Valentino's Mouth

Val's mouth is a mess. The gums around the tooth left in his lower left jaw are terribly inflamed. Not only that though, he has this strange flap of skin or something, on the lower left, between cheek and gum. What in the world?

I don't think it's cancer and it doesn't look inflamed, but what is it? Is it kidney disease growth? Have seen that. But his pre surgery old guy blood work two months ago was normal for kidney function. I can't see him getting advanced kidney disease in two months.

Is it from jawing food, chomping on his flappy fleshy inner cheecks, without teeth, except for the now inflamed four useless premolars?

Don't know. My eyes are bad, the light in here poor and he doesn't want to open his mouth easily for me to really get much of a look.

I've seen stomatitis before and it doesn't really look like that. He did not have stomatitis in late November.

Was that fleshy pouch infected too, and is that the source of all this drainage, now drying up? I know that lower gum area around at least the lower left tooth is so inflamed.

I have to come up with money to have him seen. I have to find something of mine to sell.

All this was so senseless for him to go through. His mouth was so bad, all his teeth should have been pulled at the first dental, I think. This whole thing with Gretal and Val has just shaken my confidence in vets. I don't know if that is warranted, but I can't help feeling that way after the ordeal of the last year with both Gretal and Val.

I want to believe, but....

I need someone to tell me that it's perfectly normal for a cat with bad teeth to have to undergo three or even four dentals in the space of a year. Can anyone tell me that?

I feel very bad for old Val. The infection is waning to be sure. He's alive today because of antibiotics--old antibiotics I begged off someone.

I really miss my old vet, who retired a couple years ago, very much. I trusted him. Come to think of it, I also miss my physician I saw for a decade and a half, before he up and quit suddenly and moved to another state. I have barely seen a doctor since he left the area. I also miss my dentist who retired and the new dentist in her office refuses my insurance, and I have not been able to find another one who does.

It's hard as I get older, to be forced to find new and younger strangers in medical professions to lay trust upon. All my familiar faces are gone.