kitty dentistry

One of my kitties, Oscar, had a tooth pulled yesterday.  For a week or so he's been drooling and his lower lip wasn't looking too good.  The the other night we noticed that he was getting skinny and not really eating.  He would go to his dish and cry.  He tried to eat a little, but would just walk away.  I then noticed that he was stumbling around, like he couldn't keep his balance.  Finally, I noticed some gunk in his ear and he was shaking his head off and on.  Off to the vet we went last night.

It turned out his front fang tooth was loose and his gums were receding, which is why he wasn't eating. Poor baby was in pain.  The vet told me he could give him a light anesthesia, pull the tooth, and I could pick him up in about an hour and a half.  He also said he would look at his ear.

It went smoothly with the tooth.  Turned out he has a double ear infection. I suspect that is what the stumbling is about; it can throw off the equilibrium.

Before I left they gave me an estimate:  $473.00!  I knew it would be a lot, but I didn't think it would be that much. They forgot to give me a copy, so I assume that price was for full anesthesia, because when it came time to pay, it was only $200.00, which included meds for the ear infections and a rabies shot.  That wasn't so bad.

As soon as we got home Oscar made a run for the food dish and started chowing down.  (I'd love to know how and why a cat with almost no teeth eats only dry food.  Bizarre. But he's always been that way.) I guess he was feeling better!  Then it was time for a full bath and a nap.  He's feeling perky today, although he's still stumbling. But I suspect that will improve once we get the meds going for the ears.

This is Oscar.