Do cats lose their teeth, or is it a myth? Today we will discuss the answer to this crucial question. In fact, the answer depends a lot on the age of your cat, but how? As we know, raising cats is very entertaining, and they may become family members over time.
But you as the owners must provide them with the necessary care and treat them just like your children, such as taking care of their health, especially dental health, which represents most of their health problems.
Table of Contents
Do Cats Lose Their Teeth During Kittenhood?
Just like human babies, when your cats are born, they don’t have any teeth, which means that they do it without hurting her when they breastfeed from their mother.
It is only when a small cat which commonly known as a kitten, is about 14 days old that its small incisors begin to pass at the front of its mouths; the number of those teeth is 6 in the upper one and also 6 in the lower one, and at about 4 weeks old, their fangs, commonly called canines, begin to appear. Finally, it is the role of the Premolars that appear when cats are about 6 weeks old.
All the above teeth, which we mentioned, are known as deciduous because they will be replaced eventually by permanent teeth, so the answer to our main question, do cats lose their teeth? It is definitely yes, which will continue the journey with this beautiful cat.
Another name for these teeth is milk teeth. It is also known as “baby” teeth, and these titles are well-known in human body babies.
When permanent teeth start to come out, milk teeth fall out to make space for them, and it’s worth recognizing that on its first birthday, your cat should have at least 25 to 30 permanent teeth; and in the next lines, we will talk about these teeth in details.
Kitten’s Teeth
In total, the kitten has 26 milk teeth consisting of 3 upper and 3 lower incisors located on each side of their mouths. They have 1 top and 1 bottom canines found on each side. There are 3 premolars, upper and 2 lower, found in each side of their mouths as well. Small cats do not have any molars.
What Happens When Milk Teeth Fall Out?
When a kitten is about eleven weeks old, it’s milk teeth usually begin to fall out because this happens when adult teeth begin to appear. When a kitten reaches the age of 4 months, all permanent incisors burst, and after a month, when it is 5 months old, 4 canines will get to their teeth.
Each of the premolars, which there are 10, explodes by the age of 6 months, but their four molars will generally appear only much later in the cat’s life that can be until adulthood.
The difference between an adult cat and a kitten is that while kittens only have 26 milk teeth, your bigger cat has 30 permanent ones because they have extra teeth, which are molars, while kittens do not.
How To Recognize A Problem In Your Cat’s Teeth?
Answering the question of do cats lose their teeth is important but recognizing a problem in your cat’s teeth is as important. Without a doubt, if you ask any woman about her baby’s most painful period, she will greet you like the stage of getting permanent teeth, which is precisely the same for the baby cats.
It goes without saying that when any new teeth begin to squeeze through your cat’s gums, it can be an annoying and uncomfortable time for them.
When permanent teeth come out, milk teeth become loose, causing trouble, making it difficult for them to eat or drink. When your kitten is in pain, it may behave a little differently and may show some aggression if it goes anywhere near its mouths.
Other signs your cat may have problems at this stage include:
- Quieter than usual and unwilling to play with you because of the pain that they feel when they do it.
- Become shy every time you try to brush their teeth – if that’s the case, you shouldn’t insist on brushing your kitten’s teeth because you want the experience to be good and not a bad thing your pet is associated with.
- Never eat any dry food, and again, If this is the case with your cat, you should only provide fried wet food until the problem can be solved, and this only when it starts eating correctly again. If you are worried, you must take your cat to the vet to be checked.
When To Call A Veterinarian?
If the dental problem lasts a long time or you are worried as your kitten does not eat or drink enough water, it is better to contact the veterinarian to be thoroughly examined.
All the cats must be taken for the first medical examination as soon as possible once it entered a new home, and ideally, this should be after just a few days.
The veterinarian can thoroughly examine their mouths to ensure that the baby’s teeth do not cause any problems. Once the kittens begin to lose baby teeth, the veterinarian will be able to examine them to see if their permanent teeth come out as they should.
If the problem persists for more than a week, your veterinarian may recommend removing the tooth to avoid any dental issues such as too many teeth in the cat’s mouth.
After the initial medical examination, it is good to take your kitten with you for another examination when it is about 6 or 8 months old. The veterinarian can check their general oral health and see if there are any problems with the cat’s permanent teeth. It is also an ideal time to make your cat wipe.
Fortunately, when permanent cat teeth begin to appear, they often tend to go as they are without any problems, although they can be uncomfortable.
However, it is always advisable to monitor things closely because if any milk teeth fail to fall when adult teeth appear. It can be very painful and may lead to additional health problems or reduce the amount of water you get.
Suppose you notice that your cat seems reluctant to chew anything or pick anything in their mouths. The best action is to take them to the vet so that their mouths can be thoroughly examined, and if there is a problem with teething, the vet will be able to handle it as necessary, and it will not worsen.
Do Adult Cats Lose Their Teeth?
If you asked if an adult human loses his or her teeth, you would likely answer that this is not normal, but it can happen in some medical cases and illnesses, which is also true for your cats. In fact, the cats lose their teeth in adulthood, and dental diseases are very common in cats, as mentioned in the introduction. According to recent studies, more than half of cats globally have a problem with their teeth before the age of three.
The diseases that cause the loss of teeth are gingivitis and bacteria that accumulate on them, and the greater the chance of protecting the cat’s teeth from fall, the sooner you discover it.
Cats are very good at concealing pain, and often they may not be aware that they have a problem until it becomes very obvious. For this reason, it is very important to keep an eye on some of the main signs tells you that your cat teeth are bothering them, especially when it gets older such as:
- Bad Breath
Bad breath does not occur on its own for no good reason in cats, and it is always accompanied by another issue such as rotting teeth, bad gums, or even problems with the digestive system, and this is an indicator of teeth problems.
- Chewing On One Side Of The Mouth
Watching a cat while eating can tell you a lot about the condition of their teeth, and one of the clearest indications of a problem with teeth or gums is if your cat prefers one side of the mouth when chewing to avoid biting on a particular area of the mouth.
- Dropping Food
Usually, cats eat quickly, delicately picking up their food, chewing and swallowing it before picking up another piece of their food. Suppose your cat drops food from its mouth a lot. It could be because it tries to avoid biting or pressing on a painful area, making it’s trying to eat around and making the eating process longer than usual.
- Swallow Whole Food
Cats chew soft food and grind it, to divide pieces, swallow comfortably. If your cat’s teeth cause them pain when eating, they may swallow smaller pieces of their food entirely to avoid the pain caused by biting and chewing, so if the cat does not appear to chew so much or at all, bring it for examination.
- Anorexia
Anorexia in a cat can be a symptom of a whole range of potential problems, from secondary diseases that will disappear on their own within a day or so to more severe issues, which applies to dental problems.
Do Cats Lose Their Teeth? My Opinion!
We hope that we have adequately answered the question, do cats lose their teeth? Your cat is your family, and you must keep them healthy and happy. Asking questions such as today’s question is important as a cat owner, which shows how much you love your cat. However, inspecting and treating teeth related problems is essential.
If you have more information or a different answer to the question, do cats lose their teeth, please write them down below in the comment section. So, every cat owner benefits from that.
You’ll Also Love These Posts:
Studies have shown if you like this blog article — you will also love the following posts.
