Tooth decay

[ncforcatquestion]

One of my kittens, 5 months has a line of what looks like decay in one of his teeth. What can I do with his diet ? I'm surprised as he's already on a low grain diet. Do cats get fillings, or will it need to come out ? Should I be cleaning his teeth ?

Just thinking maybe it's the cat milk I give him, although I assumed it was sugar free (no lactose)

Our vet gave us a special toothpaste called Dentihex. You just rub it on a couple of teeth, the cat produces saliva and spreads it to all the other teeth. It should be done every day and is effective.

5 months is incredibly young for a cat to have tooth decay. Take the kitten to a vet, but if it IS tooth decay, ut will need to be extracted (general anaesthetic)

I'll ask the vet to look at it when he goes in to get neutered in a couple weeks

I could be wrong, maybe the tooth is malformed, as it's a straight line down the middle of his canine

Hope it's a baby tooth

Whether or not he has tooth decay now, domestic cats are very prone to it: establishing an oral hygiene routine for them is important. Watch out for sugar in foods; & probably the best investment (according to my vet!) is a plaque-off type powder you sprinkle on [wet] food. You can also get [no-brush] toothpaste; drinking water additives; dental treats; & dental toys. (As you can see, no-brush toothpaste is popular in this house…)

I will ask the vet about this toothpaste, thank you

I've had another look in the daylight, and I can see it's a line down the centre of each of his canine teeth. So I'm thinking it could just be a natural ridge rather than decay. Vets in 3 days so I'll ask him to have a look. I would like to buy toothpaste in any case though so will ask about that too

What did the vet say? And yes - as your vet presumably advised - an oral hygiene regime is crucial. My vet says the best/key thing is plaque-removing powder on food (unless they’ll actually let you brush their teeth).