If Only Big Orange Could Talk

Harry and William here and we would like to tell you about a fellow orange boy whose story we learned about at the hospital just in time for dental health month. Morris came in to the office this past fall. Morris is a 11 year old cat who came to see us here at Stow Kent Animal Hospital when his mom noticed that he was losing weight and was not as active as he usually is. Morris is a very important part of his household providing warmth to any lap he can climb into, a friendly rub to any legs he happens to walk past and his favorite job of keeping the house and yard rodent free. When he wasn’t living up to his nickname “Big Orange” his family was terribly worried.  Unfortunately since Morris can’t talk he was unable to tell his mom and dad that something in his mouth was bothering him, which made him not want to eat.

So Morris journeyed to the hospital with his mom where he saw Dr. Jacobson. She found that he had dental disease and was going to need to have a dental cleaning with possible extractions. Dr. Jacobson thought that maybe with advanced periodontal disease he was too uncomfortable to eat and therefore caused his weight loss. While he was at the hospital for his exam he also had blood work performed to make sure that everything looked alright internally prior to his dental procedure, this is standard for all dental procedures.  The doctor told him that the dental would hopefully make him pain free.

On the day of his dental Morris could tell mom was nervous. He wished he could tell her that it would be alright, so he purred instead, hoping that would reassure her. Morris knew that he was in good hands with Dr. Jacobson who would be there the whole time watching over him. His blood work that was tested prior to surgery ensured that his body would be able to handle the anesthesia. He would also be on intravenous fluids during the surgery that would help his body process it.  Once he was under anesthesia and Dr. Jacobson began working on his teeth she noticed something attached to his tongue that shouldn’t be there.  He had a mass the size of a quarter attached to the base of his tongue.  This mass along with the dental disease was what was causing him to not eat and therefore lose weight.  The mass was inhibiting his ability to swallow properly and as you can imagine was pretty painful. Dr. Jacobson removed the mass and sent it off to be biopsied. She also removed four diseased teeth, cleaned and polished the rest. Not only was he mass free but he had a beautiful new smile.

When his mom came to pick him up she was happy he did well during surgery but felt bad that she never knew about the mass causing him so much discomfort. She was extremely worried that the mass that was removed might be cancerous.  Morris tried to make her feel better by sleeping next to her all night. That night he wished he could tell her that it wasn’t her fault about the mass and that she did the best thing by having his teeth taken care of in the first place. He also knew that he was already feeling better and was on the way to recovery. Seven days later the results of the biopsy were in and Dr. Jacobson called with the great news that the mass was benign! Morris’s family was elated that the mystery to his weight loss was solved and he was going to be okay.

Six months after Morris’s dental and surprise mass removal he is a new cat. He has gained back all of the weight he had lost, he got the beautiful luster back to his orange fur and is busy keeping up with his previous jobs. He is very thankful that not only do his teeth feel better but, in having his teeth cleaned the mass was discovered and removed so that he can swallow without any further discomfort.

We would like to thank Morris and his family for sharing their story. It is always important to watch your pets for any signs of illness such as weight loss or change in activity. Have them looked at by your veterinarian if you notice any of these signs to ensure a long happy and healthy life.

From the desk of Harry and William (the orange boys)

For more information on oral hygiene and dental care please visit:

https://www.avma.org/Events/pethealth/Pages/February-is-National-Pet-Dental-Health-Month.aspx?utm_source=home-rotator&utm_medium=web

Or call either one of our offices at

Stow Kent Animal Hospital

330-673-0049

Portage Animal Clinic

330-673-7387