A Long Waffle About Me Changing Vets Kind Of...

LozzyBee

LozzyBee

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(Insert usual disclaimer that I'm not sure which forum this should be on...it's dental/vet related, but not a 'what should I do?' type post, so I thought possibly here? :-/...)

Hi,

(please don't shout at me...)...I've done a couple/few threads re Elvis's dental issues and on my last one I wasn't sure how to proceed. Well, I am now and I'm going against the grain but I'm switching to my usual vet for his dentals.

Elvis has been going to Northampton for around 6 months now. He's mostly seen Kim, sometimes Simon, no consistent improvement. He twice lasted 4 weeks between appointments, but besides that it's usually on average 2 weeks he'll last, sometimes less. He seems to have taken a turn for the worst over the past 3 or 4 weeks with no improvement at all. 2 dentals ago, he hopped out of his carrier with a really obvious head tilt. It went the next day, but then a couple of days later he started drooling a lot. He had another dental a week later, but the drooling continued. He just wasn't himself after this last dental - sat puffed up, wasn't moving around a lot, and he was sounding a little snuffly (wondered if it was connected to his near constant wet chest from drooling).

I ended up taking him to my usual vet, she upped his metacam dose, put him on antibiotics, gave a cream for his sore neck (from all the drooling) and recommended trying laser therapy as an additional pain relief for him. They have had success with dental pigs using this method and have been able to extend the gap between having dentals by using it. I decided to go for it, he's only had two sessions so far, but I have got to say, he is returning back to himself. He's not sitting around looking pained (could well be the higher metacam dose though, could also just be that time is a healer!).

I've found it such a hard decision to make, as I trust both vets, and I need to consider what's best for Elvis, and also what's best for us as a family. His Northampton trips seem to be becoming more frequent, as opposed to less frequent, and every time I go up my husband has to go in to work late, and then be prepared to leave early in case he needs a dental under anaesthetic (has only happened once in Northampton admittedly, but this last time he had to stay a little longer so they could take their time working on him). With hindsight, maybe I should have made sure he saw Simon every time, however, as I've said, he (Elvis, not Simon) doesn't seem to have made any consistent improvement no matter who he has seen - the two times he went for 4 weeks between visits he had dentals prior from both Kim and Simon!

My other vet is confident they can help him. She was talking me through the procedure and helped cast aside my worries on him having a general so frequently (they use the type of gas that has them in and out of it within a few minutes). I won't say I'm 100% comfortable with it, but then I also have to say I wonder how well he copes with conscious dentals as he obviously was in pain after the one a couple of weeks ago, he's had to go in the oxygen tent before, and he's come back with a limp a couple of times. Please don't anyone take any of this the wrong way - I won't say a word against Kim and Simon, they've been amazing, and honest, I just feel it's time for me to try something else. I know this goes against the grain of the general advice given on here, and you may think I'm crazy, but I just want to try. The other issue I have is I don't want either vets to end up trying to work with half the story because half of the work is being done elsewhere (it's just not feasible for me to drive 2.5-3hours one way to Northampton every time he has a little something wrong). Kim said last time that maybe it is soon time to start thinking long term about him as he isn't improving. If my other vets ends up saying the same after more laser sessions and some dentals, I'll know I've given him the very best chance he had.

I shall keep you updated on his progress. I think I'm just at the point where I feel I'm getting nowhere in Northampton, so I may as well give something else a try. I'm feeling optimistic...but then I was feeling optimistic when I started travelling up to Northampton! Time will tell...wish us luck!

Laura x
 
No one is going to shout at you!
You are obviously doing your very best and spending a lot of time and effort trying to do the best for your poor wee piggy.
I know Simon's team are fantastic BUT it has to be how you feel about travelling and whether your wee piggy has improved or otherwise.
There has to come a time to sit back and evaluate all that you have tried for the piggy and if you feel there has been some improvement recently continue with what you are doing. Sounds a very difficult situation so I can only sympathise and wish you and Elvis all the best for a good recovery.
 
You hit the nail on the head when you said "I'll know I've given him the very best chance he had".
It doesn't matter what vets you think other people want you to go to, what's important is that your piggy receives the best possible care. What works best for other pigs might not work best for Elvis, you and your vets are the best judges of his needs :)
Good luck with the treatment!
 
As with anything you have to go with your gut feeling. No one is going to shout at you, silly. Maybe it doesn't matter what vet Elvis sees it's possibly not going to be good news, but you know that. You've tried Simon, so go along with the other vet It always makes you feel better when you have control of a situation. So good luck, & let us know ASAP when Elvis has, had his treatment.
 
You know Elvis the best and you know what is right for him.

We all know that Simon is an amazing vet but you need to do what's right for you and Elvis and you are definitely giving him the best chance.

I am wishing Elvis all the best with his recovery xx
 
you are doing this in the best interest of your piggie and family.it is alot of traveling.i was traveling to and from northampton with Jerry at the beginning of the year.i syringe fed him for 9 months on and off.he did have a 8 week period where he ate for himself.he started needing dentals every two weeks.he was an unhappy piggie.i was thinking about PTS,but the decision was taken out of my hands as he passed away from related bloat.he was one of my first piggies,his wife had bonked him on the head in a fight ! poor Jerry ended up with a jaw abscess.the moral of this story is,only you can decide what is best for Elvis ,and you do this decision out of love.:hug:
 
eileen said:
you are doing this in the best interest of your piggie and family.it is alot of traveling.i was traveling to and from northampton with Jerry at the beginning of the year.i syringe fed him for 9 months on and off.he did have a 8 week period where he ate for himself.he started needing dentals every two weeks.he was an unhappy piggie.i was thinking about PTS,but the decision was taken out of my hands as he passed away from related bloat.he was one of my first piggies,his wife had bonked him on the head in a fight ! poor Jerry ended up with a jaw abscess.the moral of this story is,only you can decide what is best for Elvis ,and you do this decision out of love.:hug:
Click to expand...
:agr:
 
No one on this forum has any right to second guess or criticise your decision. You know your piggy. You know what is working for him and not working for him. Every good wish for him (and you, too).
 
Thank you everybody for all of your kind words. I feel more at ease now the decision is made. I think I just worried because I know the general consensus here is that if you have a piggie with dental trouble, if you can get them to Northampton any which way, then do...and then here I am switching to somewhere else. I gave it my best shot there for him, and changing just feels like the right thing to do now for all of us. It just kind of sits better if that makes any sense?!

I'm so glad I did try Northampton though, its kind of ticked the box and I know I gave it a go.

I'm a firm believer in the fact that we all do what we think is best despite how it might look to others. The Northampton trips felt right then, and changing to my usual vet feels right now.

They are very kindly going to do dentals at the cost of the anaesthetic as they understand that dental work can be (and will be for Elvis) a lifelong issue and that the cost can mount up. That in itself has given me more confidence in my decision - besides the obvious financial aspect, they do a lot of them which is why they sometimes come to this arrangement. As I said before, time will tell how things go. He's still not eating properly, but he is more himself again at the moment which is lovely to see :)

Thanks again everyone.
Lots of love to you and your piggies xx
 
Finding the right vet is going to take into account many factors... distance, cost, the vet themselves, etc. Ultimately what matters is that you feel he is getting the best care and that you are able to fit the vet care into your routine in such a way that it isn't a huge inconvenience. It sounds like you are finding that and that's a good thing! All the best with your piggie's teeth!
 
Hi,

Just wanted to come back and update in case anyone is following or maybe searched re teeth and found this thread.

Not a good one I'm afraid. He has had three dentals now, and the vet is no longer hopeful that he'll ever be able to eat by himself again.

She very helpfully showed me a picture she took of the inside of Elvis' mouth vs another dental pig she did the same day who has his teeth done every 2 weeks. Kim (of Cat and Rabbit) had told me before about everything going on his mouth, but to actually have my new vet show it to me was a whole new world. Just looks a mess, more than overgrown teeth - they're brittle, very discoloured, merged together, one is out of line compared to this other tooth, his gums are swollen over his teeth...:(

We're going to give him another couple of weeks and see how he goes, but I feel like I'm coming to terms with the fact this is going to be our last couple of weeks with him.

I have one huge 'what if' hanging over my head, but I know that every step along the way I've done what I thought was right. That 'what if' is what if I'd got him to a vet who knew what they were doing at the very start - I took him to two local vets who both thought his teeth were absolutely fine. One was supposed to be an exotic vet! But, I didn't know at the time that they were wrong - I'm not an expert and believed he was in good hands.

I said I wanted to give him the very best chance and I have. It's not quite over yet, but will be soon x
 
I'm so sorry to hear that but you did everything you could, doing beat yourself up about not seeing the right vet straight away, we trust vets and owning piggies is a constant learning process. ((((((Hugs)))))
 
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