• Discussions taking place within this forum are intended for the purpose of assisting you in discussing options with your vet. Any other use of advice given here is done so at your risk, is solely your responsibility and not that of this forum or its owner. Before posting it is your responsibility you abide by this Statement

Boars Front Tooth Fell Out!

Status
Not open for further replies.
Jesse's pigs

Jesse's pigs

Adult Guinea Pig
Joined
Oct 31, 2016
Messages
2,093
Reaction score
2,172
Points
975
Location
Cambridgeshire
Yep it's me again I'm afraid my luck seems to be very slim with my new second piggy- seriously beginning to doubt whether I am actually a good piggy mum after all. So I just gave my baby Mo a slice of cucumber and as usual he took a taster small bite. Then he appeared to choke-like coughing it back up to chew more. Like any other worried mum I got ready to intervene if neccessary as I know guinea pigs cough food back up sometimes as they can't vomit. Then he span around and spat something on his fleece! Turns out to be a bit of tooth!? I'm worried because as far as I'm a aware his healthy and only just got the all clear from a URI in October- he might have an allergy though as he sneezes sometimes. Now he has been having less hay to see if it is the cause as I know they must have hay and grass. He always has veg in the morning and a bit at night. Now,I've read that it isn't too serious- at least I hope it isn't-I can't be that bad surely! I have opened his mouth which I admit I don't do as regularly as I should becuase he absolutely hates it and it can be difficult to do alone. There is no blood but the left front tooth is literally all gone now I will look again in the morning as lighting isn't great as it is dark but he is definitely not in pain and is currently asking for the rest of his veg- do I give him some as I'm worried about the one tooth!
 
Jesse's pigs said:
Yep it's me again I'm afraid my luck seems to be very slim with my new second piggy- seriously beginning to doubt whether I am actually a good piggy mum after all. So I just gave my baby Mo a slice of cucumber and as usual he took a taster small bite. Then he appeared to choke-like coughing it back up to chew more. Like any other worried mum I got ready to intervene if neccessary as I know guinea pigs cough food back up sometimes as they can't vomit. Then he span around and spat something on his fleece! Turns out to be a bit of tooth!? I'm worried because as far as I'm a aware his healthy and only just got the all clear from a URI in October- he might have an allergy though as he sneezes sometimes. Now he has been having less hay to see if it is the cause as I know they must have hay and grass. He always has veg in the morning and a bit at night. Now,I've read that it isn't too serious- at least I hope it isn't-I can't be that bad surely! I have opened his mouth which I admit I don't do as regularly as I should becuase he absolutely hates it and it can be difficult to do alone. There is no blood but the left front tooth is literally all gone now I will look again in the morning as lighting isn't great as it is dark but he is definitely not in pain and is currently asking for the rest of his veg- do I give him some as I'm worried about the one tooth!
Click to expand...

Hi
I am very sorry for your continuing saga. If just one tooth is gone, then there is no big problem, as he should be able to eat normally until has grown back again (which happens quite quickly). Losing a front tooth or two is not uncommon.

If you are worried that your boy has a weak tooth that breaks repeatedly, then it is worth speaking to your vet about it.
 
I have just given him a few fine pieces of cucumber and watermelon which went down ok. I then tried to give him a small softish pellet but he coughed again so I dismissed the idea and a few moments ago he made another funny noise though I belive that was him shredding his paper in disgust- tonight he is having no food in cage par the paper which he is shredding that covers his tube. I will try again in the morning with food as I don't want the alarm of an emergency tonight when help is limited. He has had pellets and grass and veg today so he isn't going hungry just missing his nighttime snack.
 
I would also just like to quickly ask- is it usual for a piggy to grind his teeth a lot? Like I know they sometimes keep food at the back of their mouth to chew on but he does do it a lot. He'll do it when he's resting his head on his food bowl dozing off or just when he's sitting there looking at me. It's definitely not chattering as he goes very alert and snappy when chattering -like at his vet visit- he did not appreciate it. ;)
 
Jesse's pigs said:
I would also just like to quickly ask- is it usual for a piggy to grind his teeth a lot? Like I know they sometimes keep food at the back of their mouth to chew on but he does do it a lot. He'll do it when he's resting his head on his food bowl dozing off or just when he's sitting there looking at me. It's definitely not chattering as he goes very alert and snappy when chattering -like at his vet visit- he did not appreciate it. ;)
Click to expand...

I would recommend to have his teeth checked out by a piggy savvy vet.
Teeth grinding can be a bit of a habit, but it can also be a sign of pain or discomfort.
 
Jesse's pigs said:
I have just given him a few fine pieces of cucumber and watermelon which went down ok. I then tried to give him a small softish pellet but he coughed again so I dismissed the idea and a few moments ago he made another funny noise though I belive that was him shredding his paper in disgust- tonight he is having no food in cage par the paper which he is shredding that covers his tube. I will try again in the morning with food as I don't want the alarm of an emergency tonight when help is limited. He has had pellets and grass and veg today so he isn't going hungry just missing his nighttime snack.
Click to expand...
I think that you should still be giving your pig hay. Just shake it a lot before putting it into the hutch, so that it isn't too dusty. Guinea pigs always need an unlimited amount of hay. That might be why he is grinding his teeth, as it helps to wear their teeth down. If you don't put hay in the hutch, it could result in your pig having gut problems which is very serious.
 
I will- I realise there is no fixed price and I'm willing to pay however much he needs but do you have any idea of how much a checkup would be? He is registered with Vets4pets
 
Lily & Rose said:
I think that you should still be giving your pig hay. Just shake it a lot before putting it into the hutch, so that it isn't too dusty. Guinea pigs always need an unlimited amount of hay. That might be why he is grinding his teeth, as it helps to wear their teeth down. If you don't put hay in the hutch, it could result in your pig having gut problems which is very serious.
Click to expand...

I give him grass in the morning and the hay at night just I do not leave the hay in for more then an hour or 2 or else he has sneezing fits. This is what the vet instructed
 
Hi a lost tooth can be something or nothing. It could be caused by chewing wooden toys or cage bars. I had a pig lose a bottom tooth but it grew back quickly with no problems. Please do not remove all the piggies food as no access to anything could stop his guts working which could quickly result in death. The coughing noise you describe is quite a common reflex noise, usually heard when piggies are trying to eat too quickly so does not always indicate a problem or discomfort.

I would keep an eye on him and see how he goes. My pigs are registered with a vets4pets because the staff at this franchise are very knowledgeable with pigs. I think a standard consultation fee is around £15
 
Have you got a hay rack at all, so that he isn't breathing in the dust from the hay as much? Or you could fill a kitchen/toilet roll insert with hay? My pig gets breathing problems from hay, so I buy dust extracted hay. The brand is called Dust free hay.
Jesse's pigs said:
I give him grass in the morning and the hay at night just I do not leave the hay in for more then an hour or 2 or else he has sneezing fits. This is what the vet instructed
Click to expand...
ve
 
Please leave the hay in overnight and if you want to test whether he has a hay allergy, buy some dust extracted hay and then you will see if the sneezing stops. This is what the vet should have advised. I always shake my hay in a pillowcase first to get rid of any dust and little pieces. A hay allergy isn't serious at all, but leaving your pig without a constant supply of hay will be miserable for your pig and could lead to his death.
 
Lily & Rose said:
Have you got a hay rack at all, so that he isn't breathing in the dust from the hay as much? Or you could fill a kitchen/toilet roll insert with hay? My pig gets breathing problems from hay, so I buy dust extracted hay. The brand is called Dust free hay.

ve
Click to expand...
Yeah his hay was in a hay rack because I liked it up off the ground but now he has it stuffed inside a tube.
 
He needs constant access to hay so as far as his allergy issues go, he needs dust free hay not limited hay.

Hope his tooth grows back without any issues!
 
In my experience, if one front upper tooth gets broken, the other one often breaks afterwards, so don't get worried if this happens. It doesn't seem to bother them, but you will need to cut up veg etc into small bits.

They grow back really quickly too. I hope he's back to normal soon
 
Posyrose said:
In my experience, if one front upper tooth gets broken, the other one often breaks afterwards, so don't get worried if this happens. It doesn't seem to bother them, but you will need to cut up veg etc into small bits.

They grow back really quickly too. I hope he's back to normal soon
Click to expand...

Thank you - is it usual in the way he spat/coughed it back up I've never been so worried -I thought he was choking.
 
Thank you @Wiebke and @TheCavy @Flutterby @Lily & Rose @Posyrose @Adelle @Lady Kelly for all your help and wishes. He has had hay in his cage all day par about three hours at night. He has dust free hay coming so hopefully his sneezing will ease and so far the missing tooth hasn't stopped him eating. I will definitely monitor his mouth a lot more now as I never really believed it would happen to me I suppose. :)
 
It's a freak incident. In 7 years of having pigs I've only once had a lost tooth (and that was a leap for freedom where luckily no major damage was done). Jemima recently chipped a front one but it's righted itself pretty quick.

To be fair to the piggies I had a tooth removed in August and it didn't stop me eating either :lol!:
 
If it helps our boar astro is about 6 and has managed without bottom incisors for about 15 months now. Both lost as a result of abcess. We just cut hus veg up into thin strips.
 
karonus said:
Parsnip and carrot peelings are favourites
Click to expand...

Yes he has had carrot strips,water melon chunks-though sparingly and water cress. Don't want to give too difficult vegetables/fruit to chew until the other tooth begins to come back. :) he has found the trick of pulling his lips up when he wants feeding and showing his one tooth- own unicorn.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top