Proper dental care is vital to support your cat’s health. Teeth support two of the most important activities in your cat’s life, feeding and defense; this is why keeping a healthy set of teeth is critical for the general wellbeing of your pet.
Bad dental hygiene or the lack thereof can cause tartar, halitosis, gum inflammation and many other problems that can harm your pet and cause severe discomfort.
Our little fellows do not have the ability of verbally communicating their health condition, so, as responsible owners we need to get ahead in order to prevent any infections or diseases that may occur.
Here you have our 5 best dental care tips for cats:
Teeth brushing
Most cat owners unfortunately are not educated on the importance of teeth brushing in cats, which can provoke bad breath and other more severe consequences.
Teeth brushing in cats must be done 2 to 3 times a week. You need to get a cat toothbrush, which is very different to the one that humans use, which is a sort of thimble with plastic bristles. You will also need to get a toothpaste that is specially designed for cats.
Our advice is that you get your cat used to the procedure, giving it a little of the toothpaste to taste using your finger. Then, try to slowly introduce the habit of tooth brushing.
At the beginning you may only get to brush their teeth for a few seconds, but the goal is to do it at least for two minutes.
Even if you try your hardest, there is a big chance that your cat may not let you brush its teeth. If this is your situation, we recommend that you put a little tooth paste in its food, it will not have the same result, but it will moderately help prevent the formation of plaque.
Toys
Yes, you heard it right, toys can be a huge help keeping your cat’s teeth healthy. Toys with chewable plastic spikes can reach corners inside of the mouth that can’t possibly be reached by a cat toothbrush.
Make sure that the toys you are designating for this purpose are specially designed for dental care, and that the materials aren’t toxic for your pet.
Dental treats
If your cat loves its treats we have great news, there is a wide range of these products that protect their teeth. This is ideal for the molars since they use them to chew.
Proper food
It is important to choose food that does not harm our pet’s oral wellbeing. Dry and crunchy kibbles are useful to keep teeth clean because when your cat chews them the small pieces of food scrape against its teeth, helping to reduce plaque.
If you prefer home made food, we advise including food that take longer to chew like apples or carrots.
Dental cleaning
As you may know, there is nothing better for the wellbeing of our pets than the support of a certified health professional such as a veterinarian. Professional cat dental cleaning has to be done once or twice a year, especially if you notice discomfort or anomalies.
You must consider that cat dental cleaning is far more complicated than the procedure done in humans, since cats won’t voluntarily keep their mouths open. This is why in order to get it done general anesthesia is necessary. It sounds rough but it is a completely safe process.
In Sepicat we care about your pet’s health, this is why we insist on being very aware of any signs of illness in your cat. We invite you to keep exploring our blog to know more about cat health and care.