Okay - I took F#2 to the vet's today for her semi-annual bloodwork and urine-fest. Her teeth have a lot of tartar and need to be cleaned (she's 9) - and one of her little teeth needs to be removed! She has a lesion (which the vet called a "cat cavity") on her gum and apparently the tooth is bad and needs to come out. El Vet said this was a totally normal and standard procedure. I will take her in at the butt crack of dawn on Monday morning and she'll be sedated, they'll clean her teeth and take the bad one out. She'll be done by 3. She's lost a little weight lately (and could still stand to lose more) and I'm wondering if it isn't because her little tooth was bothering her?
I'm freaking out about this a bit (b/c I'm genetically a freak) - I'm worried that she has an infection and that it will get into her blood and cause her remaining kidney to fail. I'm worried that she might not handle the sedation well. I'm worried that a piece of a Russian satellite will fall from the sky and land on her.
So, for all you blogging cat lovers out there (and I'm sure there must be one or two!) - tell me that all of this is normal and totally okay!? Tomorrow her blood work will be back and we'll know more then - and I'll be starting her on antibiotics on Friday in prep for the Monday procedure. And the vet (you know, the one with the advanced degree in veterinary medicine) wasn't concerned about anything untoward. She was just like, "yeah she needs to come in to get her teeth cleaned and yank that one..."
So, it'll be all right, yes?
8 comments:
It'll be fine! This is totally routine. My Very Old Cat had teeth out when he was 15 and he was fine. They're always a little disoriented after anaesthetic, but in my experience they're back to normal the next day. The antibiotics will zap anything nasty. You can go back to worrying about that satellite :-)
It's not only routine, but I'd say you're doing pretty well if this is her first extraction. OneCat has pretty good teeth, but TwoCat is only 7 years old and he's had *five* extractions already. We picked him up in the afternoon and he wasn't even groggy. And he's had some weight problems, so we keep a close eye on his kidney functions, and they were absolutely fine.
You'll just have to find something else to freak out about... :)
Really, the only reasonable anxiety in your post is the part about the Russian satellite. The teeth-cleaning and -extraction bit will be fine. In my experience, furballs do need a little extra reassurance after the anesthesia, since they are unused to the feeling it gives them to "wake up," and they don't understand what's going on. But after it all wears off, she'll be fine!
Yup, what they all said - all three of my kitties have had teeth cleanings, and two have had extractions (of multiple teeth), and they're all fine. The eldest did have a semi-bad reaction to the anesthetic once, but that was literally over 10 years ago and there have been no problems since, so I think it was just a bad day for the anetheticist (I know that's not the right word...) (by bad reaction I mean it took him a few days longer to snap out of it - not anything more serious!)
Oh no! My kitties send cat hugs.
(Sure, everyone claims it's no big deal, they say. But one should always be careful and help the recovery with extra special treats and attention!
They add that you should give them extra special treats too. Cats!)
Oh - you guys all rock my casbah! Thanks for letting me know first hand what a small deal it is!
If I don't hear anything today from the vet about F#2's bloodwork then it all looks good and I'll just start her on antibiotics on Friday in prep for her dental visit on Monday!
MW, I totally understand your freaking out. I'd do it too. I guess, by the sounds of the commenters, that I've been really lucky. My two (Polly is 10 and Amelia is 14) have never had any problems and they're getting up there.
So I guess they're heartier than they like to pretend?
The boy had a cleaning and extraction last year, and he was fine. The vet was very cool about it, and understood (and agreed with) my concerns about general anaesthesia (he only had his teeth done a couple of years back), but pointed out that a rotting tooth and infected gums were far more dangerous. The Boy has stinky breath again, and it looks like another infected tooth. Will be calling the vet this week. And so it goes. Hugs to you and F#2
Post a Comment