Dental Problem Eating & Drooling - Senior Gp

[Mulder and Scully]

Hi, we are really worried about Scully (7yrs). We noticed last night that he is tilting his head to the side when eating, and that he had not eaten his usual amount of hay - he then left his fresh veg which he's has NEVER done before. He was impacted, which happens every few weeks, and we removed this last night. However, this morning he has barely touched his food and was impacted again, but also runny?!? He has had a little run round but then gone back to his cosy and appears out of sorts.

When he try's to eat he pulls a funny face and he has choked a bit. I've noticed his chin is vey wet - drooling? Front teeth look ok, but can't see further down. Our vet is not open until tomorrow because of bank holiday.

I think there is a problem with his teeth - & because he is not eating his poop is affected more. I'm so worried as I know how quickly they go downhill - is there anything we can do to help him until tomorrow?

Thanks, Vanessa

 

[babydoll]

yes you have to syringe fed him every 2 hours to keep the gut moving use mushed pellets if you don't have any recovery feed,
when my boy Junior was like that his back molars had overgrown trapping his tongue underneath them.

 

[Mulder and Scully]

Thanks, we'll try a syringe feed - he is a nightmare with that kind of thing though...

 

[Wiebke]

Please hand feed - here is our illustrated step-by-step guide. https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/threads/complete-hand-feeding-guide.115359/

It sounds very much like pre-molar spurs and/or a mouth/throat thrush/infection, which can be caused by overgrown back teeth. All the best until tomorrow.

 

[Mulder and Scully]

We're trying him on grass at the moment & he is getting that down slowly. Vets are open at 8am so we will be going straight there in the morning.

 

[babydoll]

Thanks, we'll try a syringe feed - he is a nightmare with that kind of thing though...

you must syringe feed wither he likes it or not or his gut will shut down good luck for tomorrow x

 

[Pebble]

Drooling aside (which suggests possible teeth or oral infection issues) - the head tilt means I would also be looking to rule out ear infection/ear mites

Ear issues can be very painful (exacerbated with jaw movement) and in my experience can therefore almost stop a piggie in its tracks from eating. That said - I have never had an ear piggie start drooling so maybe it is teeth .....but I do think that you need to check both

So if nothing visibly presents itself on first exam, it might be worth considering having Scully given a whiff of gas to do as much diagnostic work as possible on both ears, mouth and teeth.

Good luck tomorrow - keep feeding according to the syringe guide, keep a note of his weight every 24hours and monitor his poo output/size/consistency just in case the gut shows signs of slowing down..
x

 

[Mulder and Scully]

Hi all, thanks for your advice & well wishes. It was molar spurs on his right side. Vet has been fantastic & dealt with them earlier today. He's still off his food this evening but is getting much better taking his critical care syringe feed. Much brighter & has even had a run round. If all goes well we'll pop back next week for a check up & hopefully all will be in order.

Btw, Pebble - we had ears checked too & all ok. Vet said he would have been tilting to the side when chewing as the tongue may have got caught - but glad we checked. Thanks

 

[Mulder and Scully]

you must syringe feed wither he likes it or not or his gut will shut down good luck for tomorrow x

Thanks babydoll, we did persevere with the syringe feeding last night, & have continued today. So stressful as he is such a fidget but together we've worked out a system. X

 

[Wiebke]

Hi all, thanks for your advice & well wishes. It was molar spurs on his right side. Vet has been fantastic & dealt with them earlier today. He's still off his food this evening but is getting much better taking his critical care syringe feed. Much brighter & has even had a run round. If all goes well we'll pop back next week for a check up & hopefully all will be in order.

Btw, Pebble - we had ears checked too & all ok. Vet said he would have been tilting to the side when chewing as the tongue may have got caught - but glad we checked. Thanks

It usually takes a good while after dental treatment for things to settle down, and it also may need another round of filing until everything is working again in balance, but glad that your poorly boy is already so much better in himself! Please continue to top him up with hand feed. You can try short bits of grass and grated veg as well as some mushed up pellets, but the hand feed is for the 80% of fibre that is needed to keep the guts working at their best as eating hay may take a bit of time. Please continue to weigh daily at the same time in the feeding cycle to make sure that he is getting enough food in whichever form. Dental problems are not quite a quick fix, and your care now is as crucial as the vet treatment.

 

[Mulder and Scully]

Hi all - I just wanted to report back 1 day on. He has lost 40grams since the op yesterday (950g). We have increased hand feeding as although he isn't in pain when eating he is struggling to pick things up for himself. We've noticed that when foraging he is just moving stuff around, and on closer inspection it is hard to see his front bottom incisor. We weren't aware that the vet had trimmed these as well - again it's bank holiday so we can't call to double check until Tuesday! Is this something the vet would have done as normal? He said he had 'trimmed back and tidied, no damage to tongue so all is looking good' but we presumed the trimming was just to molar spurs....

So horrible as otherwise he is in good spirits, but his poops have stopped and unless we're feeding him he isn't really eating.

 

[Wiebke]

It sounds like he's trimmed back the front incisors too low. Sadly a mistake that many inexperienced vets make.

You are doing fine. Please keep hand feeding him, as much as you can get into him. How often depends on how much you can get into him in one go.

It can take a day or so for things to come out at the other end, especially if not much has gone in. As he is still alert, the guts are still basically working. See whether he will be able to chew grated veg that you place in his mouth, but the mainstay of the diet should be fibre/hand feed. Not being able to eat/not eating is normal after dental treatment.

@furryfriends Excellent Adventure Sanctuary

 

[Mulder and Scully]

Thanks so much for your help & advice. I really hope it is just sore teeth from the work, so good to know it is normal to be off food for a couple of days.

Yes he has eaten plenty of grated veg from our fingers. We've also managed to get him to take some hay and grass from us, but only a few strands here & there throughout the day. Syringe feeding has been such a challenge, it takes ages to give just 1 syringe as he puts up such a fight. We've only managed 22mg today. :-(

 

[Wiebke]

Thanks so much for your help & advice. I really hope it is just sore teeth from the work, so good to know it is normal to be off food for a couple of days.

Yes he has eaten plenty of grated veg from our fingers. We've also managed to get him to take some hay and grass from us, but only a few strands here & there throughout the day. Syringe feeding has been such a challenge, it takes ages to give just 1 syringe as he puts up such a fight. We've only managed 22mg today. :-(

Please be aware that it can take much longer for a dental piggy to be off food after treatment!

 

[Mulder and Scully]

Hi, just another update 5 days on (in case this thread is useful to anyone else!) from Scully's treatment. He is picking up hay and forage but it takes him ages to chew so still topping up with hand feed. He is not yet biting properly with front teeth. The vet gave him a jab yesterday to help him poop as we've not had a normal poop from him since the treatment. He is now doing regular very messy poops. Teeth have been checked and all are fine, the bottom was trimmed back as was part of the problem in the first place. We are giving him about 18-25mls of critical care a day, it's as much as he can handle. The vet advised to syringe water during the feed which has helped make it easier for him and he doesn't get as stressed, so I would recommend this too. He is eating small amounts of hay, and taking his grated veg treat in the evening very keenly.

He has continued to slowly lose weight, more so since having the jab as he has pooped a lot. We are hoping to see normal poops very soon and for him to start eating normally. Fingers and toes crossed!

 

[furryfriends (TEAS)]

Your piggy is gong to need some further dental work very soon as the teeth grow very quickly when they aren't wearing properly. Has your vet suggested a follow up dental? Is your vet able to examine the mouth properly and file teeth without the need for GA?

 

[Mulder and Scully]

Hi, sorry only just seen this - yes we have another follow up on Wednesday. Vet said teeth were ok on Fri and that there is food in the mouth but we need to continue with hand feeding to try to slow down the weight loss. He has started to pick things up and has eaten strands of hay but only when we put in mouth. His chin is wet after sleeping for long periods but not as much as before. Poops are still not normal - normal colour and getting harder but funny shapes, small and not enough.

I have read about using an electric tooth brush to help massage his belly. How do you do this? Do you cover it in a towel before? Will this help his gut movement? Thanks

 

[Mulder and Scully]

Good news - 3 weeks on from the dental work & Scully is back to his old self; eating, enjoying floor time, toys & cuddles! It took plenty of syringe feeding & vet trips including another filing last Saturday, but we got there in the end! It's all been worth it!