Gingivitis in Cats

by Mewsette

Gingivitis is inflammation of the gums and it has become a common problem in cats. It can be seen as a red line of inflammation, running along the edges of our gums next to the teeth. The gum tissue may even become so sensitive and inflamed that it bleeds easily. It can cause a lot of discomfort and pain, and painful gums can cause a cat to stop eating. Sometimes the gingivitis causes erosion of the roots of our teeth, called "neck" lesions. It can lead to a serious condition called Stomatitis. and even to the loss of all our teeth. It all sounds awful, doesn't it?

They say the cause of gingivitis is not really known, but it is thought to be an immune-related disease or a result of infections from bacteria, among other things. The buildup of plaque on teeth can cause it. Some of the other things indicated are allergies, viral infections and, yes, kitties, modern cat food that we eat instead of fresh, raw food. The processed foods, full of sugar and carbohydrates that cats have no use for, too much salt, wheat, cornmeal and worse, are not the fresh foods we ate for thousands of years. I suspect that cats a thousand years ago had healthier teeth than we do. But of course I wasn't there.

Gingivitis can occur in any cat at any age, with no really satisfactory treatment for it. Cleaning and descaling the teeth to remove tartar build up and extracting badly eroded teeth is helpful, but the gingivitis often comes back. Antibiotics and anti-inflammatory or other drugs have helped in some cases. They tell me that regular brushing of the teeth with or without cat toothpaste may also be helpful in treating or preventing dental disease. They even suggest antiseptic mouth washes, but they admit these are a little difficult to ...ummm, ...administer to cats.

Cleaning our teeth under anesthesia is very common these days and helpful, if one is not a cat for whom anesthesia is too risky. This is a good effort by our humans and vets to avoid dental disease. Brushing our teeth may be a good effort too, if they don't mind losing a finger. Isn't it amazing how we cats lived for thousands of years without ever having a human brush our teeth? I'm not against it, now; a toothbrush does have real fiber. Just don't stick one of those contraptions in my mouth, with or without Kitty Crest. I'm told by my purrsonal spy (my mom) that there are bigger displays of kitty toothbrushes and toothpastes in pet supply stores now than there are of vitamins and supplements for us. So humans must buy a lot of them. How many do you suppose actually go into a cat's mouth more than once? Yes, that's what I thought, too.

Gingivitis can be a frustrating condition to treat, but many cases do resolve or at least have periods of remission. There are products available from your vet to help treat it, such as antiseptic liquids and gels to apply to your gums. They may be the last thing dragged out after your meowmie has said "Are you kidding?!" to the toothbrushes and pastes and informed the vet that you can't gargle. So tell her to keep trying. There is also a good remedy made from the herb Calendula. The dried Calendula leaves and flowers are simply steeped in boiling water to make a natural antiseptic solution, which is then strained, cooled, and dabbed gently on our gums with a Q-tip. That was very successful in treating gingivitis in my sisfur.

  As for preventatives, there really aren't any, but there are some other things that may help. My stock answer to a lot of our problems, "A Healthier Diet", for one. This should include an occasional string bean, carrot or other fresh veggie for you to chew on. If you like any veggies, you're way ahead here! Foods that reduce the plaque bacteria on your teeth will help control gingivitis. There is also a product called C.E.T. Chews, a freeze-dried fish treat (yes, a treat! Aren't you glad you read this far?) that provides abrasive cleaning and antibacterial enzymes to combat gingivitis. According to my sisfur, these are great to chew on and fun to play with as well.

So there you have it. I wanted to tell you about the seriousness of gingivitis, but I couldn't leave it at that. It's Christmas! That's why I gave you the treat at the end.