Paranoid!!

Hey!
I love this forum because I feel I'm learning a lot from other people's problems and stories, but I feel I'm becoming slightly paranoid. Every time I read about something to do with a bunny's medical problem I think 'oh god, what if my buns have that and I just don't know?!' For example, do you get your buns a full dental (with GA and all) as a standard thing, or only if they are showing signs of dental problems? Because if you can't see all the teeth when they are conscious how do you know- what if they are just hiding it? Has anyone ever had a bunny go through its life without big medical issues including dental??
Sorry for the paranoia- I was like this with my horses too and don't worry- I'm only this worried in my own head (and on this forum!)
X

I know how easy it is to become paranoid, believe me!
I worry about my two like they are my babies- because to me, they are.
The thing you need to remember is that as long as you are doing your best by.your buns that's all you can do. Vaccinating, neuter/spay, feed lots of unlimited hay, a good pellet feed, time to run around and have fun and the most important one- love!

I know, para para paranoid!! Yup, I do all those things
What do you reckon on the dental front?

Well in my opinion I would say it can depend largely on different factors for instance a nethie may be more likely to have dental issues due to the fact they have been breed small but still have to accomadate a full set of teeth. And it depends what sort of diet they are on, as if a bunny eats lots of hay it should keep the teeth in check but you can't control everything.

Reading all the problems bunnies and their owners go through on here, it can be quite worrying. I always try to bear in mind that we only ever really hear the negative stories - people post and ask for advice etc when there is a problem but, if their bunnies are fine, then we don't get to hear about them so much. (If that makes sense).

Bunnies are very good at hiding pain, which always makes problems more difficult to spot than in other animals; there are signs that we can look out for although sometimes unfortunately we can't always spot things immediately. There's a sticky in the health section which describes the sort of things you should be looking for and one of the best things you can do is get to know your bunnies inside out so that you know what's normal for them. That way, when they're acting out of character, it's hopefully much easier to pick up.

With dentals, it's a case of knowing what sort of symptoms you could expect to see and keeping an eye out for those. I probably wouldn't put a bunny through a dental 'just to check' but, if he/she was showing signs of dental problems yet the teeth seemed ok with a visual inspection, then that would be the sort of situation when my vet would consider a dental anyway.

Thank you both.

I have read the stickie, KarenM and am lucky not to have any of these issues. (Except sneezabun but the vet's already seen him).

Sophie x

Just know your bunnies and then you'll know if they're acting oddly. I do get their teeth checked when they go for vaccinations, but just with a scope. The only time I rush them in to the vets is if they're off their food or dribbling or sitting hunched up or doing other things which are not normal. And of course for other health issues.

I still find it good to read other people's stories. Once I read about a rabbit pulling off their nail and someone said they put flour on it to stop the bleeding. One day I came in from university and there was a huge panic, Grim had hurt himself somehow and there was blood everywhere, he'd got it all over the walls and kitchen cabinets. I checked him over, found it was a nail, put flour on it and he was fine. Then we found his nail stuck in the top of an old PC monitor which he's obviously climbed over and got it stuck in the vents. So it's useful to know all this information, but also when to use it.