Pet HealthDental Disease in Pets: More Than Bad Breath!Notes from Dr. Day 
If you have pets, you have probably noticed that they sometimes don't have the best breath in the world. In fact, you may be convinced that they could stop a train if they opened their mouth! Well, if you ate cat food or dog food every day and never brushed your teeth you probably would not have any friends at all! Seriously, dental problems are very common and very important in our four-legged family members. Thankfully there are many things that can be done to prevent and treat dental disease in pets. Probably the most important thing that can be done to ensure dental health in your pet is to have a thorough oral exam done by your veterinarian. This is included in the yearly comprehensive physical examination commonly done with yearly vaccinations. The oral exam will reveal any signs of plaque or tartar buildup, gum infection or inflammation, broken or damaged teeth, etc. The most common dental disease seen in pets, especially dogs, is a condition called periodontal disease. This disease occurs when tartar builds up on the crown or visible part of the tooth and causes inflammation of the gum. The gum color changes from a nice healthy pink to an angry red color at the margin of the gum and looks like a red line. The tartar is teeming with harmful bacteria and when your pet eats, the gum bleeds just a little and allows the bacteria to enter the blood stream. From there the bacteria can go to the liver, the heart, the kidney and other internal organs. So what may appear as a little brown on the teeth and some bad breath can cause some very bad diseases in the rest of the body. If the problem is not corrected, the gum will recede and the tartar will follow, and eventually the tooth will have to extracted (pulled) or may just fall out. Many dogs, especially small breed dogs will have few if any teeth when they get older, and can even have their jawbone break as a result of the bone being damaged by the disease. As you can see, periodontal disease is a very bad thing! If periodontal disease is detected in your pet, your veterinarian will probably recommend a thorough dental cleaning, including scaling the tartar off of the teeth and under the gum line, polishing and sealing the teeth to help delay the accumulation of the tartar. If one or more teeth are damaged so badly by the periodontal disease or are damaged or broken they may have to be extracted. The pet is better off without a tooth that is loose and painful and useless for chewing. The idea is to detect and treat the disease before it gets to that point! If your pet is older (as many are if they have dental disease) then he may need to have a simple blood screen to detect what damage has already been done and to see if it is safe to give anesthesia. Unlike us, animals will not sit back in a reclining chair and open their mouths for us to work on them! Therefore they must be anesthetized to have the treatment done. Prevention is the key, as with almost any disease condition. Daily brushing is ideal and many pet owners do that. Most times, however, this is not done regularly and continuously enough to totally prevent the problem. However, even occasional brushing is helpful. There is a relatively new product on the market that is an injection to help prevent tooth loss in older dogs, especially the small breeds. It does not prevent the necessity of the exam and periodic cleaning but it does help prevent the gums from receding and the bone being damaged resulting in the teeth being lost. Ask your vet about this if you are interested in this very good product. Feeding dry food is somewhat better at preventing plaque and tartar formation but many dogs that eat dry food only will still get periodontal disease, and many pets that eat canned or moist food only will not. Contrary to many claims by commercial dog treat companies, the dry hard treats will not prevent or treat tartar buildup although they will help a little. Short of daily brushing nothing will be totally effective in preventing the disease in most dogs. Cats are similar to dogs except that they do not seem to have the problem of receding gums and tooth loss nearly as much as dogs. They do have a more serious although much less common problem with a painful condition of the tooth and gum right at the base or neck of the tooth called feline oral resorptive lesions. Again, a good thorough yearly examination will detect this condition which can be treated. As a final note, neither dogs nor cats are prone to having caries (cavities) to the degree that we humans are. Heartworm Disease in CatsNotes from Dr. Day 
Virtually all pet owners are aware of heartworms and their danger in dogs, and hopefully all dogs are on heartworm preventative medication. Recently heartworms have been recognized as a significant disease in cats as well. Heartworms in cats were first discovered nearly 100 years ago, but were thought to be harmless. Within the past 10 years or so, veterinarians began to recognize heartworms in cats as a significant and even potentially deadly disease and research was begun in earnest. Feline heartworms have been found in every state except Hawaii. The incidence in highest in the southeastern states, including Georgia, Tennessee and North Carolina. There is little or no difference in cats that are long or short-haired, indoor or outdoor. Cats suffering from heartworm infection show signs of coughing, trouble breathing, vomiting, weakness and even sudden death! Some affected cats will show no symptoms at all if the infection is mild or early in the disease. Unlike dogs, heartworms are difficult to diagnose in cats for a variety of reasons. There are blood tests available similar to the dog, but they can be tricky to interpret and can even give false results sometimes. X-rays or ultrasounds of the heart are sometimes necessary to help find the disease. The lungs of cats are very sensitive and react, sometimes violently, to the worms. Unlike the dogs, heartworms are not directly treatable in cats. The treatment that is used in dogs is deadly in cats, so only the symptoms can be treated. Since the symptoms of heartworm disease in cats are similar to other diseases such as hairballs, asthma, bronchitis, worms, among others, it is important to correctly diagnose and treat cats. The heartworms will gradually die off and if the cat can absorb the dead worms, they will gradually return to normal. Dead worms can, however, cause the lungs to react and can cause the cat to become very sick or even die. They key to heartworms in cats, like dogs, is prevention. The most widely used preventatives in cats are topical products that prevent not only heartworms but fleas and other parasites as well. Advantage Multi (NOT Advantix which should not be used on cats) and Revolution are the two most commonly used. Heartgard and Interceptor are given by mouth which can be a bit more difficult in a cat. All of these products are safe and effective in preventing this disease. All cat owners should inquire about getting their cats tested for heartworms and on heartworm preventative. |
