yes, go slow, take it easy, introduce the toothpaste in one session, then wait a bit, do one tooth, see how your cat responds. The thing to be certain is that your cat is in a cal m state of mind and you are too. If you grab your cat, determined to brush its teeth, you are going to get it, and your cat may never speak to you again. SO pet the cat, hang out for a bit, then put a dab of toothpaste on whatever you decide is most comfortable for you and try it out, dont try and do the whole mouth at once. If your cat responds well, do some more, ALWAYS try and end on a good note, so try not to push it...good luck

Just as Mazer said, take it slow and let the cat taste the toothpaste a few times to get used to it. I used to use the soft, rubbery brush that fits on your fingers like a thimble, but some people don't want to put their fingers in the cat's mouth. If that's the case with you, go ahead with the teensy child tooth brush. I was never able to do the complete sort of up and down thorough brushing that people do, but at least I could get in there and get some of the gunk out of those back teeth. Good luck!

Sweetchastity - Can you link to the video you mentioned?

i've just begun the brushing adventure here and yes, c-a-l-m is the key.....and patience! it's not taking as many tries as i imagined, but i'm looking forward to it just becoming routine and not a daily adventure!! :D

i had trouble finding the little rubber finger "brush" thing at pet stores, which surprised me. so i started with a tiny brush. but completely by accident, i stumbled on finger cap brushes at my drug store. they were in the baby care things along with baby toothpaste. i bought a bunch cuz i thought they'd be super soft and wear out with use, but i think they're a silicone or something.....i've seen no sign of use on them yet and we've been at it for a few weeks.....

good luck!!

lisa

ps and i couldn't find your video link either....

Opps sorry, here it is.
I think it would be easier to get my finger in his mouth that an object.

Here is a link that might be useful: How to Brush Cat Teeth

Do not use toothpaste! Just use the finger brush.

Toothpaste, among other problems, will make the cat hate the process.

Do you mean feline toothpaste or human toothpaste? It did mention that the human kind can be bad for their GI tract but I assumed a feline one would be flavoured to encourage them to let you put it in their mouth.

the toothpaste i'm using is from my vet, and while it smells funny to me, my buddy tootles doesn't seem to mind it!! but we did start with just the finger brush at first....less messy!!

the video really does make it look easy....lol!! but did you notice the kitty eyeballing that finger brush while the vet was talking? he's no dummy! :D

Use one of the flavored toothpastes, at least at first, to get him to accept the brushing. You may or may not decide to use a non-flavored one later to prevent chewing while you brush.

If your cat's mouth is large enough, you might want to try one of these after he's gotten used to having his teeth brushed.
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3307+59+10794&pcatid=10794

I use it on my dog and I love it! It brushes all three sides of their teeth at once. For some reason, when people brush their pets teeth, they usually only brush the side that's against the cheek.

Hm, that didn't work. Here's the link again.

Here is a link that might be useful: Brush

How often would be recommended for brushing a cat's teeth? My vet said to go with a diet of canned food for hydration and dry food for his teeth. I also picked up a catnip flavoured snack that has tartar and plaque control. Are these snacks effective? I think brushing a cat's teeth would be like trimming their nails: we let them take care of it naturally (with their grooming), provide the right environment/food to encourage good health, and do a little extra here and there to provide holistic health care. I think animals in the wild have ways they naturally deal with their health and hygiene and we need to provide what they've lost when we bring them into our homes and domesticate them. But sometimes human biases affect how we think we need to care for our pets. We bathe daily but may never need to bathe a cat or only rarely when they've gotten into something that has really gotten their fur dirty.

I've read up on the link provided in another thread regarding feeding canned cat food over dry food and it had links to nutritional information comparing many brands. Does anyone know of a similar type site that would cover dry food and snacks they can share?

If you can, feed a Raw bones in meat diet, this will elimatnate the need for brushing. But if you cant, don't want to take the time, you will have to brush, NEVER give dry as this only makes the issue worse, trust me I know I've seen cats get bad teeth and they ate nothing but dry. Raw meat/bones/organs / whole dead rodents like what you'd feed a snake/large lizard is much better IMO but it has its limits, with food safety/ expense.