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Shadow's teeth are crumbling - Nov 2011 dental work UD Post13 more crumbling

Bunny Buddy

Wise Old Thumper
:cry::cry::cry::cry:

To be honest, he's been with me since just after New Year and for this to be the first time he's needed any dental work, which is better than expected.

I took him to see FHB this morning because I wanted an assessment on his weight, 2.4kg, as that didn't seem enough, and to get advice on his eating/feeding regime for winter. I was really shocked when she looked at his teeth - and I feel awful. One of his upper incisors had crumbled away :cry::cry: I hadn't looked. He had been eating well and in good spirits so it hadn't occurred to me to look - and it flipping should have done. His gum above the missing tooth is sore, probably from the lower incisor chomping against it. The rest of the consultation was a bit of a blur after seeing his teeth but the upshot is he is staying to have dental work. I *think* it will but *maybe* just *could* involve removing the opposite incisor so that he can eat properly. I'm not sure but didn't question it as I know he's in the very best hands so whatever treatment he is getting is the most appropriate. I'll fill in details of what and why when my head is clearer... but right now I feel rubbish for not checking his teeth.

He's having the dental tomorrow but in the meantime he and brother Binky are residing at Hotel Harcourt-Brown and the banquet has been booked for them :love:
 
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Bless you, please don't feel bad. He wasn't displaying any common signs of dental distress of discomfort, if he had of, you'd of noticed and whisked him off to FHB.

It's not always easy to know, without a bunny showing you in some way, either by not eating, or with dribbling etc. Shadow didn't show those, so its not your fault at all.

Please be easy on yourself. He's in th ebest hands now :)
 
Bless you, please don't feel bad. He wasn't displaying any common signs of dental distress of discomfort, if he had of, you'd of noticed and whisked him off to FHB.

It's not always easy to know, without a bunny showing you in some way, either by not eating, or with dribbling etc. Shadow didn't show those, so its not your fault at all.

Please be easy on yourself. He's in th ebest hands now :)

Thanks. I've had a rabbit with molar spur problem in the past and she would stop eating, it was obvious. Shadow was eating a sensible amount but that gum must be very sore.
 
Thanks. I've had a rabbit with molar spur problem in the past and she would stop eating, it was obvious. Shadow was eating a sensible amount but that gum must be very sore.

Which there was no way you could have known. It's just one of those things. As a brilliant rabbit owner, you wouldn't have made the appt with FHB for the other things, then he may have struggled, but he hasn't, and thats brilliant. Be good to yourself :)
 
Which there was no way you could have known. It's just one of those things. As a brilliant rabbit owner, you wouldn't have made the appt with FHB for the other things, then he may have struggled, but he hasn't, and thats brilliant. Be good to yourself :)

Thanks again, Graham. I've got over the shock of the state of his teeth now, and yes, I think because he was showing no signs of problems is why the state of his teeth was such a shock. And yes, I'm now feeling more relieved that he's getting help before he reached crisis point. Thanks for responding. :D
 
Good luck with the dental tomorrow.

It never fails to amaze me how bunnies continue to eat with the most horrendous teeth. Dave has incisors missing and the others are out of line so need burring monthly but he never gives any indication that they are bothering him and I have to remember to check them every couple of weeks to make sure he's OK.

Today Angel was admitted for an emergency dental as she has awful molar spurs. Last night she was eating normally today nothing, it was that quick. She has never been a dental bunny until today :?

Please don't feel guilty, bunnies are bad communicators sometimes, doesn't mean we are bad listeners :)
 
Awwww, try not to beat yourself up Alison. I must admit I don't check the bunnies' front teeth anywhere near as often as I should do. :oops: I hope everything goes well for Shadow. xx
 
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How did Shadow's dental go Alison? I hope you're feeling better about it all too. xx
 
How did Shadow's dental go Alison? I hope you're feeling better about it all too. xx

Thanks for asking Auntie Karen. Shadow has done brilliantly. When he had the snip he was a lot more subdued than Binky coming round from the anaesthetic so I expected him to be quiet but he wasn't. He was just 'normal' when he came home :D It's been decided to leave the bottom incisor to see how he goes on and remove it if it's causing a problem, so he just had the crumbly bits of the old tooth taken out/tidied up. (Which is probably what I was told would be happening whilst I was in shock and not listening!).

Re punishing myself - yeah, I'm accepting it as part of the learning curve now. I've also been shown the blood glucose testing again and telling myself I'm not squeemish, so *in theory* I can do that as well.
 
UD on Poor Shadow's teeth

Shadow always faffs about with his food rather than gobbles lilke the other bunnies - his appetite is really good but it just takes him a long time to eat because his teeth are wobbly and crumbly :cry::cry:

He was faffing about even more just recently and I noticed that he was developing a strange habit when drinking of reaching right over the bowl and drinking from the far side thus getting his chin and chest very wet in the process. That would seem to be that he was finding lapping the water more difficult because his lower incisors were too long.

His weight had dropped by 0.2kg in the last 3 weeks ago.

He's had another dental (only minor work so far). On Monday he had his lower incisors filed down, his upper incisors have both crumbled away now :( Whilst Ruth was checking the rest of his teeth a tooth came out when she removed the otoscope (it must have been really loose as he wasn't struggling), there was a sore patch around that area so it seems it must have been giving him trouble. Luckily he escaped the need for a GA dental through this tooth coming out. *Touch wood* he's eating much better since so hopefully the problem is sorted and no more work needed until the next crisis. I'm going to work on getting a bit more weight on him now.


Anybody out there feeding a growing rabbit on museli and letting them selective feed - please get them on pellets and get the calcium they need into them so they don't suffer like poor Shadow is doing - it's essential for their welfare!
 
:( Poor little man; I hope he gets the weight back on now that troublesome tooth has gone.
 
:( Poor little man; I hope he gets the weight back on now that troublesome tooth has gone.

FanQ for responding, Auntie Karen and for the good wishes.


I've been giving Shadow a separate meal every day for the last week and he's so funny how he is desperate to get in the carrier for his tea - no competition from Binky as he runs away when he sees the carrier :lol::lol: He's eating really well, and managing to chew better. He's having a bowl of soaked pellets to himself every evening. I weighed him tonight and I'm pretty sure he was 2.1kg.:D
 
Wee soul with sore teefs!

My Herbie has no front incisors or peg teeth at all, would this maybe help Shadow manage his food better?
 
Wee soul with sore teefs!

My Herbie has no front incisors or peg teeth at all, would this maybe help Shadow manage his food better?

Thanks. The vet he saw last week suggested it but as all his molars are wobbly and crumbly he doesn't have a lot going for him tooth-wise apart from his lower incisors. She said that if he needs them burring down every 6 months or so it might be preferable to taking them out altogether as he had nothing else to get hold of his food with. I don't know what the chances are of his upper incisors growing back and not crumbling away, so if they do then maybe the lower ones won't get so long. He's such a happy little soul, despite everything.:love:
 
I've been giving Shadow a separate meal every day for the last week and he's so funny how he is desperate to get in the carrier for his tea - no competition from Binky as he runs away when he sees the carrier :lol::lol:

:lol: I wonder if that would work with Alfie - I've been giving Bubbles extra food and it's hard to try to keep Mr Piggy's nose out of it. :roll:

I can't see mention anywhere of what Shadow's weight was before but, from your happy face, I'm guessing he's put some on, so that's great news. Keep up the good work. :D:D
 
:lol: I wonder if that would work with Alfie - I've been giving Bubbles extra food and it's hard to try to keep Mr Piggy's nose out of it. :roll:

I can't see mention anywhere of what Shadow's weight was before but, from your happy face, I'm guessing he's put some on, so that's great news. Keep up the good work. :D:D

Shadow was 2.0 kg last week. I was horrified when I dug this thread out because I had thought he was 2.2 kg when I was worried before - he was actually 2.4 kg .. so at 2.0 kg he really was thin :cry::cry:
 
Aaaaah, I saw that he was 2.4kg back when the thread was started but tried to do the maths with the weight loss you mentioned the other day and it didn't work. :oops: Now I know why. ;)

Bubbles probably lost around the same as Shadow in proportion to her starting weight. :( She's put a bit back on already and it's surprising what a difference it makes.
 
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