6/19 Vesta AMBG~82 OTJ Trial Day 7!!! Dental advice?

Previous condo: viewtopic.php?f=9&t=17437

Sorry it's been a couple days... busy busy, lots of running around. bcatrun_gif

Vesta's been a super girl... Lots of energy, affection. She's really getting used to waking up at 4am. I'm tempted in the next couple of days just to do the autofeeder and NOT wake up myself and get her to the food. Not sure how it'll go, but I'm not getting up at 4am forever! Another OTJ funny thing- her ears do NOT want to bleed as well as they used to :mrgreen: I guess that's the price we'll pay.... willingly!

Miss you guys! Happy caturday! It was awesome- on Thursday, we went out to dinner for a 6:30pm reservation... and didn't have to worry about planning it around a 7pm shot! We tested at 6:20 on the way out the door, we figured close enough. LOVING this.

Also- I had asked a while ago about getting a kitty dental for Vesta. Is there aything we should be concerned about medication-wise? How long should we wait after she's officially OTJ to do it? DO we have to wait? She's never had one. nailbite_smile

Re: 6/19 Vesta AMBG~82 OTJ Trial Day 7!!!

Having a life! Sounds like heaven. Vesta is looking soooooo good! cat_pet_icon

Re: 6/19 Vesta AMBG~82 OTJ Trial Day 7!!!

Ann & Tess said:

Having a life! Sounds like heaven. Vesta is looking soooooo good! cat_pet_icon

Click to expand...

Thanks Tess!!! Looks like you've been having a nice couple 'a days yourself!

We have lots of info for dentals -- questions for your vet as well as info for you. This is information that Jill and Jojo originally put together and I updated with info from Dr. Lisa. Dr. Lisa's original posts can be found by searching on the Health board.

• X-rays: either before or the day of the procedure. Also x-rays after to make sure there are no tooth fragments left after an extraction.
• Bloodwork: prior to the dental to rule out anything that would prevent the procedure
• Pre-anesthesia sedation/induction: Ketamine (some has been recalled), propofol, valium. Induction should be with an IV drug vs. a gas.
• Anesthesia: Sevo or Isoflurane (these should not be used for induction, however)
• Blood pressure monitoring (Doppler or Cardell monitor)
• Cardiac monitoring: pulse oximeter or cardiac monitor
• IV catheter for fluid access during the procedure
• Post-procedure antibiotics if necessary. (See Dr. Lisa’s commentary)
• Pain meds: administered post-procedure and to take home: Buprenex, no metacam due to the potential for renal failure. A fentanyl patch may be excessive for the purpose of this kind of pain management.

Warming: if the vet uses a warmer, make sure there is a means of circulating warmth vs. one warm spot. The latter can cause burns.

If you need it: Academy of Veterinary Dentistry members: http://www.avdonline.org/avdmembers.html

Do not overfeed her when she gets home, one of the drugs (valium) commonly use to knock them out for intubation is a strong feline appy stim. In addition, anesthesia slows down the motility of the gut. Listen to drugged, hungry cat and overfeed, there is no place for the food to go and a vomiting cycle can start. The last thing you need is a cat that might not have full use of motor skills.

Keeping her in a dark, quiet room will help if she has over excitation from one of the other drugs (ketamine) used to knock out for intubation (lights and noise trigger more excitation). The best thing to do is feed them a small amount and then let them sleep it off.

The following morning, everything goes back to normal. If there will be extractions, continue on the AB's if they are prescribed. This is important, since there was a large amount of bacteria dumped directly into bloodstream via oral mucosa from dental (that likes to settle on heart valves and kidneys). The best way to give AB's is to give 1/8 tab pepcid (AC ) 1/2 hour before feeding, feed, and then give AB's 1/2 hour after to protect digestive upset. also, with any course of AB's, adding probiotics to food to protect the natural flora of gut is a good idea (don't want her to get bad diarrhea). Note that the use of ABs is controversial. They are recommended only if there is infection/inflammation rather than routinely after a dental.

With any dental that has extractions, please make sure you come home with pain meds. Buprenex, given by squirting on gums/cheek pouch to absorb or as a sub-cutaneous (like insulin) injection is the preferred pain med for felines. Your vet can send you home with needle-less syringes pre-filled for you to use. they do not have to be refrigerated, but do protect from light.

Of course, no crunchy type treats for a while, and making food soupy with water helps if there has been multiple extractions. The rate of healing is very much an ECID type of thing, but keep ahead of the pain, the day after the dental is usually the toughest one...cats do heal amazing fast.