Dental disease in cats causes significant chronic pain that is almost universally underestimated because cats rarely display obvious pain signs and continue eating despite severe oral disease.
Cat dental disease is pervasive, painful, and dramatically underdiagnosed. Feline tooth resorption, unique to cats, involves progressive destruction of tooth structure that is exquisitely painful when the lesion reaches the dentin or pulp. Stomatitis causes severe oral inflammation affecting the entire mouth, making eating extremely painful. Yet cats continue to eat because starvation is more immediately threatening than dental pain. The behavioral changes seen after dental treatment — increased activity, improved grooming, more social interaction, better play — reveal the extent of chronic discomfort that had been masked. Regular dental screening and treatment is one of the most impactful quality-of-life interventions available for aging cats.