I have a very old cat of 16 years... she is very very skinny even though she has always eaten.. she has been diagnosed wth a tumor on her bladder but the vets said it can be controlled and is not holding any significant problems yet..

her teeth are rotting... she has the moth foul smell from her mouth.. the thing is the vets doesnt want to anesthetise her because she is so old and may not come round..
i have a feeling they are hurting her because she has stopped eating.. she tries to put it in her mouth but spits it out as if it is hurting her or soemthing

what would you do.. would you risk having her teeth removed?

No i wouldn't in honesty,maybe try her on an easier diet she'll be more comfortable eating like mushy food,so mix it to a paste for herAaah she sounds like a real character Gd

Pets at Home have a brand of cat food called Natures Harvest. It's 90% chicken and full of good stuff, no crap and it's in a pate form so would be easy for your cat to eat.

I thought I read somwhere that cats with no teeth (or unusable teeth) are much better on a dry diet, because they can eat the dry without chewing... is this true?

Or maybe would be more true if they were fed kitten dry food as the pieces are smaller.

I had a similar dilemma recently with one of my bunnies. Daisy has to have her teeth ground down periodically as they grow unevenly and hurt her to eat. I don't know how old she is as she is a rescue bunny but she certainly isn't young. At the time I had to make the decision she had a chest infection which hadn't responded to 10 days of antibiotics and the vet was unsure if she would survive the anaesthetic. She also had two lumps. If it had just been the lumps I'd have left them.

When talking it through with my vet she said I had to be sure I could live with it if Daisy died while under the anaesthetic. If I couldn't she thought I should just leave her be. I found it an incredibly difficult decision but decided to take the risk to have her teeth done as I couldn't be sure she wasn't in pain - and having had toothache myself I didn't want her to have to suffer that for the rest of her life.

Daisy did survive and is now enjoying her food again. It was a different situation to yours in that eventually her teeth would have grown through her mouth as they grow continually so I would have had to have her PTS then.

It is so, so hard to know what to do for the best for our fur family. Is there a chance your cat's teeth will just fall out if they are left? Can your vet give your cat something to make her mouth more comfortable?

One of my cats has very few teeth left and she still eats dried food. I think the gums must harden up or something when the teeth are removed but I guess it could cause pain if the teeth are still there but are loose.

Applaws are very soft and may be OK for her.

She sounds a very special old lady.

I think it has to be about quality of life v the risk. Its a very very hard decision and only one that you can really make. Any anaesethic is a risk, but I would think I would rather risk that and have her slip away without knowing anything about it than a life of discomfort unable to enjoy any food, but thats just my opinion. Cats do cope wonderfully with no teeth and if she pulls through she will probably have a new lease of life. If her heart liver and kidney function are fine and she is strong in every other way, I would say she has every chance.

A/D is very good high calorie soft pate type food, you can get it online or from the vets. If you add some warm water to it she should be able to lap that up with no need for chewing.

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I'd try her on a nice mushy food - whether pate or something like tuna - to see if her appetite picks up.

Alas cancer usually leads to a downhill slope in most living things. My first kitty made it to 14 then developed a tumor in her ear. With careful maintenance she lived another year and a half quite happily, but then she lost weight and liveliness rapidly and it was time to let her go.

I'd say so long as your kitty is happy, keep her going. When her quality of life deteriorates, she's best off with you biting the bullet and having the poor thing put to sleep.

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I agree with you Saikou - i absolutely adored my old boy who i unfortunately had to put to sleep a few months ago.

He had health problems but on examining him my vet found he had a big sore tooth which must have been causing him pain. My vet done a blood sample to check his health profile and suggested a very quick, safe anaesthetic which posed him the minimal risk and he made it through the necessary dental.

There are safer anaesthetics out there which would allow your vet to put your baby under for the minimum time necessary to remove the worst teeth and make him much more comfortable. Your vet may also put him/her on a drip to assist with organ function too.

I never regretted the decision and my gorgeous man lived on for a few months after that very happily.

I have constant pain from problems with my mouth and would give anything some days to take this away.

It is your decision though and i sympathise with you as the decision is a tough one.


Love and hugs to your baby Here is my old boy, R.I.P

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Awww, he was gorgeous!

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Yeh, i have been trying for days with tuna, all mushed up on my finger.. also mushed up her cat food into a paste... shes not happy with it..

Took her to the vets and they say they will have to put her under to get her teeth removed.. its that or she starves..

wish her luck.. she goes in tomorrow at 8am.. and her op will start at around 9-10am