Natural products for your cat affected by stomatitis 2025

Do any of you brush your cat's teeth?

If so, a huge congratulations! It's no easy task! As an animal health technician, I recommend it to almost all of my veterinary clinic clients, but let's face it, few people adhere to this practice!

That said, brushing remains the best way to clean your cat's teeth naturally and thus prevent periodontal disease.

Have you heard of feline stomatitis? This is another cat mouth disease that can be very serious. Do you have a purebred cat? This article is especially important for you!

Have you noticed that your cat's gums are inflamed or even have mouth ulcers? Are you looking for a natural treatment or a home remedy to treat your cat's chronic gingivitis?

Read on to learn more about this form of chronic gingivitis, which is caused by something much more complex than just a buildup of tartar and bacteria in the mouth.

In the following lines, you will learn more about natural home treatments for stomatitis in cats.

What is stomatitis in cats?

Stomatitis in cats is a syndrome that generally presents with three main features: significant gingivitis, ulcers in the mouth, and gingival hyperplasia.

Veterinarians do not agree on a precise definition of this syndrome and its causes and treatments are not necessarily unanimous.

Although a link between periodontal disease and stomatitis is believed, the most common form of stomatitis in cats is characterized by significant gingivitis, not associated with periodontal disease.

We most often talk about stomatitis, in short, when a cat has beautiful, healthy teeth with little or no tartar buildup, and despite everything, it suffers from significant inflammation of the gums.

I personally saw such a case at the clinic where I worked. It was a cat about a year old, a Siamese breed, with beautiful teeth, who had significant gingivitis despite his young age.

The poor man had difficulty eating because of this condition. Despite several treatments, he still had mild gingivitis.

What causes stomatitis in cats?

The causes of cat stomatitis are somewhat unclear, but most agree that it's likely an overreaction of the immune system to plaque (bacteria on the surface of the teeth).

The cat would be, if you will, allergic to its own teeth! This cause is suspected due to the large quantity of plasma cells found during microscopic analysis of the inflamed tissues.

A study has shown that in many cases of chronic gingivitis and stomatitis, cats were also positive for calicivirus. It is therefore possible to make an association between this virus and feline stomatitis.

Young breed cats are also more at risk of developing this disease because their immune system is still developing and is not as robust as that of an adult cat.

Symptoms of stomatitis in cats

As you might imagine, the most common symptom of feline stomatitis is severe gingivitis. However, this disease has many other surprises in store.

Symptoms of stomatitis in cats are not limited to gingivitis disproportionate to the stage of periodontal disease. They also include severe inflammation of the gums where they meet the teeth, mouth and lip ulcers, and lesions in the mouth.

Bad breath is also a common symptom of stomatitis due to inflammation and ulcers in the cat's mouth.

Stomatitis can also involve gingival hyperplasia and inflammation of the tongue, lips, palate, and back of the throat. Severe mouth pain, decreased or absent appetite, weight loss, and excessive salivation are other common signs of this condition.

You'll surely agree that stomatitis in cats is a condition that requires prompt treatment. Read on to learn more about conventional treatments and natural options for your cat with feline stomatitis.

Conventional treatments for feline stomatitis

As mentioned earlier, there is no scientific consensus on the treatment approach for feline stomatitis. There is no foolproof treatment that works every time.

A good dental cleaning under anesthesia, antibiotics, corticosteroids and pain relievers are among the things veterinarians try to treat cat stomatitis.

Natural solutions for feline stomatitis follow a little further down.

Dental cleaning and oral examination under anesthesia

Typically, one of the first steps in treating stomatitis in cats is a thorough dental cleaning (under anesthesia) followed by polishing, just like when you go to the dentist yourself.

This removes as much plaque and tartar as possible from the cat's teeth, hoping to reduce its immune response to bacteria in its mouth.

It is also under anesthesia that the veterinarian will be able to truly assess the seriousness of the condition, since we know that cats do not like having their mouths examined when they are awake!

Antibiotics

Veterinarians will often prescribe antibiotics to control the cat's oral bacterial flora and thus control gingivitis. However, they are not always easy to administer, especially if the cat has a sore mouth.

For the Siamese I mentioned above, antibiotic treatment was enough to improve his condition, but did not cure him completely.

Corticosteroids

Some veterinarians will discuss corticosteroids to treat feline stomatitis. Studies have shown beneficial effects of this type of treatment in the short term, but long-term results are less conclusive.

These medications usually cause side effects, such as drinking more and urinating more frequently.

Dental extractions

In severe cases of feline stomatitis, the only realistic solution to restore some comfort to a cat in the short term is to extract several, or even all, of its teeth.

Domestic cats can live perfectly well without teeth, but it's a last resort. It can, however, save the life of a cat who is suffering and has stopped eating.

Natural treatments for stomatitis in cats

Now let's get to the heart of the matter. How can you treat your cat's stomatitis, chronic gingivitis, a mouth infection, or a mouth or lip ulcer using natural treatments? Is there a home remedy for your cat's stomatitis?

Of course, there's no magic bullet, but here are our home remedies; non-invasive ways to relieve your cat's dental pain.

Brushing teeth!

And yes, I'm back! What could be more natural than taking a good old toothbrush and manually removing bacteria from your cat's mouth! It's the best natural home treatment for cat mouth infections!

You'll think I'm being very ambitious, but the ideal is to brush your cat's teeth twice a day (I'll be happy if you do it once a day)!

To naturally clean your cat's mouth, there are toothbrushes specially designed for cats, and natural toothpastes without fluoride or xylitol that are safe for them. You can even kill two birds with one stone by using a cranberry-based toothpaste, which acts as a natural antibacterial agent.

Okay, so brushing your cat's teeth is out of the question. It's a safety issue for your hands? I get it. There are dental gels that can simply be applied to the gums to achieve that antibacterial effect again. However, it's not as effective as good old-fashioned brushing.

Nutrition

When I talk about nutrition, I'm talking more about the shape and size of the kibble. Some dental-type veterinary foods offer larger kibbles and are literally lab-designed to achieve the perfect consistency to mechanically impact the cat's teeth.

This mechanical action again does not replace tooth brushing, but it helps a lot to prevent plaque and tartar from accumulating on the teeth.

On the other hand, if your cat already has a loss of appetite caused by pain in its mouth, I do not recommend changing its food.

The important thing for him will be to feed it with what he likes most, because he will need all his energy to heal.

Frozen toys

Much like teething babies, you can offer your cat ice toys to relieve gum pain. The cold acts as a pain reliever. Not all cats will respond, but it's worth a try!

You can try making small ice cubes with canned food or kibble in water to encourage him to chew the ice.

NATURAL product for your cat

If you regularly read our articles, you probably often read about the importance of boosting the immune system to help your pet help itself. For cat stomatitis, this is the exception that proves the rule!

Since it is suspected that the cat has an autoimmune reaction to the bacteria in its mouth, similar to an allergic reaction, we don't want to stimulate its immune system further! Here's a natural option!

Our BouchAnimo (Stomatitis) product provides positive benefits. It is made from a blend of four homeopathic ingredients that work together to promote oral health.

When our pets' mouths are healthy, they have no pain or inflammation. Their eating habits are normal and comfortable. Your cat is happy.

Watch our video:

Is cat stomatitis fatal?

Feline stomatitis, while a painful and uncomfortable condition for your cat, is usually not fatal in itself. However, if left untreated, it can lead to serious complications, including weight loss due to difficulty eating, dehydration, and secondary infection.

Many cases of feline stomatitis are refractory to treatment. Although improvement may be noted, as in the case of the Siamese cat presented to the clinic where I worked, this improvement is often temporary and symptoms return when treatment is stopped.

Fortunately, in many cases only moderate gingivitis persists.

Untreated cases can deteriorate quickly, with the cat experiencing pain and possibly stopping eating. Cats that also have feline AIDS (FIV) or feline leukemia (FeLV) have a much poorer prognosis.

FIV-positive cats generally respond less to treatment for feline stomatitis and more than 70% of them die within 12 months of diagnosis.

How long can a cat with stomatitis live?

A cat can live a long and normal life with feline stomatitis, provided we give it every chance to recover and are proactive with its treatments.

Conclusion

I challenge you to brush your cat's teeth at least once this week (with pet toothpaste, of course)! Setting realistic goals is more likely to create a habit!

This way, you can prevent infection in your cat's mouth and help maintain impeccable oral health. This can definitely increase their well-being and comfort!

Have you tried it? How did your cat react? Share your tips with us in the comments below.

If you're concerned that your pet may be suffering from a health issue, our Free Pet Health Referral can help. In addition to receiving advice and recommendations from our Natural Health Advisors, they'll also guide you through the products and treatment options that best suit your pet's health needs.