Kittens are born without teeth, but as soon as they stop breastfeeding ( by 3 weeks of age ) they begin to develop a set of teeth called ” primary teeth or baby teeth “. As it happens in other species, although these teeth are small and many of us don’t know how many teeth do cats have, their bite can be very annoying due to its sharp and incisive character.
The “primary or milk teeth” are fully visible after 6 weeks, and consist of 26 pieces. When they reach 4 months of age, the “milk teeth” tend to fall and are replaced by the “permanent teeth”. At that time, your kitten will have 30 teeth, including 4 molars. During this transit, you will feel discomfort associated with the irritation of the gums and you will notice that it develops one of the following behaviors:
- Need to nibble objects or toys.
- A certain lack of appetite due to the pain caused by the gums.
It is important that you check the mouth of your kitten to verify that, during the passage of the ” milk teeth” to the “permanent”, none of the “primary teeth” has been retained, thus displacing any of the “permanent” teeth. When this happens, the rest of definitive teeth can be affected by this displacement, which can cause pain in the gums and palate. If you detect that this is the case of your kitten, it is best to go to the veterinarian to assess the severity and establish guidelines to follow, including the need to remove the tooth retained.
HOW MANY TEETH DOES AN ADULT CAT HAVE?
The 30 definitive teeth (“permanent”), are distributed in the jaws by the following structure:
- Upper jaw: 6 incisors, 1 canine on each side, 3 premolars on the right and 3 on the left, and one molar on each end.
- Lower jaw: 6 incisors, 1 canine on each side, 2 premolars on the right and 2 on the left, and a molar on each end.
The teeth of the cats are characterized by the wide development of the fangs, unlike the incisors (which are small), and the capacity of the molars, which acts as scissors to cut the food, without actually chewing it.
Ensuring that your cat has healthy teeth is necessary to avoid suffering from problems, such as excess plaque, gingivitis, or other more serious problems. On the one hand, we recommend that, in addition to observing your cat’s teeth assiduously when you have already developed the “permanent teeth“, go to the veterinarian to perform periodic examinations, and determine if it is necessary to perform a buccalcleaning. On the other hand, it is important that you have toys that help you to properly implement your teeth, and also your cat can eliminate traces of food accumulated in the teeth or gums.
Finally, it is essential that you provide a dry diet that prevents your dental care from the early age.ONE has the variety of adult dry feed, which in addition to using high-quality ingredients that allow optimal absorption of nutrients, includes an active ingredient that has been shown to recover the accumulation of tartar up to 40% .