discharge from the one nostril and increasing respiratory difficulties that needed a Dexamethasone injection to get it under control(which only lasted two days before the symptoms returned)the antibiotic was switched to Baytril 50mg.I tried to get something else but the vet insisted on this. I looked up Baytril and it has serious side effects if the dosage is at 5 mg especially in older cats, and the dosage the vet gave was 50 mg. Once a day for 10 days. I'm extremely concerned about this but don't what to suggest as an alternative. I would have to
suggest an alternative because the vet isn't suggesting anything else even though I asked and I don't know what to say. I don't really want my cat on Baytril. Would penicillin work?
Thanks for any info you could give. I've been bringing my cat back to the vet every two days.

This now sounds like a sinus infection, as the root of the fangs is very close to the sinuses. Have you tried giving Silica 30c twice a day? If you have and this hasn't helped, you might try Kali bichromicum 30c twice daily, which is useful for yellow, ropey, nasal discharges. I would try the Silica 30c first.