Checking your cat’s teeth on a regular basis and keeping them clean is vital to your cat’s overall health. Put simply, your cat’s teeth are very important - if they lose their teeth, they will have no way of eating! Below are some great tips to point you in the right direction.

Visually check

Visually checking your cat’s teeth and gums on a regular basis is a good start. First of all check your cat’s breath. If your cat’s breath is strong / bad then this could indicate an infection of the gums or a tooth.

Tartar and plaque

Similar to us humans, cat teeth need to be free from tartar and plaque to stay healthy and problem free. Your cat’s gums are an easy thing to check - if they appear a healthy light pink in colour then chances are they are healthy. If however they appear red and/or are bleeding, there may be a problem so it is probably best to take your cat to the vet for a check-up.

Cat brushing

You can purchase special brushes from good pet stores to brush and clean your cat’s teeth. As with most training and behaviours, starting to clean your cat’s teeth at an early age is the best approach. Another method is to put a little bit of baking soda on a rag to rub your cat’s teeth. The mild abrasive qualities of baking soda will clean your cat’s teeth in no time.

Cat rinsing

A similar approach to brushing your cat’s teeth but a little easier for you and your cat, is to rinse your cat’s teeth. Simply rub a little mouthwash to a rag and rub on the cats gum / teeth. Just make sure that the mouthwash you use has been approved for pet consumption!

Diet

There are various options with diet, from special cat chews for teeth cleaning right through to the rather simpler approach of feeding your cat raw chicken bones. All teeth friendly diets work on the basics of abrasion - as your cat eats the food gently rubs against their teeth and removes any plaque and/or tartar.

A word on chicken bones - it is critical that any bones fed to your cat are RAW. Cooked bones are dangerous for cats particularly older cats where the likelihood of the bone splintering and being lodged in the cat’s throat are increased. Raw bones are also no hassle - often the butcher will give you chicken necks for free and our cat Charlie loves them.

In summary

My advice is simple - prevention is yet again far better than the cure when dealing with your cat’s teeth health. At an early stage of your cat’s life, get him/her used to regular teeth checks and eating teeth healthy food such as chicken necks and raw bones. Doing so is a great way to prevent any teeth problems further in your cat’s life.

Popularity: 77% [?]

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!