10 Important Tips To Keep A Cat’s Teeth Clean

Dental care is as important for cats as it is for us; so we need to follow 10 important tips to keep the cat’s teeth clean and save it of uncomfortable and expensive surgery.

Important tips to keep a cat’s teeth clean: 

1) Dental health of cats means acting just now; avoid tooth decay and gum diseases that could be linked to heart, kidney and other chronic and serious illnesses. It is best to understand here that most cats do not show obvious signs of distress unless they are in considerable pain; so ensure you go for annual check-ups, preventive care and a good diet.

2) Giving your cat bones to chew on helps knock off tartar and keep the teeth and gums healthy. This could be given as a treat to pet cats; but avoid giving the cat the bones of pork, chicken or fish as they could splinter and cause serious internal damage. Raw bones are preferable to cooked ones that may splinter.

3) A yearly dental check-up is very important for your cat; it is best to nip the problem in the bud than allow it to become serious later on.  

4) Beware of the foul smell in the mouth of your pet cat; it is a strong indicator of oral problems. Increasing bad breathing or drooling can be an indicator of gum disease and /tooth decay.

5) If you notice your cat has bad breath and/ bleeding in the mouth bring it to the notice of the vet; a combination of both bad breath and bleeding with drooling may require a thorough cleaning and even tooth extraction. Ask your vet to thoroughly check your cat's teeth, gums, and breath for bleeding, swelling or redness.

 

6) You should regularly brush your pet kitty’s teeth with a gauze covered finger or a kitty toothbrush; there are kitty toothpastes that come in flavors they love. Never use human toothpaste that contains fluoride as they could make kitty seriously ill. Brush the pet cat’s teeth cradling him from behind, cupping his chin and lifting his lip to reach the teeth.

7) Start off brushing the pet cat’s teeth young with toothpaste formulated for kitty; you could make the experience more pleasant by dipping your finger in tuna water before rubbing his gums.

8) It could help to use tartar control treats and chews in moderation to clean the cat’s teeth, but they are not sufficient and special food supplements can be an addition to a healthy diet. You can use healthy chews and treats as rewards for good behavior while getting your cat used to cleaning of teeth.

9) Good health of the teeth also depends on providing the pet cat a combination of both wet as well as dry foods; you can include deboned raw meat that could stimulate him to chew and make his bones stronger. Vary the meats and provide him fish, cat beef and rabbit.

10) Tooth decay begins with irritated and inflamed gums, so make it a general rule to massage and stimulate the gums. This would accelerate healing and strengthen the gums with the gum being pink and healthy and not inflamed and red.