Warning from Eastbourne pet owner: 'I would urge other cat owners to keep a close eye on their pets'

Menna Field has a five-year-old rescue cat called Holly. Despite only showing ‘subtle changes in behaviour’ Holly ended up at the Eastbourne branch St Anne’s vets with dental issues.

Menna, who is a veterinary nurse at St Anne’s, said: “Cats hide pain extremely well, and it was subtle things such as her getting more furballs than usual because she was grooming herself overly due to pain.

“She was eating, but instead of eating all of her kibble, it was being broken up into little pieces and left in the bowl. We thought she had a bad tooth and some gingivitis, but she ended up having major dental work with multiple digital X-rays, extractions and a gum flap resection carried out by the team at St Anne’s.”

Holly’s had a ‘tough life’ according to Menna as she was a stray kitten and hit by a car when she was just 12 weeks old. Menna said: “She’s a real fighter, and I would urge other cat owners to keep a close eye on their pets. Even if they are eating, they might be hiding pain because it’s their instinctive nature to need to eat.”

Rebecca Taylor, veterinary surgeon at St Anne’s, said: “We don’t know the exact cause of Holly’s dental issues, but we suspect she has a weak immune system and came from an unvaccinated mother, which may be the cause of it. The gum had grown over where the teeth had resorbed to protect them, but this can expose nerves and is very painful. It was a two-hour operation and quite complicated. Holly is typical of many cats and bravely hid the great pain she was in.

“I would echo Menna’s plea and urge cat owners to watch out for any slight changes in their pets behaviour, as it could be a sign of something more serious.”

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