Well, the anesthesia is always the risk, but just think of Jackie cat that
has so many problems and came through her dental fine. She will be happier
after her teeth are cleaned. Ask the vet what kind of anesthesia they use.

Any time general anesthesia is administered there is a risk factor. If your
cat is in generally good health I would think the risk quite small.

My 17 yr old, Tigger, just had her teeth cleaned for the first time last
week. Her blood work had come back looking good and they started her on
antibiotics 2 days ahead of time. She didn't need anything but a simple
cleaning and didn't have extensive plaque build up.

She gets ugly with anyone she doesn't know and fortunately hasn't been up at
the vet frequently enough to know them well. She also hates being confined
in the carrier. In spite of this she came through the procedure like a
champ. She promptly came out of anesthesia and started hissing and being her
usual sweet (cough, cough) self. She held none of this against me and is
back to her normal routine of splitting her day between sleeping on the
couch and the bed with brief stops at the litter box and food bowl.

I hope all goes as well with your kitty.

W

I feel the same way you do, so I really can't help. As far as it
"needing" to be done, I assume there is a problem with your cat's
teeth? Because I never once had Gnarly's teeth cleaned and I never
brushed them either, and she died with all of her teeth intact, just
one small chip, and not much plaque. As far as I am concerned,
I think long and hard before allowing my cats to be anesthetized.

I felt so bad leaving my Sapphire for the day to have 2 teeth pulled.  She
hadn't been left there since 14 years ago when she was spayed.  I bought her
a super soft baby blanket and let her and her 2 pals sprawl on it the day
before.  When they took her and put her in a cage with the blanket she
seemed very calm and just sort of depressed.

They let me take her home in the early evening.  She was falling all over
and I called the vet in a panic.  He said the anesthesia hadn't worn off yet
and just leave her in her travel case overnight.  I left her in a couple
hours, then put her in the litter pan.  She made.  Then I laid her out on
the bed and she totally sacked out until morning.  Then she was fine.
Anyway, I was glad they didn't make me leave her overnight!

So, best of luck,

--
Barb
Of course I don't look busy,
I did it right the first time.

I think the risks are very minimal for a healthy cat. We had Cherokee's teeth
cleaned even after he was very old and he always did fine. The younger cats I
have now have never had a problem, either.
I know you're nervous about it, but the risks of NOT having them cleaned are
scary, too. Good luck.

Sherry

<< I'm a little nervous about dropping her off for the day and leaving her
scared, let alone worrying about her while she's under. What are the risks of
this procedure? >>

Well, I had my now RB cat, Cory, done (dental) when he was 13 as he kept
getting infections.  I was horrified to leave him because he was very scared of
the vet and I'm a massive worrier.  My vet at the time was very nice.  I took
the day off work, took him in and she let me hold him until they were ready to
put him under.  Then they came and put the IV in with me there and took him
away.  I waited in the waiting room and the tech kept coming out and giving me
progress reports (even though I hadn't requested that).  It didn't really take
very long.  Afterwards, I just waited until they said he was coming out from
anesthesia (he had propofol for the induction agent and isoflurane gas for
anesthesia) and was looking good.  I looked at him in his cage, saw that he
looked okay but very groggy.  At that point, I was able to feel more relaxed so
I left for several hours and did errands and then went and picked him up at the
end of the day.  It made me feel a lot better being close to him when he was
under.

I did the same thing when my cat, Abbey, was spayed 3 years ago.  I waited with
her until she went under and came out of surgery and then I left and picked her
up later that afternoon.

I'm sure they thought I was a little insane but it made me feel better so I
didn't care.

Candace
(take the litter out before replying by e-mail)

See my cats:
http://photos.yahoo.com/maccandace

"One does not meet oneself until one catches the reflection from an eye other
than human."  (Loren Eisely)

My understanding is that Isoflourane is the desirable anesthetic for
this procedure because they wake up much faster after it's
discontinued and/or it doesn't supress their respiration, etc. as much
as what they used to use (not completely sure if it's both or just
one).  The bottom line, as I understand it, is that it's safer for
something like a dental procedure.  There is also an electric blanket
type thing that is available to keep their tempreture constant when
they are under.

I understand that teeth cleaning is desirable because, among other
things, the nasties that can grow in the teeth/gum area after a while
can cause sytemic infections.  I don't know how much regular cleaning
of the cat's teeth at home reduces this risk but I've read of some
people who do that.  I assume regular cleaning could only be
benificial but it seems to me you would have to get the cat accustomed
to it early on. I don't think mine would be amenable given my
experience with eyedrops, ear drops, etc.

Really, as I understand it with the right procedures in place the
dentals for cats pose little risk now, assuming the cat is healthy.
They are supposed to evaluate the cat for risk before they put him/her
under.

Good news -- I just brought Daisy for her pre-anesthesia check up and
the vet said she doesn't even need a cleaning! He gave her a 1 on a
scale to 5 for plaque build-up, and said the procedure would be
preventive rather than necessary as treatment. I guess I'm doing a
better job on her teeth than I thought! Now I can concentrate on more
pressing things on my day off, like hurting myself on my mountain bike.

eq