Signs & How To Help A Teething Kitten | Purina

When do kittens start teething?

Kitten’s 26 ‘baby teeth’ only start to appear at around three weeks of age. Once the baby teeth start to break through and pierce the gums you may start to see your kitten behaving differently – for example, they might begin to chew things. Don’t worry, this is completely normal.

By about six weeks of age, most kittens will have grown all of their ‘milk teeth’ (or ‘baby teeth’). If your kitten hasn’t grown all of their teeth by this stage, don’t worry. Not all kittens’ teeth grow at the same rate. However, if there are a number of teeth missing once your kitten reaches nine or ten weeks, you may want to contact your vet to check everything is okay.

At around six months of age, most cats should have lost their baby teeth to make way for their adult teeth. As the baby teeth are slowly replaced by 30 adult teeth, this is when the majority of kitten teething issues begin. The new teeth that are beginning to poke through will replace the baby teeth and will be the final set of teeth your cat will have, so it’s particularly important to take care of them. If you find your kitten’s baby teeth on the floor during this time, don't worry – kitten tooth loss is a natural part of the growing-up process.

Kitten teething symptoms

When your kitten is teething, they may be experiencing some discomfort. The most obvious signs of dental discomfort are:

Your kitten has started to eat less.

If they are chewing slower than usual, or more tentatively, it could be a sign their gums are hurting. It may be a good idea to pay a visit to your vet, just to be on the safe side, particularly if you think they might be losing weight.

Urgency to chew.

Another sign that your kitten is teething is excessive chewing. If your cat or kitten is chewing everything in sight including their bed, your furniture, soft furnishings or toys, it may be a sign that teething has begun.

Inflamed or sore gums.

As their adult teeth erupt, kittens may experience mild gingivitis, which can lead to inflamed gums and bad breath. If this is down to teeth erupting, it will usually resolve itself once the teeth are established.

Other signs of dental discomfort are drooling, bleeding gums, and pawing at the mouth. These can also be signs of other dental conditions, so if you have any concerns at all or just need reassurance everything is normal, see your vet for a check-up.

Increased irritability. Just like human children this is most likely due to discomfort from sore gums and is another sign that your kitten is teething.