Cleaning your cat’s teeth is one of the most important ways to keep your cat fit and healthy, it helps to prevent disease and reduce risk of infections. 

How often should I brush my cat’s teeth?
We recommend that your cat’s teeth should be brushed at least twice weekly, however it is preferable that you brush your cat’s teeth daily if possible. Most cat’s will be resistant to teeth brushing however frequent brushing is vital to your cat’s dental hygiene and overall oral health. A good indicator of your cat's oral hygiene is that their teeth should be white, free of chipping and have pink, healthy gums without any redness or lesions. If you do spot these issues, we would recommend contacting your vet for further guidance before seeking any oral products. 

How to clean cat teeth?
Cleaning your cat’s teeth can be a difficult task, however one of the best ways to do this is to start introducing this routine while they're young. As a kitten, introducing the idea of brushing teeth can be done using a finger glove with toothpaste to gently put your finger in their mouth and use a slow brushing motion. When practiced regularly this will help your cat adjust to this routine over-time and, as adult, cats will be more welcoming of a cat toothbrush. 

When brushing your cat’s teeth with a cat toothbrush, you should ensure you brush at a 45 degree angle in order to target both the teeth and gums at the same time. It’s important to make teeth brushing a regular routine activity that your cat can come to expect in order to help reduce any anxiety they have around the activity. For more information on how best to clean cat teeth and recommendations of cat dental products to use, read our ‘cat dental care’ blog to find out more.

How many adult teeth does a cat have?
Cats get 2 sets of teeth and, just like humans, as kittens they should start to develop teeth at around 6-8 weeks old and should end up with 26 ‘baby teeth’. By the time your kitten reaches 6-7 months of age, their full set of adult teeth should have formed. Adult cats should all have 30 permanent teeth.