Feline - full mouth tooth extraction?

Question

My cat has had gum problems (severe stomatitis, I think is the right term) for awhile, and we've tried a number of different types of medications...some of which help temporarily.

To make a long story short, we've had 3 different vets suggest that a solution to this could be the extraction of all the teeth in her mouth. This sounds very scary to me, but having 3 vets recommend it leads me to believe that this might be helpful.

My question is, do any of you have cats who have had all their teeth removed? Are they happy/healthy/eating/etc? Is this a procedure that you're glad to have had?

If anyone has any insight on this scary concept, I'd love to hear from you.

Thank you!

Answer 1

They manage fine without teeth!  You'll need to feed canned food and once the gums are healed she will eat very easily - more easily than when she had a sore mouth.  Although toothless cats can't crunch dried food, some still enjoy dired food with small-sized kibble, but because they swallow it whole they sometimes vomit it back up again.

I don't find it a scary concept for pet cats as they don't need to hunt or scavenge for food.  Several of my cats have had no teeth - in fact one of my current cats had such severe dental decay when I got her, she has no teeth any more.  I've had younger cats without teeth as well due to auto-immune conditions where the immune system attacked the teeth.

Without teeth, she'll need more help grooming.  Her teeth used to be a comb for chewing out mats so you'll need to brush her more often.  Oddly enough, you'll also need to clip her back claws more often.  Cats bite their back claws to keep them in trim and she won't be able to do this any more.

Many cats don't seem to realise they lack teeth.  I've had toothless cats bite me.  You will notice the lips get a bit floppier and her tongue may sometimes protrude from the front of her mouth as there are no teeth to retain it (this looks rather cute and is not distressing to the cat).  She'll still do the things she used to do, though she might not always be successful.  My ex-feral cat had most of his teeth removed and still tried to hunt, luckily I could release his prey which was soggy, but alive.

Having no teeth is better than having a constantly painful mouth.

Answer 2

at the cat shelter i volunteer at (HART) we have had a few cats have all their teeth removed and it really hasn't changed anything, they eat and drink and do everything just fine, soft food is recommended though. will kitty get to keep his/hers canine teeth? that can sometimes make a difference... Good Luck!

Answer 3

if the cat is old, or an inside/outside cat,i would put it to sleep. i cant see it living a happy life.

if the cat is no older then middle age, and an inside cat,i would do it because three vets said so.

he will be a special needs cat, cant be let out side. im not sure, but he might not be able to eat canned food, you may have to add kitten formula , put it in a blender and feed him milk shakes to drink.

Answer 4

I agree with Tasha and Messy. I too am a volunteer worker at my local cat shelter (Happy Endings) and we've had plenty of cats that ate just fine with little or no teeth at all.

Don't listen to the first poster and put the cat down. If your vet thinks that it's a good idea, then by all means, go for it.

Of course she'll have to be put on soft food for a while, but after some time she will learn how to gum and swallow the hard food, which is better than chewing with sore teeth and gums.

It's a lot less scary then it sounds. :)

Answer 5

         So, let me tell you just why I think the way i do. I have had cats all my life, and we have talked about this in school. A cat will do fine without teeth, in fact quite a few of them just wolf down their food when they eat, without bothering to really chew it.

        Yes, soft food is a bit nicer to them when they don't have teeth (actually, soft food is being recommended much more anyway. it tastes better because they can taste food much easier when it is soft, and they need a little bit more water than what they tend to drink.)

       I would also recommend after keeping your feline friend indoors, which is a good practice anyway considering the dangers faced out there (cars, dogs, mean kids...) and the overpopulation crisis we have with felines.

       Add to that you have had three different opinions from different veterinarians. Vets love animals, and wouldn't lead you astray.