Kira's caries

I just realized that I never posted about poor Kira, our cat, whose life suddenly became less than uneventful a couple of weeks ago.

We'd noticed over the summer that she was getting to have bad breath but come September, it got to be so bad that we would be able to smell it from several feet away. (And let me tell you, it is far less than pleasant to be sitting on the couch with your pet and suddenly be blasted by the foul stench of cat breath).

I looked up a few websites and was alarmed to note that bad breath in a cat is often considered a sign of kidney disease. She had lost a bit of weight over the summer and so I called the local vet who suggested I bring her in later that day.

Well, the next thing we knew we were leaving our cat there overnight so she could have immediate dental surgery. It turned out that Kira's little teeth were so covered in tartar that her gums were quite inflamed - poor thing! At first I felt horribly guilty but I have since polled every cat owner I know and learned that, like me, none of them ever look at their cat's teeth on a regular basis either.

Anyway, 24 hours later we took her home and once she was out of the presence of the veterinarian and his staff, she quit hissing and spitting and was back to her old self. As far as I can tell, she forgot all about it as soon as we brought her into the house and let her out of the carrier. Unfortunately I am still feeling the pain of paying for this surgery...