talk me down!!!

[karee888]

Hi everyone,

Tomorrow I am going to the vet to get my cat''s teeth cleaned and to remove a tooth [or two]. I have read some about the procedure, and read that there is a small risk of death from the anesthesia. Then I had a dream about Rufus dying from it! I know it is SO stupid and irrational...but if you are a vet, or if you''ve had the procedure done to your cat, can you please tell me about your [positive] experiences?

Rufus is 6 years old. He is healthy, as far as I know. I''m sure he will be ok, but he is my cat and I''ve had him since he was a kitten and I am so attached to him. He''s like our child [we don''t have kids yet]. I don''t know what I would do if he died.

 

[iheartscience]

I know the feeling-I was so nervous to have my little girl Olivia spayed because I was so worried something bad might happen! I''m sure Rufus will be just fine, and I''m sending lots of kitty dust your way!

 

[Upgradable]

I have a dog, not a cat, but 2 years ago she had to undergo surgery for a cracked tooth. She came back groggy and lethargic for about six hours, then as loving and fun as she always was. And she no longer had pain from the tooth! Sending fluffy dust to you and Rufus!

 

[PugLover]

I don''t have any kitties but one of my pugs had his teeth cleaned (and a couple extracted) several months ago. I was also nervous for him to be put under general anesthesia. But everything went just as planned. He was very groggy/ sad that evening and the next day but he was back to his usual self in no time. I wet his food (they only eat dry) for a few days just because he had those couple teeth extracted so that it wouldn''t hurt him too much to eat. Good luck!

 

[karee888]

thanks everyone!! this is helpful.

 

[TooPatient]

Rufus will be okay. Teeth are very important. By cleaning them and caring for them you are preventing bad illnesses in the future.

It is good that you are getting them cleaned. He''s young & healthy and he''ll be just fine.

 

[Kunzite]

Date: 10/5/2009 10:19:47 PM
Author: TooPatient
Rufus will be okay. Teeth are very important. By cleaning them and caring for them you are preventing bad illnesses in the future.

It is good that you are getting them cleaned. He''s young & healthy and he''ll be just fine.

Ditto! Healthy teeth and gums are VERY important for cats. We have two cats. Our boy had his teeth cleaned about two years ago and now it''s his sister''s turn next month. We hate having to take them in for a cleaning so we do as much preventative cleaning as we can.

 

[cindygenit]

Darling you and Rufus will both be fine.

Relax.

 

[Haven]

Look at your sweet little man, Rufus! He''s adorable!

One of my childhood kitties had to have most of his teeth removed because they were rotten. We adopted him when he was a bit older; he was actually living in our backyard and we couldn''t find his owners so he was all ours! He had horrible breath, and it turned out that most of his teeth were rotten so they had to be pulled. We took him to the vet, it was very scary because we knew of that slight risk, but there were no complications and he came out one happy, handsome, and nearly toothless little man. And he lived a long and happy life with us for years and years after that.

Rufus is going to be just fine. My little Sebastian was a bit woozy and tipsy when he came-to from the anesthesia, but that was about it. Don''t worry, he''ll be curling up in your lap just like always.

 

[LtlFirecracker]

There is always a small risk with anesthesia. It is the same for humans and look at how many people get anesthesia everyday.

The risk is far lower than the risk of putting him in you car and getting into an accident on the way there. Every medical decision is a risk vs benefit. In this case the benefit of getting the teeth cleaned far outweighs the risk of the anesthesia. Just like the benefit of driving and not having to walk everywhere out weighs the risk of an accident to most people.

Just to give you some prospective. I am sure things will go great, and it it much better than being awake during that procedure

 

[karee888]

thanks, guys. the rufus is the best cat ever.

i just get worried. chloe, his sister, got some teeth pulled a few years ago and she was out of it for THREE DAYS. she peed in the carrier on the way home, and circled our coffee table for almost an hour, all woozy. she would not eat or drink and i almost had to take her to the vet on christmas on the fourth day....but she decided to eat a bit that night.

i know i am being super paranoid, and stupid. but i just wanted to see how everyone else''s pets have done. josh [husband] tells me i am being an idiot. but i am glad to read others were concerned as well.

 

[LtlFirecracker]

Date: 10/5/2009 11:41:23 PM
Author: karee888



thanks, guys. the rufus is the best cat ever.


i just get worried. chloe, his sister, got some teeth pulled a few years ago and she was out of it for THREE DAYS. she peed in the carrier on the way home, and circled our coffee table for almost an hour, all woozy. she would not eat or drink and i almost had to take her to the vet on christmas on the fourth day....but she decided to eat a bit that night.


i know i am being super paranoid, and stupid. but i just wanted to see how everyone else''s pets have done. josh [husband] tells me i am being an idiot. but i am glad to read others were concerned as well.

Different cats react differently to anesthesia. You cat may or may not act like your sister''s. My cats were a little out of it, but were with it enough to eat and use the litter box. However, the anesthesia will make sure your cats do not feel pain, and most importantly, they will not remember the procedure. I think that is worth it right there.

 

[movie zombie]

this year i''ve had two cats in for oral surgery.....and they got home and acted like nothing had really happened. teeth removed, deep cleaning. and twice the age of your cat. last week it was the 15 year old in for deep cleaning, no removal of teeth though. got home and first thing he did was eat.

we all worry when they go in and sigh with relief when them come out. nothing is 100% but i''d bet your fur baby will be all ready for a lot of quality time with you when he gets home.

mz

 

[karee888]

Date: 10/6/2009 12:19:35 AM
Author: movie zombie
this year i''ve had two cats in for oral surgery.....and they got home and acted like nothing had really happened. teeth removed, deep cleaning. and twice the age of your cat. last week it was the 15 year old in for deep cleaning, no removal of teeth though. got home and first thing he did was eat.


we all worry when they go in and sigh with relief when them come out. nothing is 100% but i''d bet your fur baby will be all ready for a lot of quality time with you when he gets home.


mz

thanks, MZ. i dropped him off this morning. he seemed pretty calm, considering how he usually is when going to the vet. they said they would call later, around 1pm, to let me know how it went, then i can get him at 3 or 4pm.

 

[dragonfly411]

karee - this is mostly seen in older cats, and kittens, vs. healthy adults. They have to make the statement though all the same. Your boy will be jusssst fine. He''s cute!

 

[karee888]

thanks, guys -- RUFUS LIVES!!!!!!

 

[4ever]

A dental clean for a cat or dog is a pretty standard procedure. They give the animal anesthetic to knock it out and go to work in it''s mouth. There are vet nurses in the room while the vet works whos job it is to monitor the animals breathing and heart rate and who will pick up an adverse reaction to the anesthetic very quickly. Just like a human operation, anesthetic related deaths do happen but are very rare because this is somthing they watch and prepare for.

However, from what my sister has said (she''s a vet nurse) going to get your pets teeth cleaned or worked on should only really be done if the animal NEEDS it done because something with the teeth is causing pain or will cause pain in the future. There are always risks in surgery and animals do not like being put under anesthesia. Some owners do this to their pets unessesarily because they want them to have clean teeth.

 

[karee888]

ok, maybe i spoke too soon.

the surgery was over at noon. we picked him up at 5. the vet said to keep him in his kennel until we went to sleep because he would be woozy. he definitely was [and still is].

around 9 he vomited twice, bright yellow liquid. i called the vet at home and she said that he vomited bile, and that he should not eat until the morning. so he''s been without food and water since 10 last night, and he still is not thirsty.

she said if he vomits again, i need to bring him in in the morning.

right now he''s sleeping and i am watching him. i''ll probably stay up all night because i made the mistake of googling "cat vomit after teeth cleaning" and read about a guy with a healthy 9 year old cat who got his teeth cleaned, went home, and died that night. no warning. sigh. hopefully his anesthesia will wear off by morning so he can eat and drink.

 

[LtlFirecracker]

I hope it wears off soon too .

Just so you know I am guessing they might of given the cat IV fluids during the procedure, so your cat may be better hydrated than you think. But I hope he doesn''t throw up anymore. My cats never had this kind of reaction with the anesthesia, but hey had a similar reaction to an immunization, so I feel your pain.

 

[movie zombie]

if he vomits yellow bile again, don''t wait until the morning!!!!!!!! get him to an emergency vet asap!!!!!!

did they do blood work before hand? with older cats its almost always done to make sure there aren''t underlying problems that need to be addressed re the anesthetic. of course, i''m not sure a 9 year cat qualifies as "old".

i''ve never kept my cats in a crate............

we''re nursing three cats right now one of which vomited blood saturday night and then had bloody stool sunday a.m. off to the vet sunday and again yesterday for more tests. nothing is showing up. talked to the regular vet this evening but all the tests are normal. blood out of both ends of a cat is NOT normal. she suspects that is an inflammation where the two intestines meet....however, we, too, are on all watch alert 24/7 for the next few days as she may need to be ''scoped........

just telling you all this to let you know you have company in the Camp Worry and i''ll be thinking of you and your kitty.

mz

 

[karee888]

Date: 10/7/2009 12:30:09 AM
Author: movie zombie
if he vomits yellow bile again, don''t wait until the morning!!!!!!!! get him to an emergency vet asap!!!!!!


did they do blood work before hand? with older cats its almost always done to make sure there aren''t underlying problems that need to be addressed re the anesthetic. of course, i''m not sure a 9 year cat qualifies as ''old''.


i''ve never kept my cats in a crate............


we''re nursing three cats right now one of which vomited blood saturday night and then had bloody stool sunday a.m. off to the vet sunday and again yesterday for more tests. nothing is showing up. talked to the regular vet this evening but all the tests are normal. blood out of both ends of a cat is NOT normal. she suspects that is an inflammation where the two intestines meet....however, we, too, are on all watch alert 24/7 for the next few days as she may need to be ''scoped........


just telling you all this to let you know you have company in the Camp Worry and i''ll be thinking of you and your kitty.


mz

hey mz,

yeah, they did blood work. everything was in a normal [or very slightly high or low on a few things] range. they said it was nothing to be concerned about, so they went ahead with the cleaning.

it''s so weird...all 3 of my cats had this done about 2 years ago. rufus was fine, bradley was fine [he''s 2 years older], but chloe, rufus'' litter mate sister, acted this way. like i said, she didn''t eat or drink for 3 days. but she never puked.

the vet said that his gums were somewhat inflamed, so they gave him an antibiotic [and i have to give him a pill a day for 2 weeks]. she said since he hadn''t eaten, the medicine could have affected his stomach somehow. i guess it makes sense, but i''ve never seen that color come out of a cat.

if he vomits again, i''m headed to the emergency vet school. it''s pretty close. i''m staying awake all night to make sure he''s still breathing. i assume he can''t really meow if he would need me for something.

i am very sorry to hear about your kitties!! i hope they figure it out!!! about 3 weeks after we adopted bradley from tenth chance in buffalo, i was leaving on a saturday morning for a meeting, pet him, and he just fell over. wtf!!! we rushed to the vet. apparently he had hemabart virus. i guess it''s pretty rare and about 50/50 whether they make it. bradley is a fighter. the vet said he had the lowest red blood cell count he''s EVER seen and was positive he wasn''t going to make it. but when they put in an iv in his leg/paw, he bit the vet tech. that''s my boy.

this is sucky timing, because my graduate school advisor''s dad is really sick, in bad shape right now and they don''t think he''s going to make it through the week. i will feel awful if i have to cancel our meeting tomorrow because my CAT is sick. he is MY family, but i feel like such an @$$ in comparison.

 

[movie zombie]

yes, your cat is family. its their problem if they don''t understand. my parents are finally getting used to it.......and actually express words of sorrow when one of the herd is sick.....of course, i can tell they''re being polite but thats a big step!

its never convenient when they get sick..........but that''s life.

yes, antibiotics can cause all kinds of tummy problems. i''ve seen the yellow bile. antibiotic on an empty stomach can be the problem.

hope the night went ok.

mz

 

[karee888]

Date: 10/7/2009 11:43:07 AM
Author: movie zombie
yes, your cat is family. its their problem if they don''t understand. my parents are finally getting used to it.......and actually express words of sorrow when one of the herd is sick.....of course, i can tell they''re being polite but thats a big step!


its never convenient when they get sick..........but that''s life.


yes, antibiotics can cause all kinds of tummy problems. i''ve seen the yellow bile. antibiotic on an empty stomach can be the problem.


hope the night went ok.


mz

thanks for the well wishes! i stayed up all night, till about 5:30am. he was breathing fine. sneezed a few times, but that was it. he was really, really warm, though. i dozed off, and then around 6am, he smashed his head against the kennel door to wake me up because he wanted out. so i let him out, he sniffed some food but didn''t eat, and then just wandered around the house for a bit. finally laid back down in the hall by my bedroom. i went to my bed to take a nap. i woke up and he was laying next to the bed! and then around 11 when i woke up for good, he was chirping and talking to me like usual. he was very lovey and really wanted to be pet. he just took a few bites of food, but that''s good enough for me for now.

thanks to everyone who responded! i think he''s going to be fine.