So bummed :(

Buggalo

My cat needs to have surgery. She has red, angry, swollen gums and the vet did a biopsy and said it would be best to have her teeth pulled. What they are doing first is pulling the 12 teeth that are the most damaged (bone loss and all that jazz). Hopefully, just pulling those teeth will be enough to solve the problem but if not, they have to pull the remaining teeth out, rendering her a toothless kitty.

Ugh. I'm so sad - they have to put her out, and she's going to be in so much pain and I just feel so bad.

I know people here have much bigger problems, but I'm kind of obsessed with my cat.

P.S. Since the vet told us she was probably born in June, we decided that today was her birthday because it's also my dad's birthday. We tried to put a party hat on her. She ran away.

Narwhal

I'm sure Nefariousmango will have some insight for you.  If I recall, her ballsack cat also is missing his teeth.

loopy82

Glad I don't have a pet. This board seems to be bad luck. Or maybe pets just get issues. Well either way, good luck!

Narwhal

My cat pulls her fur out until she bleeds.

PaigeMcC

Ah that sucks.  But I agree - nefarious will know more.  Ballsack kitties provide a wealth of information.

Good luck

Buggalo

Thanks guys. I'm sure animals have a sense of what's forthcoming (at least, that's what I tell myself), so I am telling her all about her surgery. BF says I need to stop talking to the cat as if she's going to answer me.

Narwhal

I have conversations with my cat.  I loooooove my lucy girl.

Today she stood on our gas heater (it's right next to the door and huge.) and tapped me on the shoulder as I was leaving for work.  I said "Yes, luce?" and she poked out her nose for me to kiss.  She just wanted to say goodbye.

zipis1

Two of my cats have had to have their teeth removed, so I know what you're going through.

Rest assured though, that they heal up quickly. Mine were back to normal in a few days. If your vet's worth his/her salt, they'll give you a potent pain killer (at the hospital I worked at we used the opioid butorphanol [better known as Torbugesic] in Val Syrup for kitties with dental work done. Drizzle it on their gums 2-4 times per day and they're happy kitties :P), and send you home with very easy to eat food (we used Hills A/D). Once their mouths are all healed up you don't even have to stop feeding them dry food; kitties have very tough gums and are not at all hindered in that department (I only feed mine dry food. Their less than perfect body condition score is proof that they have no trouble />_ />).

I totally get panicky when my babies have to go in for things like that though. When my boys had their procedures done my then-boss wouldn't allow me to work that day because she thought I fretted too much :P

Just make sure to have bloodwork done before the procedure and all will be well.

zipis1

By the way. The knot lies:

sapphirebaby926

I'm sorry to hear that about your kitty : (

Narwhal

TK totally lies.  A few days ago I kept trying to post and it wouldn't ever be under my name.  I was just like "What?! I said that! Me! Narwhal!"  But alas, no one came to my aid.

Buggalo

Ah, Zips - you're helping to put my mind at ease. Thank you. From what I've heard, it's a pretty common procedure and yeah, the vet told me she can still eat her dry food (which is good for her, because she LOVES her dry food). We've started her on antibiotics to sort of prep her mouth for surgery, and she had all her bloodwork done.

Just because I'm a total AW about my cat -- she's gray, half tiger/half domestic shorthair. She had an ulcer in her eye (or it could be a scar -- she was found on the street), so her left pupil looks cloudy. Her name is Marni, after the singer Marni Nixon, who did the singing for Natalie Wood and Audrey Hepburn in West Side Story and My Fair Lady, respectively.

zipis1

The funny thing is that it said the correct name to begin with, then it changed its mind. Silly Knot.

It is a common procedure, and I tended to prefer them over spays because they were so low stress (neuters were my favorite. Quick and easy. As long as it wasn't a retained testicle. Those surgeries are long and on my crap list). With the bloodwork done your kitty should be perfectly safe And if she loses all of her teeth, she may do what mine does and have her tongue sticking out half the time. It's adorable and he knows it (and sticks it out further to get the attention). However, there may be drool.

She sounds like my sister's cat. The cloudy eye makes for added character. And she's lucky because she has a very good momma

Mine are just lucky because they know they own me:



The orange one and the squashed one are the toothless boys.

nefariousmango

Aw, so sorry you have to got through that!  Mr Mews (aka ballsack kitty) did indeed have most of his teeth removed recently.  After surgery he looked terrible, his head was so swollen that I couldn't put his cone on him without completely taking it apart, and even then it was tight :-(  His pain meds helped A LOT but after a few days he was like a new cat!  He's gained 3 lbs in the past month, he's just SOOO much happier!

Buggalo

Thank you! I'm sorry your kitty had to go through that too, but as long as he's feeling better, then that's what matters!

leia1979

Buggalo, sorry to hear your kitty needs surgery. It's tough (for us humans!), but I hope she'll be better when it's over. One of mine had to have a bladder stone removed a year ago, and I was very stressed. I put an inflatable collar on her--poor thing looked so pissed off, but she couldn't figure out how to eat with the cone.

Narwhal - I have a Lucy, too. She's the baby, though she's turning 8 this year. My older kitty is 16!

tafft1

Poor kitty On a side note , my kitty Guiness , the crazy , rambunctious super cuddly one  has a cold or she nommed something she shouldn't have. She has been hurling up not vomit really but clear liquid , kinda like alot of saliva and she dosen't have much energy

This has happened to her before , and it passed ina  few days , it;s just so weird for her to be so non social during this time it scares me alot. My kitties are my children for now and are my life..so I completely understand. Sending happy healthy kitty vibes your way!

zipis1

How often/long has your kitty been vomiting, tafft? Kitty throats are very sensitive to vomit (I forget why exactly. I think it was something about them not having much mucosal lining) and they can be prone to ketoacidosis if it happens too much. And is it water she's vomiting?

I think you may want to get her bloodwork done if you can afford it.

tafft1

She only has done it twice now in the last 24 hours. It wasn't water , it was more of a dry heave the last time , very little liquid. If she dosen't improve by the weekend we will take her in..just trying to stay calm for now. She is trying to eat and drinking water which is good at least.