My cat has bad dental problems, I don't know what to do..?

Question

Yesterday, two of my cats teeth fell out, I took him to the vet and it turns out a lot more of his teeth are missing--she said that he seems to have a dental disease causing this that some cats get. The total cost for me to have his surgery ie..clean mouth remove teeth etc..is going to be $800 I cannot afford this right now due to a recent financial situation and none of my family members can help me out. I also am worried about the prognosis and the cost of any ongoing care. Should I put him to sleep. I love him with all my heart, but I don't want him to be in pain and it's not fair to him if he can't get proper treatment. This really sucks :(

Answer 1

One of my cats was thought to have this disease. Vets are not very understanding and most will not let you make payments. Mine won't and I have been going to him for many years. I was told to contact the humane society. They have a system where I am (in Indiana), that is like medicaid, except for your pet. It turned out that my cat did not have the disease, so I never had to ask for the help. I do know that I was told that the disease, is like a cat is allergic to its own teeth, or the plaque on the teeth. They recomended cleaning his teeth and putting him on drugs for the rest of his life. I would definitely ask for help now and not wait. Treatment needs to be started right away.

Answer 2

It might be a good idea to call around and get some prices from other vets. I don't know why, but some vets don't really like to do dental work on cats. It can be expensive. You're right to be concerned about your cat's teeth, because periodontal disease can be so severe it will cause the cat a lot of pain. You'll be able to tell because the cat won't be herself and will sort of sit there and drool. I had a cat with a congenital problem with her teeth and we had most of them removed when she was about 3. The vet saved the teeth for us and I was surprised how bad they were!

Answer 3

There is an oganisation called CareCredit.com which can make loans to cover high vet expenses and they either don't charge interest or it is very low.

I would investigate that to see if it will work for you. Unhealthy teeth make for an unhealthy cat and it is important he have the dental work done. Cats do just fine without teeth and it won't interfere with his eating and having a good life free of dental disease and pain.

Answer 4

Check with your vet to ask if they have a payment plan. Some clinics also offer low-cost services if you can prove financial need and look to be a good pet owner that has fallen on hard times.

Also check with cat rescue groups and animal shelters. Many will do lower-cost vet work, or may be able to refer you to a fund designated to help owners pay for their pets' needed care. Perhaps someone may step up to pay for your cat's care. (Don't count on it, but I've seen it happen.)

Once your cat has the surgery, you should not need to pay much for ongoing care. Make sure he is eating a dry food (canned is awful for cats' teeth) and keep up on his dental checkups. Although, if all of his teeth are in bad shape, you may be forced to feed him canned since he'll have difficulty chewing. You may want to start brushing his teeth after surgery to avoid having to do another dental cleaning for several years. Once his damaged teeth have been removed, you should be able to maintain his oral health without much more surgery, if any.

As a last resort, you may want to take your cat to a shelter or cat rescue. If he's young, friendly, and otherwise healthy, he may have a chance at adoption. It's not fair to keep him in pain if you can't see a way to alleviate his problems in the near future. Oral problems are extremely painful and the bacteria cause your cat to feel run-down and listless, not to mention dental disease can cause heart and lung problems.

How old is your cat? If he's 10 years old and you can't find anyone to pay for his treatment or find a way to do it yourself, perhaps it is better to have him euthanized. Old cats with needed vet work are not good candidates for adoption. Most shelters will euthanize these cats upon accepting them into the shelter as their chance of adoption is almost zero.

Good luck! I feel for you and your tough situation. Take care.

Answer 5

I'm sorry that you cat is sick ... but why don't you call PAWS (Progressive Animal Welfare System) and tell them that you ''love him and want to keep him, but you are in a 'financial bind' and can't afford the $800 it would cost to 'treat him' properly'" and ask them if they have the numbers of ANY PLACES that can help you with the bills. Tell them that you 'don't want' to have him 'put to sleep' and you don't want to 'give him up' either ... you just need HELP to get him 'better' so he can live a good, healthy life.

Answer 6

Do you have any Farm or Breeder vets in your area. You may want to start with going to CatFancy.com and look up breeders in your area and ask them what vet they use. That is how I found my vet for teeth. They are a 45 minute drive for me but when I had my PureBreed Siamese's teeth pulled just like you I was quoted $800.00 and the Farm/Breeder Vet charged me $118.00.

They pulled all the back teeth just leaving the front top & bottom fangs forward. Do NOT PULL these ones or his tongue may hang out.

Another option is if they are falling out.... and I know this sounds crazy but is to keep him on antibiotics long term and let nature take its course they will eventually all fall out on there own.

Answer 7

get in toutch with your local animal shelter, they may be able to advise you on low cost vet care or be able to contact your vet and try to negotiate some sort of payment plan so you don't have to pay all at once. If you still can't afford it, you could ask if the shelter will take him. Do you not have pet insurance?

Answer 8

I am so sorry to read this...
Well, i would suggest you to take her to a holistic vet that would look for alternative treatments like accupunture, homeopathy etc, or use traditional medicine/treatment if required...
And strongly suggest you to change her diet to raw... this will help her a lot...
The horrible pet food that is sold everywhere does these things to our pets and other kind of diseases :( ...
I will pray for you and your cat :)

Answer 9

3 yrs ago my baby lost all her teeth and her gums got all infected.She couldn'teat and was in severe pain.She was 18 yrs old.I had to put her to sleep.I still have moments where I miss her terribly.Sometimes we have to make that decision to put them at peace.I am really sorry about your trouble.

Answer 10

Is he even in pain?? Also usually they will have some financial plan at the vet so you can make monthly payments or something