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Dental Problems - Help Needed Please..

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gemma1

gemma1

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
Sep 1, 2013
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Location
Ayrshire
Hi everyone,

I have three guinea pigs - Ruby, Amber and Misty who are all just over a year old. Unfortunately, poor Misty has an ongoing problem with her teeth and I really hope that someone can give me some advice on this. Sorry if this post is quite long!

- Around the start of March - noticed she was losing weight/not eating as well as she could, took her to vet, her teeth were very overgrown at the back, they had curled round so they were nearly pinning her tongue.
- Around 11th March - Went in for general anaesthetic to get teeth filed and X-rays done.
Vet thought maybe her jaw hasn't formed correctly (maybe lack of nutrition as a baby as they are rescue pigs) and is a bit out of alignment so she isn't able to grind her food down in the correct way. X-ray showed a bit of inflammation. Vet sent X-rays to another vet she knew at Edinburgh uni for an opinion.
- Syringe feeding started. Went back to the vet around a week later for check up, inflammation seemed to have gone down so may have been from the teeth being overgrown. Vet said that Edin Uni colleague had advised her to see if Misty starts to eat by herself again and if not then the molars should be filed right back to the gum line.
- April - I was away for the month on Honeymoon, Misty was looked after by a brilliant lady at a Guinea Pig Boarding place near to where I live. She is really experienced and syringe fed her for the month and maintained her weight at 900g. (before all of these problems she was round 1200g but can't seem to get her over 900g now)
- I got back at start of May and took her to the vet again, molars overgrown again as she hadn't yet started eating by herself, she went in for general anaesthetic to get her molars filed right back and the vet also ended up removing two molars which she said were loose. Misty was understandably sore after the operation and reluctant to be syringe fed, but she soon perked up and started to take the syringe food happily.
- Now, 3 weeks after her operation, Misty is still getting syringe fed every 1-3 hours (depending on how much she takes each time), I am offering her salads, hays, grasses - everything I can think of - she seems interested and tries to eat but still can't manage it. She is starting to seem a bit fed up with syringe feeding, it's a bit like she can't be bothered anymore. She does walk about the cage (I have a 5x2 C & C) occasionally but the majority of the time between feeds she just sits and doesn't move much. She is such a sweet wee thing and loves to sit on my lap after feeding, which is when I hear her grinding her teeth a bit and make quite a loud gritty sound. It sometimes happens before feeding too so it's not the food, it's definitely her teeth, I don't know if maybe the teeth are starting to meet again and she's just trying to get used to it.

I am going to the vet again tonight to get her checked so I am really hoping that maybe she finds something which could be causing her to be a bit down and it's not just that she's lost the will. She has now been syringe fed for over two months though so maybe she is just a bit bored of it? I should also say she is on 0.35ml of metacam once a day (which she absolutely loves! If only I could get her syringe food to taste of whatever that tastes of!)

I would really appreciate any advice on this - Is it likely that she will start eating by herself at some point? I know that is hard to tell but maybe someone has had a similar experience? Is there anything else I can do to make her comfortable/help her eat again? (I have tried mashing down parsley/salad, grating things like carrot and Ella's kitchen baby food which she hated!) The problem is that she seems to want to eat but can't manage even though the vet says that she should be starting to eat by herself (She said that at the last check up about a week after the operation).

Any help/advice greatly appreciated! Thanks!
 
Thank you! I just noticed that there is a separate thread just for the Dental Sanctuary, I will have a good read through that as well. I should add that my vet, although she is very good and very experienced with small animals, has advised that she wouldn't do dental work without anaesthetic, she said she does work on rabbits without GA but won't work on guinea pigs.
 
The best vet for piggy dental work is Simon Maddock in Northampton. I think it may be worth thinking about sending Misty to see him but wait to see what Debbie at TEAS says first. If you can't get Misty down to Northampton yourself I can help with a piggy train with several other forum members who have helped similar piggies in the last month. One went from York to Northampton & back home 112 days later. There's currently another one from Northumberland who was taken there 15 days ago & is now eating. She needs some more treatment but hopefully should be ready to go back home soon.

I also agree with Poppy'sMum to have Misty checked for oral thrush which could leave her mouth badly ulcerated. My Minky was on antibiotics in November & stopped being able to eat. I took her to see Simon & that's what he found. He prescribed Itrafungol & she was eating again in 36 hours. A long shot but worth checking.
 
Hello, I am so sorry to hear you are going through all this with Misty. I am guessing all the work that Misty has had done on her teeth has been carried out under GA? Unfortunately, due to the teeth growing so very quickly, it is really necessary to regularly tidy up the mouth while the piggy starts to learn to eat for him/herself again, and the only way this can be achieved is by finding a vet who can carry out the work without the need for anaesthetic, as you can't be anaesthetizing a piggy every couple of weeks.

I run a sanctuary for guinea pigs with ongoing dental problems, and have a fantastic vet who is able to do conscious dentistry, and the results we have had have been amazing. Many guinea pigs come and stay at the sanctuary temporarily whilst they receive the treatment they need and then return home when their problem has been resolved, or when at a point that only occasional dental work is needed. I have had guinea pigs here who haven't eaten for many months, where it has been thought the jaw is malformed or dislocated, and the piggy has started to eat within days of having their first dental. The vet I use is Simon Maddock of The Cat and Rabbit Care Clinic, here in Northampton.

I know I am a very long way away from you, but I would be willing to offer your piggy a temporary place here to enable her to get the treatment she needs. I am also available if you would like a chat on the phone.

Here is the link to my sanctuary www.teasnorthampton.co.uk I also have a Facebook page where you can see some of the permanent and temporary residents.https://www.facebook.com/teasnorthampton

I currently have a guinea pig here from Northumberland who arrived with a huge tooth root abscess and dental issues. She is now making amazing progress and you can see her on the FB page. It won't be long before she is heading home again. We have often been able to sort out transport to get the piggies here too.
 
Thank you so much for the responses everyone. I have spoken to Debbie on the phone and will be taking Misty down this weekend! Thanks so much again Debbie!

Thank you Stewybus for the offer of help, it is so lovely that piggy lovers help each other out so much like this - as soon as I can drive I will be joining in with that and helping as much as possible! Luckily my husband can drive so we will just drive down the whole way from Ayr and will go and stay in London with friends for the weekend before coming back up.

It's been a very emotional time trying to look after wee Misty so its amazing to have this forum and know there's so much support out there. I have just been hoping that she would start eating again but it is clear that she needs proper dental care and I am so happy and relieved that I am able to put her to somebody so experienced as Debbie at the Sanctuary!

I also feel so lucky to have had the help of Holly at Holly Hops Boarding in Mossblown near to where I live in Ayr! If anybody needs small pet boarding in Scotland, I highly recommend Holly! She has just been such a fantastic help with Misty and might be taking her for the next few days before we go down on Friday. She is so much better at syringe feeding than I am if Misty is reluctant to be fed like she is at the moment and I want Misty to feel strong for the journey. Going to see how I get on today and if she's still not taking enough then Holly will take her for me.

Thanks again everyone.
 
That's great news. In the meantime get your vet to check for ulcers just in case that's the cause. When you do go on the long trip if Misty can eat cucumber take some extra in a cool box because this is a good source of water on a long journey. If she is struggling to eat then take some water to syringe feed her. Good luck, I hope everything works out well.
 
Thank you!

Ah yes, I will definitely remember to ask about the ulcers - thanks for that!

I forgot to ask about the journey actually - thanks for the advice, I will definitely take cucumber although she probably won't eat it, I will take water too and her syringe feed too. Is there anything else in particular that I should do to make her more comfortable? I have a large cat box that I use for the three of them, but have only ever done a 2 hour journey when I first got them. If I am just taking Misty I am thinking I will get a smaller box just for her so that she is more secure. It will be about a 6 hour journey - if I stop every hour and a half - 2 hours to feed her, will that be okay? I am a wee bit worried about separating her from the other two, but it seems silly to take them all down when the other two are fine and we don't know how long it will take Misty to get better.
 
I have had a dental pig so I understand how emotionally exhausting it can be when they're not eating. I wish Misty a speedy recovery and hope that she starts eating again soon. Good luck x
 
Best of luck, you couldn't be in better hands than with Debbie & Simon :) They will do everything they can to make her better :) It's so lovely to see the videos of Snowy, I syringe fed her on her trip down by piggy relay & I was really worried as she could barely open her mouth, now she is progressing & eating for herself, don't want to say too much as it's early days yet, but she is looking so much better, as I am sure your piggy will too. It's best to get these things done sooner rather than later as they can lose weight pretty fast, so you are doing the right thing for her :)
 
I would normally say put plenty of hay in with her but if she's not eating it then just some towels, fleeces or similar. Make sure she doesn't get to hot on the journey. If your husband's driving then you could have her on your knee if you think she'll settle better. When Snowy went down just over 2 weeks ago the journey took over 11 hours with breaks so a 6 hour journey should be no problem if you're syringe feeding her en route.
 
Stewybus said:
I would normally say put plenty of hay in with her but if she's not eating it then just some towels, fleeces or similar. Make sure she doesn't get to hot on the journey. If your husband's driving then you could have her on your knee if you think she'll settle better. When Snowy went down just over 2 weeks ago the journey took over 11 hours with breaks so a 6 hour journey should be no problem if you're syringe feeding her en route.
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Please don't carry the piggy on your knee, she needs to be in a carrier that is strapped in with a seatbelt. As someone who was in a car accident whilst travelling to the vet with a very ill guinea pig, I can't stress enough the importance of having the carrier secured in the car. My car was stuck in the rear and I was literally catapulted across four lanes of traffic. I hit my head and was knocked out, but luckily little China was safe in his carrier.
 
furryfriends Excellent Adventure Sanctuary said:
Please don't carry the piggy on your knee, she needs to be in a carrier that is strapped in with a seatbelt. As someone who was in a car accident whilst travelling to the vet with a very ill guinea pig, I can't stress enough the importance of having the carrier secured in the car. My car was stuck in the rear and I was literally catapulted across four lanes of traffic. I hit my head and was knocked out, but luckily little China was safe in his carrier.
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Sorry, I slipped up there about carrying on your knee. I've never been in an accident so didn't think about the consequences. I do either put the carrier on the floor wedged between the front & rear seats of on the rear seats which can be pushed forward to also wedge the carrier safely. Slap hands about the first bit, I stand corrected, Debbie.
 
Stewybus said:
Sorry, I slipped up there about carrying on your knee. I've never been in an accident so didn't think about the consequences. I do either put the carrier on the floor wedged between the front & rear seats of on the rear seats which can be pushed forward to also wedge the carrier safely. Slap hands about the first bit, I stand corrected, Debbie.
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It doesn't matter how careful you drive, you can't predict the other idiots on the road, as I found out three times in just short of a year. None of the accidents were my fault and in two out of three of them I was stationery at the point I was hit. It has made me very wary of other road users and paranoid about the safety of any little people or furries who are in the car with me.
 
furryfriends Excellent Adventure Sanctuary said:
It doesn't matter how careful you drive, you can't predict the other idiots on the road, as I found out three times in just short of a year. None of the accidents were my fault and in two out of three of them I was stationery at the point I was hit. It has made me very wary of other road users and paranoid about the safety of any little people or furries who are in the car with me.
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You've definitely converted me now, I just didn't think. It doesn't matter how good you drive, it's the idiot waiting round the corner.
 
Thanks for the tips, glad to hear that guinea pigs can be okay travelling so far.

Poppysmum - Is Snowy your guinea pig? So great to hear that she is doing so well! I saw videos of her on the Facebook page, she is gorgeous, it must be so amazing to see her chomping away quite happily :) Fingers crossed that she makes a full recovery.

I went to my vet last night and she said that her mouth looks okay and the teeth are starting to meet now so she should be starting to eat by herself again (and that is probably what's causing the grinding sound), she said there is still some inflammation in her jaw though. Will be very interesting to hear what Simon thinks when he sees Misty on Monday.

That's awful to hear that you had that accident Debbie, I'm ashamed to say it's something I am guilty of doing as when we have travelled to my parents house an hour and a half away I have had them sitting on my knee! Wasn't going to do it for this longer trip, was going to strap her carrier in the back - but it makes no difference whether it's a short or long journey, as you guys are saying it just takes one idiot at any point in the road to cause an accident. Will always be strapping them into the back now, going to have a play about with the carrier today to find the best position in our car.
 
Hi Gemma, no Snowy is another member's piggy on here, I just helped as part of the piggy train to get her to Debbie so she could have the op at Simon's :) All 3 of mine have seen Simon for ops & he is the best for surgery & teeth problems, I joked that if I ever needed a face lift would he do it please as I have never seen such neat stitching of a wound as his lol :)
 
Well Misty is now here, and will be seeing Simon on Monday. There was a new development just before she travelled South. An abscess has now erupted, and although this can look alarming, it actually could be positive. It is likely this is what has been causing the problem, and hopefully once it is sorted, Misty will be on the road to recovery.
 
Lots of healing vibes for Misty x
 
Just thought I would give you all an update. Misty had a very large abscess lanced and drained on Monday. The abscess was very deep and had many pockets of pus. She is now on Zithromax daily plus metacam and I am keeping the abscess open and flushing regularly too. Misty is doing fantastically well as you can see from the video below. She was unable to eat anything for herself when she arrived here.



Click on pic above to watch video
 
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