>On Fri, 08 Dec 2006 00:39:48 -0500 [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > Subject: Re: New member introduction/questions > This is a tricky one. Dental health is very important. You would hate for your > baby to overcome the rigors of fighting FeVL only to succumb to a debilitating > and preventable illness caused by dental neglect.
Hi Elizabeth, Thanks for your detailed reply. A big issue is that the gingivitis is progressing quite rapidly and I'm certain it will tax Shane's already compromised immune system if we don't try to get it under control. > Three to four years is about right to get your first dental. People may > disagree with me but I think that every other year there-after would be a good > schedule for dentals for most cats. The issue is that he isn't most cats--he's an FeLV positive cat and his gum disease has progressed dramatically in just a few months' time. If he were a normal cat, I would most certainly do any and all routine dental care without hesitation. > there is a lot you can do yourself in regard to dental hygiene but i really >don't think it compares to an ultrasonic scaling beneath the gum-line and all >that they can do now for > tartar build-up. I agree 100%--once the teeth are clean, home dental hygiene may help keep them that way, but initially, a thorough cleaning is the only thing that is effective for getting under the gum line. > With recent weight loss, however - my gut instinct says: wait. Even a pound of > weight loss is a very large percentage of body weight for a cat. I'll probably take him to the vet's office in about a week to see if his weight has stabilized and go from there. > If it were my FeVL+ kitty...and I knew she was very stable and wasn't > experiencing any current problems related to the disease -- I would take her > for a dental in a heartbeat. > elizabeth Thanks for weighing in on this subject! I'd still like to hear opinions from folks on the topic of when it's appropriate (is it too soon to think about it when lab work is still normal?) to consider using Immunoregulin and/or interferon alpha. Sue and Shane Jerome, AZ
