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Eddie Had A Dental Today

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Poppy'sMum said:
Even my vet gave me ones like these, I got these from the CCT many years ago. Without the bung they are so much easier to suck the stuff up in :) Sounds like he is getting better! Try some tiny bits of hay after each feed, just some nice soft pieces :) It is very time consuming & emotionally draining, I had to hand feed Petal for 6 weeks :( She has cost me more than my little car in vet fees as she wasn't insured either & yet now she is like a new piggy, so I am more hopeful of her fully recovering :) Try the stroking from the head along the back whilst feeding, for some reason it distracted her from the syringe lol :) x
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you see what i have to work with... dodgy syringes and an eddie bear who hates recovery food :roll: :)) i'll be interested to see if he likes the critical care instead . but if not, at least we have something he will take.

aw petal sounds like she has done amazingly well. :luv: and you of course. syringe feeding for six weeks sounds exhausting. both o/h and i are really really tired already. :))

we will try stroking his back aswell and see if that helps. :luv: x
 
sport_billy said:
6ml s in 20 mins is okay because he is eating veg. Don't worry about making it more watery it'll just get more into him and don't worry about excessive veg to much the main thing is you are getting food in. Cookie managed leafy stuff better than things like cucumber. Cookie's carrot, pepper and cucumber had to be chopped up tiny like really tiny as in this photo (excuse my mug) I didn't have a photo of the food separately... It was taking Cookie 1 hr to eat all her veg food during recovery.
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I would advise getting more painkiller from vet (sounds like Eddie is going to need it) and gut stims both Emeprid and Zantac. It may be worth thinking of lining an xray up for mid week next week rule out any root or bone issues... If there is no further improvement. But hopefully this is just him recovering form the dental work. How is his weight? You are both doing so well and love to Eddie x
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thank you. we weren't really sure what amount to do but thought 6ml every few hours seemed right. we can always adjust as we go.

we'll keep him on metacam for now, at least until our appointment and i'll discuss the gut meds and checking the tooth roots aswell. :)

weight wise - to give an example, his weights each week were: 1130g 1155g 1140g 1145g 1175g .... then he dropped down to 1001g, the day after the dental he was 965g, then 960g, 935g, 935g. so he's lost alot really but this recent drop i think is because we didn't get enough food into him. hopefully now we have that sorted though and can keep him stable at least.

thanks for your advice :) x
 
unfortunately it was just that one. he nibbled some soft hay later on but not much.

he seemed to really want this last feed we did, and he took 11ml. he was asking for more and trying to pull it into his mouth. i also popped some bits of hay into the back of his mouth which he was then able to eat. he was desperately trying to grab them off me to eat by himself but he couldn't grip it enough to get it into his mouth. the bits he managed then dropped back out again before he had chance to begin chewing. i'm confused because the back teeth he seems to beable to use really well. it's just his grip. sometimes he was biting onto it but only leaving dents in the strand of hay. when i held it firmly, it still took him 3-4 attempts to bit through it, and then it fell out again. :( why would just his grip be bad? :( i felt so sorry for him because he wanted the hay so badly. :(

will he be getting enough fibre if it's excel he's having?

he actually seems to like feed times now and looks quite bright when he's out with us getting attention. i feel awful for him. and so worried about how we're going to get him back to normal. :(
 
I've hooefully read through properly I'm on my phone!
Maybe he's got a spur on a back toofie?
With making up the oxbow pellets if he can tolerate baby puréed Apple or pears ( or you can make) this mused with the crushed oxbow slips down nicely! I used to offer water in between via syringe or a juicy mix (pureed fruits fog a change) this helps to wash out their mouths as they can store quite a bit - not like hamsters tho!
Please give him lots n lots of kisses n nose rubs xxxxxxx
 
It sounds like he is just reacting to the GA, mine don't eat the harder stuff for a few days post op. If you are concerned pop him down the vets tomorrow & get them to look inside his mouth for you with the little scope thing they use, they don't need to sedate him for that. Ask them to check his teeth are ok & that he doesn't have any ulcers/oral thrush/food stuck anywhere too :) x
 
Trying to answer this whilst syringe feeding two piggies, who are fighting over the syringe lol

Just trying to get the timeline right here.. So was the dental done last Tuesday? When does the vet want to see him again? What was actually done to the teeth whilst he was under GA?

Most dental piggies won't go straight back to eating hay. They are likely to have a sore mouth and hay is probably the worst thing you could put in your mouth if it is sore.

Is he eating leafy veg? Will he eat grass? If he is managing other foods, but just not spiky hay then I wouldn't worry to much at this point. However, if he is struggling with everything, after initially managing much better, then I think a check up is in order. Most dental issues won't be sorted with just one dental.
 
thanks for the replies. eddie isn't doing so well. despite us increasing the syringe food by alot (48ml in a 24hr period) he is still losing weight. obviously we're trying to get more into him as he's eating less now by himself, but he likes food little and often so we've been syringing every two hours through the day, and every three hours through the night. he started to not move around much at all. he also had a bit of mucus in one of his poops.

his teeth are looking fine and there are no obvious issues in his mouth - ulcers/sores/thrush etc. the actual dental involved all lower teeth being slightly burred.

the vet said he might have an infection somewhere we can't see, maybe between the teeth (chesney had this) - he also mentioned the possibilty of a problem with the tooth roots, an abscess etc...

he said eddie is responsive but his body is quite weak. it's possible that something else is going on so xrays and bloods are the next step if the next coupld of days he doesn't respond.

he's now on the following meds:

- metacam 0.6ml 2x a day
- vetergesic 2 units by mouth twice a day (the vet gave him the first dose by injection)
- metaclopramide 0.5ml 3x a day
- cisapride 0.1ml 2x a day
- flagyl 0.4ml once a day (this one is only for 5days)

also syringe feed him as much as possible with enough to keep his weight stable.

he is also continuing with a probiotic which is a pinch on his recovery feed. i have been doing it once a day but doesn anyone know if i can add a pinch to his feed more than this?

also having 100mg of vitamin c aswell.

i think he said the vetergesic is a sedative so might make him a little drowsy but this should wear off.

there should be some improvement within a couple of days but if not, then we will take him back. or before then if he goes downhill again.

there is a chance we might have started to get somewhere though because from last night he did the best poops he has done so far. they're firmer than they have been and a better size. so we hope this is the start of his digestion getting a bit better.

in terms of food - he will have the odd small piece of things like lettuce, dandelions, parsley. he won't eat grass or hay (although he had two strands last night after a feed almost by instinct but then stopped again) - he won't eat pepper now or cucumber. and no pellets at all, although these are his syringe feed at the moment.

he started to take the recovery food aswell as the pellet mush so we offer both at different times. he prefers the pellet mush so the vet said that is fine to kep giving as the main one if we want to.

i think that's covered everything. needless to say that i am worried sick. please send him all the vibes you can. and any advice you have. thanks. x
 
Good covering there by your vet. The Vetergesic is an opiate based and is what helped Cookie with her latest dental issues. It is important as you are doing to give metachlopromide with this as it can slow the gut a little, we didn't have this side effect however so hopefully you won't too.. It will help with the pain if there is a pain response that is stopping him from eating. You can give more probiotic is you want without issue

I can't recommend getting an x-ray highly enough at this stage, this has twice led to diagnosis of our piggies more complicated dental issues.

I am sorry you are going through this, and sending all the vibes in the world to Crazy Eddie and love to you both x
 
sport_billy said:
Good covering there by your vet. The Vetergesic is an opiate based and is what helped Cookie with her latest dental issues. It is important as you are doing to give metachlopromide with this as it can slow the gut a little, we didn't have this side effect however so hopefully you won't too.. It will help with the pain if there is a pain response that is stopping him from eating. You can give more probiotic is you want without issue

I can't recommend getting an x-ray highly enough at this stage, this has twice led to diagnosis of our piggies more complicated dental issues.

I am sorry you are going through this, and sending all the vibes in the world to Crazy Eddie and love to you both x
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thanks so much. he's just had another syringe feed and afterwards he ate three little dandelion leaves and also did four poops. his most normal looking poops yet. so that's good. in the cage he pretty much just rests in his box of hay until the next feed.
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although when he went back the cage this time, he did 'talk' to mollie a little bit.

is it the probiotic that has to be given an hour apart from the antibiotic? i thought maybe put a pinch of avipro plus on every feed that isn't close to the meds times?

i'm really annoyed with myself about the xray. whenever any of my pets have had a dental, i've always requested xrays aswell. i had it in my head that xrays of the tooth roots were part of the dental because of that, so i just assumed they would do them when eddie had his. i could kick myself. :evil: anyway. the vet wants to see how he responds in the next couple of days first, and then xrays and bloods will be done thursday or friday.

we're giving him lots of praise and cuddles. he still purrrs so loudly when we stroke him and reach his rump area :)) :luv:

another thing i meant to mention was that his chin gets a bit wet during feeds. i wipe it with a cotton pad and warm water and then dry it as best i can. is this ok? i don't want him getting a sore chin aswell. x
 
Yes, probiotic works best when given at different times to antibiotic.

Don't get annoyed at yourself you are doing everything you can and you have the right meds on the go. I have no experience on Flagyl as an AB however. Hopefully the extra pain relief may have some effect and then you can get some more feed into him and then take it from there over the next few days. If he goes downhill get back ASAP but I know you will

We tried to wipe cookies chin after feeds as it got soaking, keep doing what you are doing, you are doing so well.
Huge hugs x
 
Although really good at dealing with major discomfort/pain, I don't like to use vetergesic unless really necessary as it tends to make the piggies very flat and not really with it at all. It also slows down the gut. I have used Flagyl with great success when dealing with a piggy who had severe diarrhoea.

We don't tend to xray when dealing with dental issues as things like abscesses don't tend to show up, and Simon can find out so much more just by feeling around the jaw.

For now just keep getting as much syringe food in as possible, as it tends to perk them up sufficiently to eat a little for themselves, and it is important that they remain strong. Putting softened nuggets on a plate also tends to work well and they are able to help themselves.
 
the feed after he ate the dandelions, he ate a piece of soft hay. quite a long piece and he seemed to beable to pick it up and chew it reasonably quickly. also done quite a few more poops which look fairly ok. taking feeds well but didn't want anymore food by himself since the piece of hay. i am still offering a plate of mushed pellets but he doesn't seem interested.

he's got a super big cosy nest to keep him warm and he is still mainly resting between feeds.

the vet had a really thorough look in his mouth and a feel of his jaw etc and said all seems fine. we were in there ages actually. he really checked him over really thoroughly. he said it does seem like it's dental from what i've said, but when we first went in originally, he did say that the dental could be a secondary symptom and that something else might be going on aswell so wanted to do bloods if he didn't seem right after the dental. and obviously we're worried about his teeth overgrowing again. such a worry.

one step at a time though. he's such a good boy though with all the meds and syringing. :luv: he really enjoys being praised after every mouthful :luv:
 
eddie is up 30g since this morning so hopefully we are getting a good amount of syringe food into him through the day (the next feed will take us upto 60ml in just over 24hrs.) he is pooping a bit more and they seem ok ish, but the last one i saw him do had mucus in it again. i'm giving him gentle tummy massages aswell which i hope will help.

hopefully his weight will be stable again in the morning aswell as we continue syringe feeding every three hours through the night. the night feeds we try and give a bit more to make up for that extra hour.

he's got another load of meds before his next feed aswell but these are really quick and easy to do. he doesn't mind at all.

the other thing i noticed was that his recovery food and water doesn't seem to be dribbling out of his mouth as much as it was. i mentioned to the vet that eddie hated being syringe fed on the left side, but he's fine on the right side. but little bits then dribble out of the left side of his mouth. so that isn't as bad now since he started all these meds.

please continue to send him vibes. i love this little piggy so much and i just really want him well again. thank you.
 
It sounds like he has improved a bit which is great. Keeping everything crossed for him still.
 
biscandmatt said:
eddie is up 30g since this morning so hopefully we are getting a good amount of syringe food into him through the day (the next feed will take us upto 60ml in just over 24hrs.) he is pooping a bit more and they seem ok ish, but the last one i saw him do had mucus in it again. i'm giving him gentle tummy massages aswell which i hope will help.

hopefully his weight will be stable again in the morning aswell as we continue syringe feeding every three hours through the night. the night feeds we try and give a bit more to make up for that extra hour.

he's got another load of meds before his next feed aswell but these are really quick and easy to do. he doesn't mind at all.

the other thing i noticed was that his recovery food and water doesn't seem to be dribbling out of his mouth as much as it was. i mentioned to the vet that eddie hated being syringe fed on the left side, but he's fine on the right side. but little bits then dribble out of the left side of his mouth. so that isn't as bad now since he started all these meds.

please continue to send him vibes. i love this little piggy so much and i just really want him well again. thank you.
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Oh poor Eddie I hope he picks up I'm in the same boat as you at then moment my boy is struggling to eat again the past few days he has the vets at 6pm tonight is so sad to watch him getting upset and frustrated because he cant pick his food up he is sitting looking so sad right now my poor boy x
 
babydoll said:
Oh poor Eddie I hope he picks up I'm in the same boat as you at then moment my boy is struggling to eat again the past few days he has the vets at 6pm tonight is so sad to watch him getting upset and frustrated because he cant pick his food up he is sitting looking so sad right now my poor boy x
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this is what is breaking my heart because i can see that he wants to eat. he just either can't or is too tired to. lots of love for your little boy. x
 
can you please tell me what you think of how he's doing, based on what i'm about to say. sometimes we feel like he's improved a little, and then he seems back again.

- his weight is stable again, although lower than last night

- before his feed this morning, he ate a couple of small pieces of wild rocket, spinach and parsley. he picked them up well although he was chewing them slowly. when i took him back to the cage, i put mollie's on the plate and he ate another two small pieces from there

- he is getting obviously fed up with syringe feeding now and we're struggling to get the amount in that we need to. he's spitting some out and putting his tongue in the way so i can't syringe.

- he was taking the meds well and still is, but is spitting bits out now

- my hayexperts order came with different hays to try and tempt him. he was interested in the hay and dandelion one and seemed to want it but couldn't

- he seemed a bit tender on his tummy earlier but fine after doing the next couple of poops. later on, he did the best poop so far. it was a good thickness aswell as length

- in the cage he is still resting the the same place most of the time, although he did switch to the cosy tunnel in the middle of the cage aswell

- just now after his feed, we offered some thinly cut carrot 'batons' and he really wanted it. he picked it up and tried to chew but it just fell out of his mouth. he tried again, and tried a tiny cube but then gave up.

- we think he's seems upset by all the syringing again


i think that's it really. we thought maybe trying a different feed next time. we have some critical care now aswell.

i just don't see how he's going to start eating hay etc again, i really don't. especially because he is interested in it but unable to.

i know every pig is different, but when ches had a dental he also had abnormal gaps between his teeth which were infected and he did have changes at tooth root level. he struggled because he was too tired so maybe eddie is aswell? ches was expected to need regular dentals but never needed another as he got through and was such a good hay eater.

please let me know what you think. thanks. x
 
I think Debbie will be the best person to answer so hopefully she will be along at some point.

It is possible that he needs his teeth looking at again. Have you tried him with grated carrot? the only experience I have of dental pigs was a little boar called Frosty who I fostered for a while a couple of years ago and he would eat grated carrot after a dental. Sadly he had numerous other issues going on and his teeth were the least of his problems.
 
hope no-one minds me posting alot and keeping a kind of diary as we go.

we don't want to get our hopes up just yet as he seems up and down, but this last couple of hours we have noticed a few changes:

- he seems a bit stronger in his body. he will headbutt me during feeds, and o/h when he is holding eddie, he seems to feel stronger. so we both noticed that

- thankfully he really likes the critical care so this last feed went very well

- i cleaned the cage out earlier and aswell as his normal hay4pets meadow hay, i also added in the hay area some of the new hays we got for him to try from hayexperts and he has been nibbling at those. they are all fairly soft fine hays and short strands and he is able to pick those up and once he has a grip of them, he eats them quickly. so i don't think there is any issues with his back teeth judging by how quickly the hay went in. so he now has a choice of five hays in the hay area! four softer hays and the short strands from the bottom of the box of stalkier hay. one of the hays has dandelion added, and one has peppermint so he is very interested in those.

- after the last two feeds, he has straight away nibbled at the hays

- for the first time, he came away from the hay area, walked into the run area (where i've put another plate of hay and where he would normally spend most of his time eating when well), and was interested in the plate, then went back. but it's the first time he's actually moved around furthest from the hay area.

- we also both noticed that his body feels warmer, although his ears aren't as warm as they usually would be. but better than he was when we went to the vets.

@helen105281 - yes, we tried grated carrot for him but he just sniffed at it and that was it. we offer him a couple of little pieces of veg/herbs before and after each feed and sometimes he has a nibble, then other times he just wants to get back to the cage. he seems to have his feed and then straight away wants to go back home again. i'm not sure how quickly teeth change, but we were only at the vets yesterday so i would imagine they aren't that different? sorry about poor little frosty. always a worry that there's other issues, and one thing just seems to spiral and cause more issues doesn't it. x
 
he just came over to the plate for his tea! he hasn't done this since last week now. and he ate the most he has from the plate aswell since last week. it isn't loads, but it's still alot better. then straight after he started nibbling soft hay again. this is really really positive :D

eta: he had little bits of red mini cos lettuce, wild rocket and broccoli. all small pieces but he managed well. there was also red pepper on the plate aswell but he didn't want any of that.
 
eddie is stable weight wise again and is still nibbling bit. still very tired though.

i've spoken to the vet again just to discuss things and we're thinking now that something else is going on, and that the improvement he's made isn't enough really and doesn't seem to be pointing towards just dental anymore. a few things are making us think bladder issues may be a possibility and might have been the reason he stopped eating in the first place which caused the overgrown teeth.

so we're getting him booked in for xrays, bloods, and another mouth check. worried about the sedation to be honest but the vet was very sure that this is the best thing, and eddie should be ok, but obviously we can't ever be 100%, but that we can't just leave things anyway, so the decision is made really.

please think of eddie for me. send him all the vibes you can.
 
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