Does our adult cat lose teeth? Let's see why

2023 Author: Alex Livingston | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-11-26 11:39

We are quietly at home with our 4-legged friend and suddenly we realize that ours adult cat loses its teeth? This may not be a good sign. Let's see in more detail when this is considered physiological and when pathological.

Puppy cat losing baby teeth? Normal and physiological

That the animal is similar to man is a common thought from many points of view: that of change of teethi is one of them. Just like in young children, kittens tend to change their so-called ' from milk'To make room for the final dentition.

When does this change take place? Time is variable: it can start around 3-4 months and finish about towards i 9 months. The system works a little differently than that of the child.

The new tooth, from below, puts pressure on gum to such an extent that it appears even before the milk one falls completely. When there is no more space for both, the old tooth falls out: being this very small, it often happens that the kitten swallows, without experiencing particular discomfort.

Most of the time, therefore, it can happen that we owners do not even realize when a cat loses its teeth: it all happens automatically and naturally. Of course, it is not always obvious, of course: it is also possible to find a few teeth on the ground around the house.

Generally, the kitten's milk teeth are 26; the permanent teeth instead they increase and reach a maximum of 30. It is an evolution that follows a precise and almost always the same sequence in each kitten: it starts with incisors, we move on to canines, and so on all the way to the bottom of the mouth.

Since sometimes it can escape us, if we need the certainty of knowing if our kitten has already lost its milk teeth and put permanent ones, we can contact a veterinarian who, through a radiography, will immediately understand the situation precisely.

All of this is clearly physiological, organic and therefore perfectly normal.

What about when an adult cat loses its teeth?

If for the kitten changing teeth is something physiological and normal, as for children, for the adult cat that loses its teeth there is a separate discussion.

As pointed out in the introduction, cats are very similar to humans in some respects. Losing your teeth in adulthood can be a symptom of something wrong in the organism and in the health of the animal: the causes they may also be due to particular pathologies.

First of all, the loss of teeth in adulthood would not be biologically explainable: once the 'permanent' teeth are lost, they will no longer grow. Where then is the problem? What are the possible causes that lead to so much? Let's see in detail.

Very common cause can be linked to trauma, barrel or accidents. These can cause not so much the fall of the entire tooth, as the fracture of a part of it, the outermost one, not attached to the gum.

Another reason may be the development of some illness detail that affects the mouth. This can harm the very structure that holds the tooth firmly attached to the gum. If you break this kind of ligament because of infection or inflammation strong, the tooth no longer has a base to hold on to and falls.

In the worst cases, the reason may be due to the manifestation of tumor forms of the oral cavity which, of course, if underestimated, can lead to far worse consequences than tooth loss.

A few brief tips on dental care

The dentist from childhood teaches us to wash our denyou more or less after each meal: the same should be the case for cats, or at least something similar.

Asking the vet for some useful remedies for the prevention of any diseases of the oral cavity will certainly be the best choice. Here it takes a lot of attention from the owner! He should take care of cleaning the cat's teeth, di to brush for good very often.

It is an activity that our cat will certainly not particularly love: in the event that it is not possible to wash them in this way, we will contact the veterinarian to have him take care of the cleaning of the teeth or the administration of some specific substance.

In conclusion.

So: with regard to kittens at an early age, the loss of teeth is something physiological and very natural.

For adult cats, on the other hand, it could be a hint of some decompensation that must be taken in time to avoid making it worse.

In the older cats instead, as exactly in men, the teeth falling out remains a fairly normal thing (even if it is not always said). However, we know that the old age can lead to debilitation of the body and, consequently, to some deficiencies, such as the loss of teeth.