• 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

Ga Free Vet For A Dental Piggie

Status
Not open for further replies.
anyar.dris

anyar.dris

Forum Buddy
Joined
May 31, 2014
Messages
5,883
Reaction score
23,836
Points
1,925
Location
North Wales, UK
Can anyone recommend or does anybody here know a vet that does a dental checkup GA free around North Wales? :help:

One of my guinea pigs, Meemee (3yrs. 8mos. old) has had all her teeth trimmed/filed on 17th November. That morning she was choking a lot and we know right away that it's her teeth (choking because she can't chew properly). We are still syringe feeding her every 2-3 hours everyday (husband and I lack sleep now for almost 2 weeks :eek:). She sometimes get interested with food and tries to eat for herself but she can't pick up the food because her incisors were cut too short. She can eat a few soft grass and some few fruits cut in very small pieces if we put it inside her mouth. Also, her chin got irritated (some fur gone and skin is red) because of drooling, but the local vet we go to prescribed a hibiscrub to clean it. Looks like it's working though as it's not as red now. But her teeth are still our main concern.

She had a couple of her molar teeth filed the first time last September because one grew pushing through her right cheek and we didn't notice until we saw she lost a lot of weight (she was not eating too much for 2 days before that and we didn't really think it was that bad). Both dental procedures were done with GA and on the first time, recovery was quite longer than expected (she can't properly use her back legs overnight).

Thank you very much in advance.
 
I can't tell you the name of a vet in your area as they are very rare. The best one in the country is Simon Maddock at the Cat & Rabbit Clinic, Northampton. It is definitely worth getting your piggy to him.

Regarding eating, I've recently got a dental piggy in my rescue & she has to have her front top teeth burred every 4 weeks because she only has stumps for bottom teeth. I've found that cutting her food into strips like matchsticks makes it much easier for her to eat veggies.

Hope you get sorted x
 
Oh dear, that's around 3 hour drive from us. :soz:

I'm a bit worried too on how long this would take because we're going on a holiday overseas for 3 weeks mid January and we are leaving the piggies to my in-laws. They don't know how to take care of a sick piggie. :( Do any of you have an idea how often dental problems occur once you have a dental piggie?
 
How long is a piece of string?!

Unfortunately, there aren't many vets who know what guinea pig teeth are supposed to look like, less who know how to deal correctly with any issues and even fewer who can get a long term, positive outcome. As said above, Simon Maddock really is your only option. He has had clients from as far afield as Exeter and Edinburgh.

The outcome for dental pigs can vary greatly, depending on how severe the dental disease is and how much the teeth have been messed around with. The beauty of conscious dentals is that they can be done as and when required, rather than having to wait until it becomes safe for the pig to have another GA, while all the time their teeth are regrouping and getting worse. No GA also means that a pig will start to try and eat for itself almost straightaway. Supportive care and syringe feeding is still very important during this process.

Generally, Simon will want to see a pig again in 7-14 days after an initial dental, again depending on exactly what is going on. That way, the teeth can be tidied up again before they start to cause the pig pain or discomfort, unlike with the GA process. As things improve, the time between appointments should be able to be stretched out.

Dental issues in pigs are not a quick fix. It is a slow, ongoing process, that can take several months. There are some who cure, others who get to a point where they just need a quarterly check up and others who will never go more than two or three weeks between appointments.

All in all, it is an unknown as to how fully a dental pig will recover, but by seeing Simon, you will be giving her the best chance.
 
you could try and locate a vet called Michelle lawrance, she used to be my vet untill she moved ,
and the last i heared she was practecing somewere in your aria
 
We just got home around 45 minutes ago from Northampton! Everything we expected (regarding Meemee's molars) were confirmed but we didn't realised how bad it was (some of it were blocking her tongue and some spurs through her cheeks). Although according to vets Kim and Simon, it wasn't the worse they've seen and hopefully we'll have a positive outcome afterwards. We'll be back to Cat & Rabbit Clinic in 2 weeks for another dental checkup and we're really hoping we can get her teeth back to good eventually (crossing all our fingers!). We also found out from Kim's thorough check up that Meemee has a bit of hernia (might be when she got spayed when she was only a few months old or something genetic) and some irregularities in her heartbeat (she has had some minor chest infection last October so we are aware of it) but at the moment, the main concern is the dental problem. It is also a good thing that Meemee still has a good weight despite the weight lost she had (she used to weigh 1.3-1.4 kg before the first problem in September and now she weighs 1.05 kg).

Thank you very much for the recommendation in this forum. Kim and Simon Maddock are very knowledgeable and all the things they've told and explained to us weren't mentioned by the past vets we've seen (our local vets deal mainly on farm animals so we understand why). :tu::tu:

I've never seen Meemee so perky since the past 2 weeks. The moment we put her on the sofa when we arrived home, we gave her 2 leaves of baby kale and she ate it (we have to put it in her mouth though because her incisors were trimmed). She also ate a piece of soft grass and was interested with food again. She was also running around on the floor for a few minutes with the other 2 girls and sniffing the house before she went to sleep. Doing the process without GA really had a positive impact.
 
So pleased that they lived up to your expectations and so pleased you made the trip! It's easy for me to try and sit here and convince people how good they are, but until you've seen them for yourself, it's impossible to appreciate it.

It's really good that she is keen to eat - try and focus on giving her grass - it is the most difficult thing for them to eat and the most wearing on the teeth, even more so than hay, due to the fibres in it. Also harder veg, like carrots, will help to keep the incisors in check as they grow back in. xx
 
My husband is currently feeding her now. She has eaten some cucumber, apple, carrots, pear and melon all cut into small strips. :woot: We have been struggling to make her eat any of it these past 2 weeks!
 
anyar.dris said:
My husband is currently feeding her now. She has eaten some cucumber, apple, carrots, pear and melon all cut into small strips. :woot: We have been struggling to make her eat any of it these past 2 weeks!
Click to expand...

Try leaving just a chunk of carrot in with her - she may surprise you over the next couple of days!
 
MintyAndGarry (TEAS) said:
Try leaving just a chunk of carrot in with her - she may surprise you over the next couple of days!
Click to expand...
Well carrot is her favorite food (aside from the grass) and she's usually the one who finishes it all from their bowl. :nod: Hopefully she would be able to eat some during the night (although we won't really have a clue coz there's 3 of them in their house). We'll find out tomorrow morning for any progress again.
 
Just a little update with Meemee. She was fine eating since the dental procedure on Tuesday. She can pick up some grass and veggies but keeps on dropping it so we still help her put it in her mouth so she can chew it. She also managed to chew a few of her biscuits (flat peas and a couple of Oxbow pellets) yesterday. She was even pulling some of the lettuce, cabbage and grass that we hang on their cage using pegs. But today, she's refusing to eat again. Not even a piece of grass. During the whole time, we still give her the critical care because she still isn't having a full meal, just bits and pieces. Today, we're back to mushing up her carrots. :no::soz::(
 
anyar.dris said:
Just a little update with Meemee. She was fine eating since the dental procedure on Tuesday. She can pick up some grass and veggies but keeps on dropping it so we still help her put it in her mouth so she can chew it. She also managed to chew a few of her biscuits (flat peas and a couple of Oxbow pellets) yesterday. She was even pulling some of the lettuce, cabbage and grass that we hang on their cage using pegs. But today, she's refusing to eat again. Not even a piece of grass. During the whole time, we still give her the critical care because she still isn't having a full meal, just bits and pieces. Today, we're back to mushing up her carrots. :no::soz::(
Click to expand...

Are you getting any poos? I have had a few piggies who have gone like this, and it hasn't been because of an issue with their teeth. More than likely it has been due to them getting a bit gassy either from eating lots of veggies that their system hasn't been used to for a little while, or sometimes it can happen if you drop the syringe feeding right down and they aren't getting enough food through their system. I have a little guy in my care at the moment who ate really well after his dental but then ended up with bloat and needed some but motility drugs to get him back on track. I would up the syringe feeding for now and monitor poo output. x
 
furryfriends (TEAS) said:
Are you getting any poos? I have had a few piggies who have gone like this, and it hasn't been because of an issue with their teeth. More than likely it has been due to them getting a bit gassy either from eating lots of veggies that their system hasn't been used to for a little while, or sometimes it can happen if you drop the syringe feeding right down and they aren't getting enough food through their system. I have a little guy in my care at the moment who ate really well after his dental but then ended up with bloat and needed some but motility drugs to get him back on track. I would up the syringe feeding for now and monitor poo output. x
Click to expand...

Yes, she is pooping fine. A bit soft though probably because of the critical care (?). She also hasn't eaten much of her veggies (i.e. lettuce, cabbage, spinach, kale) eventhough we've seen her biting it. She just bites it and then drops it. She has eaten watermelon, apple, cucumber, pear and carrots (only small pieces cut into strips) and grass these past 3/4 days. We are thinking maybe her gums started to hurt a lot again (?) but we still give her the prescribed metacam and the one for the mouth ulcers.
 
furryfriends (TEAS) said:
How's she doing today?
Click to expand...
My husband said that when he woke up at 7:30am, he saw her trying to eat the hay and grass with the other piggies. Although she hasn't eaten it, she showed interests. Her weight is down to 1003 g now. My husband is currently feeding her again with critical care and mushed carrots. He's also trying to make her eat a piece of grass as well. We might go back to the vets on Tuesday if she continues to refuse to eat by herself.
 
Update:

We've just got home from Cat & Rabbit for a follow up checkup for Meemee. Simon said her teeth are doing good, growing fine, apart from a couple of back teeth on her right gum that are still a bit sharp which was probably causing a minor pain, hence she stopped eating hay 3 days ago. We noticed it because she had runny poo (well like toothpaste not watery). So yesterday we started giving her a few mls of Fibreplex we had here in the house.

Anyway, while on the way home, she peed on the towel (I carry her on my lap with a white towel coz she's always uneasy in the carrier everytime we're on the road) and I noticed it's reddish/pinkish/orangey. I'm just wondering if it's because of the Fibreplex since it's orange in colour. I know she hasn't had any carrots for the past 24 hours because it was uneaten when I woke up this morning. She also had only 3/4 small slices of watermelon. When we arrive home around 30 mins ago, she peed again and it's normal and clear.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top