How To Clean Your Cat’S Teeth At Home

Your cat’s dental health is just as important as your own. Without regular cleaning, your cat may develop dental disease. Read on to learn some easy ways to clean your cat’s teeth at home.

Written by

Petbarn Team

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Contents:

Why do you need to clean your cat’s teeth?
How to clean your cat’s teeth at home
Cat teeth cleaning FAQs

Why is dental health important for cats?

80% of dogs and cats over the age of 3 have dental disease. If left untreated, dental disease can lead to mouth pain, tooth decay, gum recession, tooth loss, and, in severe cases, it can contribute to heart, kidney, and liver problems.

Just like in humans, regular teeth cleaning is the best way to prevent dental disease in cats.

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In addition to teeth cleaning, regular dental checks are important

Regular dental checks at the vet allow any potential issues to be caught early. Cats are more susceptible to certain dental and gum diseases, that can be less obvious to notice at home. Your vet may recommend your cat be put under anaesthesia for a more thorough examination. This allows them to check under the gumline, fully assess all of your cat’s teeth properly, and perform dental x-rays if needed.

While your cat is under anaesthesia, they will likely get a scale and polish just like you get at the dentist, cleaning their teeth more thoroughly than what you can achieve at home.

If your vet diagnoses an issue with your cat’s teeth, they will recommend a dental care plan to manage your cat’s dental health.

Book your cat in for a dental check-up at Greencross Vets so they can have fresh breath, and you can have a fresh start to their dental care.

Book a vet

How to clean your cat’s teeth at home

Brush your cat’s teeth

Brushing your cat’s teeth every day is a great way to maintain good dental health.

To introduce them to the concept of tooth brushing, start by letting them taste the pet toothpaste. Next, squeeze some toothpaste on a small finger brush to rub on their teeth and gums and gradually move to a cat toothbrush or small, soft children’s bristles tooth brush. If a finger toothbrush is too big for their mouth, go straight for a cat toothbrush.

It’s recommended you start brushing your cat’s teeth from when they are young, so they become used to having their mouth touched, inside and out. Start getting them used to having their mouth checked and teeth gently rubbed by a finger as young kittens but ideally save brushing their teeth with a toothbrush till their adult teeth have all come through. This usually occurs around 6-7months of age. Sometimes trying to brush their teeth while they are teething can cause pain and make them averse to brushing later, as they think it will hurt.

Never use human toothpaste as this is toxic to cats. Instead, use cat toothpaste. Many come in beef or chicken flavoured toothpaste that cats enjoy.

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& TOOTHBRUSHES

Feed your cat an oral care diet

If your cat is not on a specific diet prescribed by your veterinarian, one of the simplest ways to keep your cat’s teeth clean is feeding them a dental diet. These foods are nutritionally balanced for adult cats and designed to ensure that your cat chews the food properly. The best dental kibble is usually a bit bigger and softer and has a special shape and texture that enables it to hold its shape and cling to the tooth more as they chew, rather than crumbling straight away. This provides the contact time needed between the teeth and kibble for good oral care, essentially brushing their teeth as they chew.

There are also some veterinary prescription dental diets tailored specifically for dental care. Only feed these to your cat if they’re recommended by your vet.

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Give your cat dental treats

Cats rarely turn down delicious treats. So why not feed them treats that help keep their teeth clean?

Dental treats are formulated to clean your cat’s teeth as they chew, preventing plaque and tartar from building up. Further, the ingredients often contain essential vitamins and minerals that benefit your cat’s health and promote fresh breath.

While dental treats should not solely be relied on for dental hygiene, they are a useful addition to your cat’s home dental care program.

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Add a dental health solution to their water

If your cat isn’t a fan of tooth brushing and turns their nose up at dental treats and food, you can try adding a dental health solution to their water. These water additives are odourless and tasteless. The natural solutions help reduce plaque and tartar build up and freshen your cat’s breath.

Although they rarely notice the product in the water, always be sure to provide multiple water sources for cats, and at least one without the dental solution. That way if they do not like it, they still have access to water they will drink.

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WATER ADDITIVES FOR CATS

By implementing a regular dental care routine for your cat, you can keep their teeth clean and gums healthy. Book a dental care checkup with your local Greencross Vets to discuss a tailored oral health plan and more advice on how to clean your cat’s teeth at home.

Book a vet

Visit your local Petbarn or shop online to pick up all the items you need to give your cat the dental care they deserve.

Frequently asked questions about cleaning a cat’s teeth

What do vets recommend to clean a cat’s teeth?

The best way to keep your cat’s teeth clean is to do a combination of all the above.

When looking for products to help with your cat’s dental health, look for the Veterinary Oral Health Council (VOHC) seal. This seal is an indicator that the product has met vigorous scientific criteria for managing dental disease in dogs and cats.

How do I tell if my cat has tooth pain?

Signs of oral pain in cats include:

Reluctance to eat on one side of their mouth, or at all
Dropping food when eating
Pawing at the mouth
Excessive drooling
Sensitive to head touch
Change in temperament

These signs are often present in dental disease, alongside other signs like bad breath.

Can I treat my cat’s dental disease at home?

Mild levels of dental disease may be manageable at home with the right routine. However, severe dental disease needs to be investigated and treated at the vet. It may require tooth removal, pain medications, and other interventions that are not possible at home.

How do you remove tartar on a cat’s teeth at home?

Tartar is calcified plaque and is too difficult to remove at home. This needs to be removed under anaesthesia during a dental procedure at the vets.

Can a cat’s teeth be cleaned without anaesthesia?

Day-to-day cleaning with the options outlined above can easily be performed at home. However, when it comes to more thorough cleaning like a scale and polish to address more severe dental disease, “anaesthesia-free dentals” are not recommended by veterinarians. They are more painful and stressful for cats than the same procedure performed under anaesthesia and can be dangerous for the cat.

For anaesthesia-free dentals, a cat must be tightly restrained for the procedure. The sensation of having calculus scraped off their teeth and the noisy equipment can be painful and stressful. Paque just under the gumline is often missed as this is tender to clean this area and near impossible in a patient that may move. Movement during can result in injuries to the cat’s gums, lips or cheeks during cleaning.

In a conscious patient, abnormalities cannot be probed and checked properly, especially if they are painful, diagnostic dental x-rays cannot be taken , and access to molars at the back of their mouth is difficult.

This procedure done without anaesthetic is not only very stressful and dangerous for the cats but puts the person performing the anaesthesia-free dental at high risk of bite injuries.

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