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Dental issues?

ricear

Junior Guinea Pig
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Hi, all. I’m worried that Al may be having dental problems. I made an appointment for him to see the vet on Thursday. He has just been a little disinterested in eating. He’ll eat hay out of my hand, but last night he would nibble on a piece of green pepper, but wouldn’t actually eat it. He just chewed a bit and dropped it. Does anyone have any experience with these things?
 
Not necessarily a dental issue, but there could be an issue brewing.
Is he eating hay at all other times? How has his weight been? As hay is the biggest part of their diet and you can’t judge intake by eye, you can only judge they are eating enough by weighing them. Where you are concerned that there may be an issue, weigh him daily and step in with syringe feeding if the weight is dropping and you notice he isn’t eating hay.

Not Eating, Weight Loss And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre
Weight - Monitoring and Management
 
Not necessarily a dental issue, but there could be an issue brewing.
Is he eating hay at all other times? How has his weight been? As hay is the biggest part of their diet and you can’t judge intake by eye, you can only judge they are eating enough by weighing them. Where you are concerned that there may be an issue, weigh him daily and step in with syringe feeding if the weight is dropping and you notice he isn’t eating hay.

Not Eating, Weight Loss And The Importance Of Syringe Feeding Fibre
Weight - Monitoring and Management
He just seems disinterested in eating. He will investigate hay, but not necessarily eat. He seems to be losing a tad bit of weight but nothing too concerning
 
He just seems disinterested in eating. He will investigate hay, but not necessarily eat. He seems to be losing a tad bit of weight but nothing too concerning

How much has he lost and over what time period?
 
He just seems disinterested in eating. He will investigate hay, but not necessarily eat. He seems to be losing a tad bit of weight but nothing too concerning

Hi!

Please step in with support feeding as soon as your boy has lost 2 oz very quickly or 3 oz over more than a week.
Hay makes about 80% of the daily food intake, your piggy can lose a lot of weight without you noticing when you just fix on the ca. 15% of veg he has lost interest in - that is like worrying about your piggy not wanting his afternoon ice cream without checking on whether he is eating breakfast, lunch and dinner. Only the scales (normal cheap kitchen scales from the store will do) can tell you the real amount of weight loss and how much you need to support feed.

You can mush up pellets in a pinch. Our comprehensive emergency and bridging care advice contains all the necessary information and practical tips for the exactly the situation you are finding yourself in to keep your piggy going until he can see a vet and until any medication is kicking in. Loss of appetite is a very wide field; it can be dental but it can also be a whole lot else. Only a hands-on vet examination can tell.
Here is the link. Please bookmark, read and use it: Emergency, Crisis and Bridging Care until a Vet Appointment

All the best! I hope that your vet can find what is the matter.
 
Sorry that your boy is unwell.
Alongside the all important syringe feed you could try shredding some of his veggies to see if that helps him.
Mine love grated sweet potato with oats which I have given as well as syringe feed if I’ve had a poorly piggy.

Hope the vet can give you a clear diagnosis
 
Hi!

Please step in with support feeding as soon as your boy has lost 2 oz very quickly or 3 oz over more than a week.
Hay makes about 80% of the daily food intake, your piggy can lose a lot of weight without you noticing when you just fix on the ca. 15% of veg he has lost interest in - that is like worrying about your piggy not wanting his afternoon ice cream without checking on whether he is eating breakfast, lunch and dinner. Only the scales (normal cheap kitchen scales from the store will do) can tell you the real amount of weight loss and how much you need to support feed.

You can mush up pellets in a pinch. Our comprehensive emergency and bridging care advice contains all the necessary information and practical tips for the exactly the situation you are finding yourself in to keep your piggy going until he can see a vet and until any medication is kicking in. Loss of appetite is a very wide field; it can be dental but it can also be a whole lot else. Only a hands-on vet examination can tell.
Here is the link. Please bookmark, read and use it: Emergency, Crisis and Bridging Care until a Vet Appointment

All the best! I hope that your vet can find what is the matter.
We are taking him in to drop him off first thing Monday morning. We will pick him up that evening. I’m so very worried about him. 😰😭
 
We are taking him in to drop him off first thing Monday morning. We will pick him up that evening. I’m so very worried about him. 😰😭

As the weight loss is still rather on the small side I would strongly recommend not to worry too badly and rather concentrate on what you can actually do because that is where you can make a change to the better. You have lined up an vet appointment, which is what every good owner should do. The rest is our of your control and will be addressed in less than two days. ;)
 
As the weight loss is still rather on the small side I would strongly recommend not to worry too badly and rather concentrate on what you can actually do because that is where you can make a change to the better. You have lined up an vet appointment, which is what every good owner should do. The rest is our of your control and will be addressed in less than two days. ;)
Thank you. I’m just scared it’s something serious. This just manifested last night. He’s just started to make the clicking noises with his teeth. I don’t 100% know what that means. I just worry
 
Thank you. I’m just scared it’s something serious. This just manifested last night. He’s just started to make the clicking noises with his teeth. I don’t 100% know what that means. I just worry

It sounds like there could be some discomfort with his teeth/chewing. Have you checked whether the incisor edge is looking slanted or jagged or - when the front teeth no longer meet to self-sharpen - inward pointing? That can sometimes be an indication of what could perhaps be going on at the back as it can reflect uneven chewing and therefor uneven self-sharpening at the front. It is not a 100% surefire method but a useful tip for checking on potential dental issues.
 
It sounds like there could be some discomfort with his teeth/chewing. Have you checked whether the incisor edge is looking slanted or jagged or - when the front teeth no longer meet to self-sharpen - inward pointing? That can sometimes be an indication of what could perhaps be going on at the back as it can reflect uneven chewing and therefor uneven self-sharpening at the front. It is not a 100% surefire method but a useful tip for checking on potential dental issues.
He won’t really let me open his mouth, so I’m not sure. It’s totally possible. I’ve since put him back with his cage mates. They’re not leaving his side and constantly checking in on him by smelling him or Arthur will try to check on his rear😂
 
Hi all. Yesterday I posted a concern with our little Al Pal. I thought it was a dental issue. However today, I see drainage from his mouth and a bit from his nose. We’re taking him to the vet tomorrow, but does this sound like a dental infection or a URI?
 
All the best at the vet tomorrow.
 
Hi all. Yesterday I posted a concern with our little Al Pal. I thought it was a dental issue. However today, I see drainage from his mouth and a bit from his nose. We’re taking him to the vet tomorrow, but does this sound like a dental infection or a URI?

Hi!

Good that you have him seen tomorrow. Unfortunately we cannot guess any better than you with our sole information based on your speculations and no direct contact with your piggy. What you need is a hands-on consultation. There are strict limits to working from online through the owner without being able to see or handle a piggy.
 
Hope all goes well tomorrow.
Keep us posted.
Will be holding you in my thoughts
Thank you! I’m just really worried about our little Al Pal. They couldn’t fit him in for an appointment so they’re having us drop him off in the morning and pick him back up tomorrow evening. I hope he comes out okay 😭
 
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