Several people have had questions about how to give these two supplements to their cats, so I made a video of me giving them to Lily. Before you watch it, I apologize for the quality of the video. My 13-year-old was the one doing the recording, and she doesn’t yet understand that she needs to make slow, smooth transitions when moving the camera.
Update: For some reason the video is not being displayed in certain browsers and I cannot figure out how to fix this. If you don’t see the video below, or it won’t play for you, please see the video on YouTube here. From what I can tell, the problem has to do with the Safari browser. You might also try viewing this page in a different browser, such as Chrome or Firefox. I sincerely apologize for this inconvenience and I hope to fix it soon.
Wow, thank you Rochelle and to everyone who has shared information here. Lysine (Tomlyn Immune support l-lysine powder) and Sovereign Silver Colloidal Silver have helped my cat make a miraculous turn-around. He was in so much pain and no vet would do FME because his liver enzymes were so high (could not process anesthesia). My cat has shown big improvement in his dental issues in a few short weeks. He is also hyperthyroid so addressing the autoimmune disease with lysine has been key. He still takes methimazole for overactive thyroid and a small dose of antibiotic metronidazole (inhousepharmacy.vu) which I’ve tried to stop, but the odor and pain seems to flare when those are taken away. Hope to try removing the antibiotic again soon as the colloidal silver acts as a natural antibiotic according to other sources: https://blog.thewellnessuniverse.com/powers-colloidal-silver-cat-health/
We get lixotonic from the vet for pain but the need is not as frequent as it was just 4 weeks ago. It’s been challenging trying to find a vet who knows much about stomatitis/ gingavitis therapies vs. FME. He eats much better now and is gaining weight again. My cat also has asthma so breathing treatments include steroids. More steroids will only hurt his organs at this point, but we are avoiding FME (what’s left anyway). Thank you for helping us help him enjoy his life again!
I am so glad I found your site. I have a 9 year old female cat named Charlie with IBS. The last several months the stomatitis has also be very visible. A trip to the vet gave her antibiotics which made the IBS worse. I have her on come of the vitality science products which has helped the IBS but not the stomatitis. As I was reading your info I realized I had the Lysine already. As a kitten she was prescribed it because she tested positive for something and I have just moved and can’t find my pet papers. But anyway it wasn’t the feline aids or leukemia but another one and this site hopefully will lead me to something to help her. Thanks so much!
THANK YOU ROCHELLE FOR THE INFORMATION! WE ARE TREATING A STRAY THAT SHOWS SYMPTOMS OF STOMATITIS. I READ AN ARTICLE ON THE INTERNET WRITTEN BY A PHYSICIAN IN GREENLAND ABOUT SOME RESEARCH HE HAD DONE ON “COLLOIDAL SILVER.” I WAS INTRIGED BECAUSE PEOPLE HAD BEEN USING IT TO TREAT STOMATITIS IN THEIR CATS. MOST OF THE OUTCOMES WERE POSITIVE. SOME PEOPLE EVEN REPORTED THAT THEIR CAT IMPROVED SIGNIFICANTLY IN A WEEK. COLLOIDAL SILVER IS ODORLESS AND TASTLESS. YOU CAN ADD IT TO FOOD OR WATER. OUR STRAY CAT “WHISKY”, HAS SHOWN SOME SIGNS OF INPROVEMENT IN A FEW DAYS. THERE WILL BE SOME CATS THAT MAY NOT RESPOND TO THE TREATMENT. THIS IS THE CASE FOR ANY TREATMENT. BUT, I KNOW THAT IT IS BETTER TO TRY ANYTHING THAT MIGHT WORK TO LESSEN THE PAIN AND INFLAMMATION THAT THESE CATS LIVE WITH EVERYDAY. YOU CAN GET IT ON AMAZON.
I’m happy to report that in 2018, via a link on your website here, the Plaque Off is available on Amazon for $14 USD. I have Prime, so free two-day shipping. I already use the Lysine powder. The Plaque Off is on its way. Thank you for the video. Again, it’s really inspiring to see your cat has recovered and is getting along nicely.
I forget to mention that I have to find a replacement for Plaque Off since my older kitty gal is hyperthyroid. Anyone know of a replacement that might work? I can’t locate AquaDent.
Thanks in advance…..
Dr. Silva,
You can buy AquaDent and similar water additives on Amazon. I hope this helps.
Rochelle
Great video and lots of useful information! Thanks so much! I just discovered our senior rescue we adopted last year has stomatitis. I never heard anything about this. I’m learning so much here. Fortunately, she hasn’t had any of the symptoms you mentioned here, yet. Our vet discovered it on her recent twice yearly exam. I aim to keep her safe, healthy and happy. Thanks for making this website for other cat owners.
Wishing you and yours a safe and happy holiday season!
I appreciate the website so much! My kitten just got her adult teeth in and was diagnosed with the disease, my vet said he had never seen a feline so young being diagnosed. After the recommendation for total tooth extraction for a kitten wasn’t for me, most importantly for her. The information presented here has helped to educate and all-in-all point in the right direction of other treatment options. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!
Hi Rochelle. I wanted to tell you that I appreciate the info you’ve provided and your video with your daughter shooting it was a hoot…reminds me so much of me and my daughter. 🙂 Anyhow, I really liked the video and it taught me a few things. My cat Katie is 13…today is her birthday actually. She’s suffered with stomatitis for a few years and I just made the hard decision to extract her teeth. That was done yesterday. This is a last ditch effort to try to stop her pain and suffering. I’m anxious to see how she will do afterwards. She’s been on the steroid cream for awhile and is off it right now, but I still have it. I also have the PlaqueOff and the L-Lysine. I’m going to watch and see how Katie does without all this first, but based on your cat’s recovery and improvement using these items, I won’t hesitate to use them on Katie. Again, I appreciate your info and the videos.
Juanita,
Deciding to remove a cat’s teeth is never an easy decision but I hope that Katie does as well as Lily did. Keep in mind that it can take up to six months to know if a tooth extraction resolved the stomatitis symptoms, and that it is possible that the symptoms will improve but not go away completely. This is what happened to Lily and is why I continue to give her the Lysine and PlaqueOff. Please keep us posted as to how Katie does without her teeth. Just wait until she tries to bite you. A toothless cat bite feels really strange!
Rochelle
Has anyone tried raw food? Bones are especially important for cats with stomatitis. http://www.thecatsite.com/t/251643/can-raw-diet-cure-stomatits
Hi my cat was diagnosed 3 months ago with stomatitis and I put her onto human raw food for a month with no change in the stomatitis
Rochelle-
I have a FIV positive cat with stomatitis and your site is extremely helpful.
Just a quick note that if you use transdermal prednisolone on the ears you should wear disposable gloves yourself to prevent absorption through your own skin. My vet recommended gloves when I used transdermal in the past.
Keep up the great work!!
Marianne,
Yes, you are right about the steroid absorption. The pharmacy where I got Lily’s Prednisolone from gave me finger tip gloves. I think they might be called cotlets? Each one fit on the tip of my finger so that my finger was protected. Thank you for reminding me (and others) the importance of covering our skin when giving steroid creams to our cats.
Rochelle
I really appreciate the information. I have a cat with stomatitis and herpes virus. I wanted to see the dosing video, but it was pulled from this site. Is it somewhere else? Or can you describe how you dose the PlaqueOff?
Becky,
The video has not been removed and but it looks like there might be a problem that I need to fix. I’m sorry you aren’t able to see the video on my site.
Here is a link to the video on YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=4MFkYLpOJRY.
Please let me know if you have any other questions about this.
Rochelle
I have added a forum to this site in an effort to make it easier for people to find and/or share information. I would like to invite you to take a look around and share what has worked for you (or what hasn’t), even if you’ve already shared it here. The forum will be a place where it is much easier to search for and find helpful information.
You can visit the forum here.
I will be posting this comment on all the pages of my site to make sure everyone who is subscribed to comments sees this, so I apologize if you get multiple copies of this message.
I have a cat rescue, and although I have had cats in my life for the last 30 years, I had never heard of stomatitis until this past year. I now have 3 rescue cats diagnosed with this disease! I asked my vet if it’s contagious, but he said he doesn’t know. I’m wondering now if this is somehow diet related. I feed my babies Iams indoor cat formula. I also have a cat with IBD, and I’m interested in what you feed your kitties with this. My Jack takes a probiotic daily with his food and gets a steroid shot about every 2 months. This helps keep his symptoms under control, but I’d love a long term solution.
Marsha,
Although I haven’t worked in cat rescue, I’ve had cats for well over four decades and had never heard of stomatitis until we got Lily. It seems to be a disease that vets don’t know much about unless they specifically study it.
Whether or not stomatitis is contagious or not has been brought up several times. I honestly don’t know if it is or not, but will share what Lily’s foster mom thinks (she has fostered hundreds of cats, and a lot of her cats have had stomatitis). She believes that stomatitis is contagious when there are active ulcers in the mouth. She said that some of her healthy cats of gotten this disease when she’s had stomatitis cats with active ulcers.
My experience has been good in this area. I have five cats and they all eat from the same food bowl, drink from the same water, and lick Lily’s bowl every day when she is done eating her wet food with supplements. None of them have come down with stomatitis.
As for IBD, I have two cats with this illness. All my cats eat the same food – Iams Indoor Weight and Hairball Care (it’s in a turquoise bag). I have learned to stay with that one and only that one because one month my local pet store was out of the Indoor Weight and Hairball Care formula so I tried something else by Iams. Salmon, maybe? Since it was made by Iams I thought it would be okay, but both my sensitive cats came down with horrible IBD symptoms. As soon as I switched back they were better, along with medicine to help the process.
Several years back I tried giving them Evo, which is an expensive brand that is very healthy and high in protein. My two sensitive cats did horribly on the Evo. I don’t remember what I switched to after the Evo but I didn’t start the Iams until Lily had her teeth removed. The only reason I went with the Iams was because it comes in very small kibbles that Lily can swallow without needing to chew them. I wish I could offer you more information on what foods might work for Jack but I think I got really lucky that all our cats have done well with this food.
Please let us know if you find something that helps keep Jack’s IBD under control other than steroid shots and probiotics.
Rochelle
A friend of mine found your website about stomatitis in cats. Thank you for making a web site. I found out a few weeks ago that my 14 year old 3 legged cat pookie has stomatitis. I was ready to have her teeth pulled until I found your website. Now I see I may have other options. Thank you.I will read your suggestions and shared knowledge=
Please tell your 13 year old daughter that she did a wonderful job of videotaping your video about the lysine and plaque off dosing.I hope she feels able instead of feeling that she can’t do things right. I think she might want to think of a vocation in videography
Carol,
I’m so glad that the information here has shown you that you may have options other than tooth extraction for Pookie. As for my daughter, there’s no need to worry about her. She LOVES to take video and does so often. But I see a future for her not in videography but in art or story telling, for that is where her passion is. I’ll be sure to pass along your kind words to her.
Rochelle
First off thanks for the website. My senior cat, Sassy, was diagnosed about two weeks ago with stomatitis. Our vet gave her an depo Medrol shot and antirobe antibotics that I just gave the last dose today. I have been looking into alternative methods for this disease and want the FME to be a last resort. I had found info on another website about slippery elm and honey treatment….have you ever heard of this or know anyone who has tried it? I have been giving her this for a few days now. After the initial shot 2 weeks ago and the antibotics she is eating much better and is playing some ( which she had not been doing in quite a while). I am wondering if I can add your treatment along with the slippery elm and honey to see if she will at least hold her own and not relapse. I also under there is another treatment out there call DALLAS SYRUP TREATMENT , have you ever heard of that? Any info is appreciated…thanks.
Jerry,
I’m sorry but I haven’t heard of either honey and slippery elm or the Dallas syrup treatment. I don’t know what is in the Dallas syrup treatment but I recommend researching the ingredients to make sure there is nothing dangerous to cats in it. I recommend that for honey and slippery elm, too.
Please let us know how Sassy does and whether or not you are using (or still using) either of these treatments.
Rochelle
I too have a one-eyed cat with stomatitis. I got her from what I learned was a disreputable shelter that didn’t take care of their cats. We’ve had her for 3 weeks and she’s been to three vets. The next will be a dental specialist.
The second vet gave her a cortisone injection and an antibiotic injection 2 days ago. She’s already improved markedly–less inflammation and better breath. The third vet today recommended I talk to the specialist but also recommended steroids in a low dose. I would like to avoid total tooth extraction at this time, unless the specialist recommends it.
I’m going to try the Lysine and the plaque off. Her name is pearl because she is my pearl. A jewel who probably would have died of neglect had I not seen her at the pet store I work at weekly. I’m a Pet Nutritionist and I work for Hills Science Diet, so I know a lot about pet nutrition and pet food.
Linda,
I would have never guessed that there was another one-eyed stomatitis cat out there! Pearl is very lucky to have you 🙂
Please let us know how she does on the Lysine and PlaqueOff, and whether or not you had her teeth pulled.
Prayers are being sent that this disease becomes manageable.
Rochelle
first off thank you so much for the quick response, i was just about ready to give up and go back to the shots which are a very difficult process for my fearful Wendy. she is afraid of others and hides when anyone but myself is in the house then i have to ‘trick’ her in order to give her the shots, he cream is so much easier.
could you tell me how much prednisone you gave Lily at first and what you give now? my vet prescribed Wendy 0.05ml each day.
also, i noticed our two girls Stomatitis stories are nearly identical except Wendy is overweight (10lb) and on a diet while Lovely Lily is trim. would you mind sharing what Lily’s weight is – im hoping it will help my vet adjust Wendy’s meds if needed.
as ever grateful……
Marlena
Marlena,
I don’t remember the dosage that Lily first took because it has been changed a few times. She is currently on a very low dose (0.05ml) once a day, but the dose before that was 0.10ml twice a day.
Lily is a tiny little thing. She currently weighs a little over 6 pounds. Prior to getting her stomatitis under control Lily weighed under six pounds.
Rochelle
thank you for making this site!! my Wendy has this horrid illness and im so desperate to get her help. wendy has had all her teeth removed and when on the prednisone shots she has relief for only 2 weeks yet vet says she has to go 3 weeks before another shot. i hate seeing her hurt for that long week. after finding your site, i got my vet to let me start the trans dermal prednisone. at first it seemed that i had found the solution, she got better, she came out of hiding, groomed herself some and on a few days even ate dry food. usually on the days she hurts i have to hand feed her baby food – turkey or chicken. the dr said to give the med every day for 5 days then every 48hrs. at day 5 she was not back to normal so dr said i could give the med for up to 10 days then try every 48hrs. its day 11 today and she is still not her usual self, better, but not normal.
my question for you is:
when you started the rub on med how long did it take for lily to get back to her usual self?
or did she only show progress when using the supplements for 8 weeks?
i just cant tell if i should give up and go back to thee shots or keep hoping she’ll eventually get enough built up and be herself.
i havent received the supplements yet, will adding them do the trick with the rub on stuff?
looking forward to hearing from you.
marlena
Marlena,
I’m so sorry to hear about the pain that Wendy is going through!
You asked how long it took Lily to feel better after starting the Prednisolone cream that I rub in her ear. From what I remember, we started her on shots, which helped, and then moved to the cream. It took a while to figure out the right dosage for Lily, but the cream alone didn’t control Lily’s pain. After I started Lily on the steroid cream I added the Lysine supplement, and she was on both of those for at least two months, possibly longer. The pain improved with the Lysine, but it was still there. I know she was still in pain because she was still drooling and the drool often had blood in it.
Then I added the PlaqueOff, and after eight weeks of being on Prednisolone, Lysine, and PlaqueOff, Lily’s pain was finally under control. The drooling has completely stopped, and she became a wild ball of energy. One of the most exciting days was when I saw Lily puke up a hairball because it meant she was grooming regularly.
For the longest time I wouldn’t touch Lily’s mouth or cheeks because doing so had caused her tremendous pain in the past. I don’t know when I tried touching her face again, but when I did, she was totally okay. Now, you’d never know there is anything wrong with Lily. She’s fine with us touching her face, she grooms, and she plays. One of her favorite ways to play is to pick up small toys with her mouth and toss them, something she would have never done when she was in severe pain.
I hope this is helpful to you and Wendy.
Rochelle
Spirulina is a form of blue green algae. I looked up the ingredients in plaque off. So I have begun making a gruel out of wet food, pate, to which I add
500 mg l-lysine
500 mg spirulina (blue green algae)
1 dose powdered pet vitamin
1 smashed brewer’s yeast tablet
1 500 IU D3
I mix it all up and she loves it. That’s the 1st part. I just started 3 days ago
I will let u know my results. Sorry, can’t remember how long u said it takes “plac off” to work. But whatever happens, she can’t get her claw caught again cause I trimmed them very short. And miracle of miracles, she didn’t mind. She cried this morning
I have a 5 yr old cat named Tank. She was diagnosed with stomatitis a year ago. I can t afford special food. But am giving only wet food now. She is getting worse.she was taking clindamycin. She hated it so.much that she ran and hid. Now she doesn’t trust me half the time. I’m a big fan of l-lysine. But since this is an auto immune disorder, or so I’ve been told, I never gave it to her. I take vit D for my excema and it has been miraculous. But have cut back on the lysine for myself as I don’t want my immune system I overdrive. So I’m surprised to see it recommended here. But I’m no expert. I’m willing to try anything to help her. I do cat rescue and can’t afford to have her teeth cleaned and/or extracted. I’m hoping the l-lysine and “plaque off” will help. She is still eating well, but in agony and screams sometimes. Today she got her claw caught in her mouth trying to dislodge the food. She wouldn’t let me touch her to extricate her claw. It was so upsetting and I was helpless. I take spirulina. Would that work the same way as the “plaque off”? Thank u. So nice to know there’s others out there dealing with this issue. Thank u. Gail chabraya
Gail,
How heartbreaking to see your kitty going through this! I can’t imagine what it was like seeing her claw stuck in her mouth. 🙁
Unfortunately I have never heard of sprirulina so I don’t have any idea if it works the same as PlaqueOff. If anyone here has experience with Sprirulina, please share it.
I encourage you to come back later and let us know what you did with Tank and how she responded. I hope that you find something that works well for her.
Rochelle
Thank you so much for this site – my cat was just diagnosed this evening (after years of wrong diagnoses) and being told he’s been in so much pain for years was just horrifying to me, particularly after so many vet visits.
We’re going to try inteferon I think at this stage, as it’s already caused him to have a heart murmur, but I will be getting the PlaqueOff and Lysine as well after reading how well it’s worked for Lily. Thanks again – there’s so little information (except for the very technical veterinary publications!)
Melissa,
My heart goes out to you and your kitty. Please let us know how he does with the PlaqueOff and Lysine.
Rochelle
Thank you for your website. One of my cats just got diagnosed. I will try the lysine and plaque off ASAP. The stomtitus is just a red line at the tooth line right now. I know you are not a vet, but do you believe these supplements might inhibit the disease?
I feel so bad for the cat. The last thing I want is for him to live a life in pain.
Jill,
You are right that I am not a vet, and only know what these two products have done for my cat. Based on my experience of giving Lysine and PlaqueOff to my cat Lily, I do believe that these products may help your cat. Please know that I cannot promise that your cat will improve with them. That being said, if what you are seeing is red along the gums, but no redness or swelling in the throat, then I suspect that your cat will benefit from taking these.
Be aware that neither are going to provide your cat with immediate relief. It takes up to two months for the PlaqueOff to show improvement. I don’t think it takes that long for the Lysine to help, but I’m not sure what the timeframe is for that.
Also, your cat might need additional help. In Lily’s case, she takes a very low dose of steroids daily, since the Lysine and PlaqueOff are not enough to control her stomatitis alone. If you don’t think there is improvement after about eight weeks, or your cat gets worse during this time, please take him to your vet.
The reason the two supplements are helpful is because of what they do. The Lysine helps boost a cat’s immune system, making it easier for them to fight off ailments. The PlaqueOff prevents plaque from forming in the mouth. It is believed that stomatitis is most often caused by plaqueoff. As I understand it, stomatitis is an auto immune disease, meaning the body fights with itself. In this case, the body thinks that plaque, a naturally occurring substance in the mouth, is an invader that needs to be fought. That leads to the inflammation and redness. But, like I said, I’m not a vet so I might have that wrong.
I would love for you to share your experience with these two supplements. Kindly provide us with a follow up message in a few months to let us know if either of these products helped your cat with his stomatitis.
Rochelle
Hi Rochelle;
We have 4 cats and one with stomatitis. He is 11 and has had all of his teeth removed but is in the 20% where that doesn’t help. He lost quite a bit of weight and the vet thought we are palliative but I could not give up on him. I really hadn’t read that much about the disease but became determined to do everything possible.I read more and got really educated and found your website. Thank you so much for the info and I had thought about lysine but the vet didn’t mention that. I started him on some I had but ordered the powder as well as the plaque off. He is eating quite well and I do supplement him with nutrical paste once a day. He is on depo every 2 months and presnisolone tablets every second day. I have my fingers crossed that these will help him and he can gain weight and maybe reduce the steroids as well. I was so thankful to find your website and I really appreciate you creating it. I will keep you updated on Kai..thanks Joy
I’m so glad this site has been helpful to you! It sounds like you are doing everything you can for Kai, and it sounds like a good sign that he is willing to swallow pills. Please do keep us posted on his progress.
Rochelle
Can you tell me how much Lycine you give Lily? Thank you.
Debra,
The Lysine that I buy (the one shown here on the site) comes with a measuring spoon. It is a very small amount. I remember my vet saying that I should give Lily 1/8 of a teaspoon, and I’m pretty sure that is the size of the spoon that is included with the Lysine. I hope that helps.
Rochelle