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Post dental op, piggle not able to eat

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Sandy'smum

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Hi, I'm Tracy and I'm new to the forum and think it's great!

One of my piggles, Sandy has just had an operation for a genetic dental problem and is currently on Oxbow. He really wants to eat but cant, he doesn't seem to be able to tear or really chew. Vet has suggested infrared light directed at upper jaw may help, as can't see why he wouldn't be able to eat now. Does anyone have any advice on getting pig to eat and has anyone used infrared light, has it helped and where did you get it?

Would be really grateful as getting very desperate.
 
Hi Tracy, welcome to the forum, sorry to hear Sandy has a dental problem.

Can you explain more about what dental treatment Sandy has had so far, e.g.

- Were the incisors and/or molars trimmed?
- How long since the last dental treatment was done?
- Did the vet use an anaesthetic to treat the teeth?
- Has Sandy been on any pain relief?

Getting piggies eating after dental work can be a challenge, there are some things that can help, but there does have to be the awareness that piggie teeth grow very quickly - some pigs need dental work as regularly as weekly.

I will find some links for you that should help answer more of your questions.
 
hi and sorry to hear about your piggy, my very first pig had dental problems and i lost him at a very young age.

My only advice would be to look out for early warning signs and act as soon as you can.

Good luck x :)
 
Thank you for all the really useful information. Sandy is 3 1/2 and has had no previous signs of a problem. Apparently his upper left jaw is deformed so his upper left mollars have grown at the wrong angle. He went under anasthetic and had them filled.
He is currently being syringe fed Oxbow critical care and a range of medication:
Meloxidyl- anti inflamatory/painkiller
Baytril oral solution - antibiotic
Protexin fibreplex - for gut function

He has Bio laps - to restore the gut microflora, in his water bottle, but don't think he's drinking much (doesn't like it) but don't know how else to administer it. He is having enough by syringe as it is, anyway don't know correct quantity.

Having trouble following advice you've provided as his brother is trying to eat the lot. May have to separate them again, though they both get miserable and that in itself may stop him eating!
 
I have decided to separate them for a few hours at a time. Sandy has tried to eat some Kale, he can eat tiny bits that are fed to him but doesn't seem able to tear at a big piece. Not interested in softened pellets or grated carrot. It has been a week now since he stopped eating, the op was last Tuesday, I am really worried.
 
Some Guinea pigs can take over a week to start eating again after dental work; I used to cut food into strips the size of a blade of grass and 'push' into the Guineas mouth as far back one side as possible, or roll small crisp spinach leaves up lengthwise and 'push' them in, or better still farly stalky lengths of grass. Sometimes they can't manipulate the food back to the molars to chew. I used to sit for ages doing this with Milly; to start with it would take about half an hour to get 3 blades of grass down but after a few days it became so satisfying as she got better and would eat as much as I had time to give her providing it was poked far enough back in her mouth !
Best of luck
 
Sandy is now refusing to be syringe fed, squeeks and spits it out but has eaten some parsley including stalk and a bit of cucumber today. Is also eating his brothers poo pellets. Still not eating nuggets, softened or otherwise. Feeling slightly more optomistic today.
Thank you everyone for your support and advice. It is lovely to have contact with people who care about piggies, the general view I've had otherwise is 'its only a guinea pig!'
 
There are a number of reasons why he could be refusing syringe food, it could be:
- the syringe is rough (due to biting it). Get a new one or smooth rough bits.
- the food is too cold. Warm it up (but not hot).
- sore mouth/throat. Painkiller should be handing this, but try feeding a bit after giving the painkiller to allow it to work. Alternatively use Dakratin oral gel as recommended in the link above.
- fed up with same food. try mixing in veg that has been put through the blender, eg broccoli. Or try a different powdered food (eg Science Recovery).
 
prettypigs said:
Some Guinea pigs can take over a week to start eating again after dental work; I used to cut food into strips the size of a blade of grass and 'push' into the Guineas mouth as far back one side as possible, or roll small crisp spinach leaves up lengthwise and 'push' them in, or better still farly stalky lengths of grass. Sometimes they can't manipulate the food back to the molars to chew. I used to sit for ages doing this with Milly; to start with it would take about half an hour to get 3 blades of grass down but after a few days it became so satisfying as she got better and would eat as much as I had time to give her providing it was poked far enough back in her mouth !
Best of luck
Click to expand...

Rodney needed his incisors trimmed back in March, and the vet at pets at home cut them way too short! He couldnt pick anything up, and I had to do the above along with syringe feeding mushy food to him for 9 days until his teeth grew long enough again for him to pick his food up.

Very distressing for him and me.

Good luck with your piggie, hope it all works out in the end
 
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